Steve Ustin

The Worst Online Shopping Experience I’ve Ever Had

This has been, without question, the worst online shopping experience I have ever had.

The air conditioner I received arrived damaged. I immediately reported the issue, expecting the platform to protect the buyer when an item arrives defective.

Instead, I was repeatedly asked to return a very large and heavy item by self-shipping. I explained multiple times that I have health limitations and live alone, making it physically impossible for me to transport it. None of this was taken into consideration.

Customer service kept promising that my case would be escalated, but nothing ever changed. I spent hours contacting support, repeating the same explanation to different agents, only to receive the same scripted responses. In one case, an agent kept me waiting for a long time while supposedly working on my case, and the chat was automatically closed by the system for “no response” even though I was actively waiting.

I even tried to reach a reasonable solution with the seller, but the seller refused to cooperate. Instead of holding the seller accountable for shipping a damaged product, AliExpress placed the entire burden on me.

After shopping on many online marketplaces over the years, I have never experienced customer service this frustrating. This experience has completely destroyed my confidence in buying from AliExpress again.

My advice to anyone purchasing expensive or heavy items is simple think twice before ordering. If something goes wrong, don’t assume the platform will stand behind you.



Update:

AliExpress responded to my review and requested my order information, which I provided. However, several days have passed and I still have not received any actual solution or resolution.

This issue has already been ongoing for more than a month. I contacted the seller and AliExpress Customer Service multiple times, but the response has always been that the case would be escalated or reviewed by another team. Despite these repeated promises, no practical solution has been provided.

The original problem remains the same. The item arrived damaged, and I am still being asked to return a heavy damaged air conditioning unit at my own expense before receiving a refund.

I appreciate the response, but a response alone does not resolve the issue. I am still waiting for a fair and reasonable solution.