There it was on Instagram, the sofa cover I searched for months. It just popped up on my feed. On sale, last chance to buy only today with 50% discount. Who can resist that kind of offer? I quickly clicked on “Shop Now” in the next 2 minutes my transaction was completed. The confirmation mail followed 5 minutes later: “Thank you for your order. The delivery time is between 9 and 15 working days. When the order is ready you receive a mail”.
I didn’t expect such a long delivery time, but my consolation was the discount. Waiting a bit longer than usual won’t kill me right? Besides I am familiar with the Dropshipping business model of many web shops in the Netherlands. Not that I am fond of it, but because of my excitement finding the right cover. I wasn’t too bothered. I didn’t even check the delivery time beforehand, which I normally do when I buy online from unknown shops. So clearly my sloppiness had to come with unpleasant consequences.
Over 25 working days had passed by, still no mail in my inbox. Not even a Track and Trace code. As if I never bought the cover in the first place. I sent a friendly reminding email. Maybe the Corona measures delayed their delivery process. Besides the customer service of Dropshipping companies are not always on point. But this was not one of those experiences I had with Dropshippers.
Like a patient saint I sent another mail 14 days later. This time I told them to cancel the order and return my money, or else they will be in legal trouble. My mail bounced back with the message unable to deliver. Instantly I went on their website to look for a phone number or company address. None! It hit me, I was duped!
I started searching for company reviews on independent sites. I read multiple outcries about the same discounted sofa covers that were never delivered. Even reviews of no delivery dated back as early as April. Aha,I was not the only impulsive “Mugu” that fell for this fake deal.
My first time being scammed online. What could I have done to avoid this situation? These five steps below would have stopped me from my rush to buy, what I thought was a “good deal”.
1.Contact Section
Check if there are proper contact details, such as address, phone number and the chamber of commerce number on the website. As well as other vital information about the company before you make any payment
2.Delivery time and Return Policy
Normally I receive goods from online Dutch web shops within 2-4 days max. Unless if its a dropship business, it usually takes weeks before the order is at your doorstep. Last year I ordered mascara from a Dutch web shop. It took 21 days before I received it. That’s when I knew the product is coming direct from (mostly) China.
Also the return policy must have a return address on their website and other terms and conditions.
3.Who.is or urlvoid.com
Presents to you who runs the website. The site registers company details such as: name, location, address and phone number. These details should have some similarities to the contact section of the website. If the online company is registered in another country of operation, there is 99 % chance that it’s a fake shop.
4. Methods of Payments
There should be various options for payments available rather than only PayPal and Ideal. Credit card options can reverse the transaction much easier. With a non-payment card option you pay after receiving the goods. If there is only one method of payment on the website it’s a red flag not to avoid.
Also check for the padlock next to website’s Url, which is needed for the security during payments. If the website you want to buy from has no padlock be aware that you are dealing with a fraudulent shop.
5. Reviews
This is the fastest way to find out if a website is a fraud by checking reviews typing the company name + reviews on Google search. Never blindly rely on the reviews of the company’s website. If you are among the first buyers don’t expect to see many (bad) reviews of the company.
Try a more detailed check by taking every steps to find out the legitimacy of the company. If I had gone through the reviews before the purchase I would have backed down for sure.
If something is too good to be true, often it is, especially online. You don’t always know who is behind the shops you buy from. There are people out there that make a “good” living from these kind of knock-offs.
My impulsiveness made me an easy target. I did not crosscheck any step, my bad. This was the lesson I needed to learn to become more cautious of online thieves disguising as web shops.
A final step could be to report the fake shop to the police. Even though I know I will not get the sofa cover or money refunded. Guess it is the kind of protocol you have to follow if someone stole from you, right? I am still contemplating if it is worth my precious time to make a report. Since the website does not exist anymore. These online thieves reached their € target and moved on. They won’t stop. So beware where you buy your products online.
Have you been scammed before online? How do you avoid it? Share your experience. What do you think of the me know tips? Do you want more details on the company that duped me or how I handled it further? Drop your comments below.
Images from:
Morning Brew – Unsplash (cover thumbnail)
Elijah Hiett – Unsplash
Sergey Zolkin – Unsplash
Roberto Cortese – Unsplash
NOTE: last edited date is only for correcting layout, typos and grammar errors of the post not the content!
