GearBest Scam!

[karl001]

Dear PayPal Community!

TL; DR: Chinese webstore GearBest sent me a phone which does not match the product description. It is a scam. I paid with PayPal. PayPal want me to pay return shipping on the product. Return shipping to China cost's as much as the phone. I am angry and out of options so I came here to seek help or consolation. Details below:

I need your help. I have ordered an X50 Plus smartphone from GearBest for 65,30 USD. The phone was listed as in stock with two weeks priority shipping as the only shipping option. I waited for three months for it to arrive. Never mind, I could live with this delay and the fun part began only after I received the product. It was advertised with the following specifications: X50 Plus Smartphone MT6763 Octa Core 5.8 inch 4GB RAM 64GB ROM Android 10.0 8MP + 13MP Cameras 4800mAh Battery Face ID Fingerprint Recognition.

This is the link to the item on GearBest: https://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_009386671774.html?wid=1433363

Looking at it closely it has the following specifications: Android: 4.4.2, CPU: MT6572, CPU Max Frequency: 1001 Mhz, CPU Cores: 2, RAM: 974 MB, Internal Storage: 1.27 GB (285 MB Free), Display Resolution: 480x960, Back Camera: 3.7 Megapixels, Front Camera: 0.9 Megapixels and NO fingerprint sensor. Only one of the four cameras work on the back. The item's hardware description do not match reality. In fact I feel scammed. The phone is barley usable, because of the slow CPU the whole system is sluggish. The Android version 4.4.2 is not supported by nowadays apps. It is not possible to use it with a headset, somehow otherwise good headsets do not work with it. I have tried it with several headsets. I drive a lot, so this is a big problem for me. If I have known the truth I would not have made the purchase.

The video I made about it: https://mega.nz/file/jYoxXSZT#oN3jXAbAVTAKtesXJTS8G9CdlW4O77DEft4sJS1SiEI

All the pictures I made about it: https://mega.nz/folder/HdhTlYTS#_rSV8vrJXoo5PJpGQecmwg

GearBest offered me a partial refund of 10.9 USD which is unacceptable. Or a full refund if I pay the return postage. Which is also unacceptable. I will not pay the return postage for a scam sell. Even with a full refund I will be at a loss, because I paid 20 USD in taxes and another 20 USD for the import procedure. All this for an unusable phone.

I have purchased several times over the years from GearBest. I was satisfied with them for a long time but having thoroughly researched the subject it seem now that their behavior have changed. They are blocking the bad reviews on the phone for example. And they want me to pay return postage. This is clearly malignant seller behavior.

I will not pay return postage on a scam sell. I think it is over the top. Here is an another customer who bought the same phone as me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8z4_k5Hhb40
An article about the behavior of GearBest lately: https://www.gizchina.com/2021/03/10/gearbest-is-a-fraud-ready-to-close-down/

This case is exactly the case why I pay with PayPal. After a couple of emails back and forth from GB without any real progress I thought this is the time when PayPal-s buyer protection will come in handy.  So I decided to ask for help from PayPal. I completely trusted PayPal by the way. Oh boy I was so wrong.

I have presented my case to PayPal. GearBest offered a full refund IF I ship the phone back to China. Shipping to China cost as much as the phone. I have one more option in the dispute resolution center: to upload the tracking number of the return package. I know, PayPal is a business and the seller pays the fee's for PayPal, but this is over the top. Now I was scammed by two companies. And the latter was supposed to protect me from the prior 😄 What are your thoughts on this? Thank you for your time.

Cheers, <removed> 

[kernowlass]

@karl001 

Chinese Web Sites or on Social Media ads easy to spot (once you know the below signs) so buyer beware.

Paypal would not be able to check every individual seller / merchant / company in over 200 countries worldwide that adds paypal to their website to accept payments.

So they give you 'some' buyer protection but the onus is on you to risk assess your transactions.

They do stop bad companies from using Paypal when enough claims start rolling in.
However as they are in China (mostly) then its easy for them to just start over with a new name, so stopping them does not really do anything.

The best thing is to not buy from them in the first place, to recognise them -

1. No return address on the returns policy. The site will look as if its in your country (where they despatch goods from) but they will ask for returns to go back to China (returns depot) at a shipping cost often more than the item is worth.
2. No contact telephone number. if you click on contact the most you will get is webmail or an email address.
3. Rarely company address information.
4. Great pictures of items at bargain prices that turn out to be tat.
5. Fake reviews.
6. Google and you can often see previous company names as they change them once enough claims roll in and Paypal stop them using their services and start over.
7. Send fake tracking numbers to win item non receipt of item claims.

In the event of a dispute you choose your seller and not Paypal so you need to bear in mind possible return trackable costs before you go ahead and buy from that seller / country.

Paypal state this >>
IMPORTANT: You may be required to return the item to the seller or other party we specify as part of the settlement of your claim. PayPal Buyer Protection does not entitle you to reimbursement for the return shipping costs that you may incur.

Although they will compensate you for some of the cost if you have activated this at some point before you made that transaction.
https://www.paypal.com/us/smarthelp/article/FAQ3544

You also have the option to do a chargeback via your card issuer instead of a Paypal dispute if you funded your Paypal payment via a credit card.