Website's and eBay Sellers Lying about Being Based in Australia. Can Anything Be Done?

mitcheo on 29/08/2016 - 13:05
Last edited 09/01/2018 - 15:39 by 2 other users

I have recently had an experience buying motorbike parts from a website that had AU in the company name / web address. Their homepage had a big Aussie flag on it and in there Q.A they said that there stock is shipped from Sydney NSW.

I was in quite a rush for parts so I wanted to buy from Sydney rather then cheaper from overseas. I was given an international tracking number and ignored when i questioned why the parts hadn't arrived in a couple days. I wasn't happy with being ignored so I opened a Paypal dispute (mainly because i knew they would respond) and they said "in rare cases some parts shipped from Korea" Which I know is a complete lie.

I've also noticed when you search eBay "Australia only" "price + postage lowest first" Sellers are doing the same thing and saying there items are located in Darwin NT or WA or sometimes just NSW.

Is there anything that can be done about being deceived like this? Or is it just a case of buying from well known reputable sellers / websites and if you want to bargain hunt expect to be deceived?

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Comments

  • tinyorca on 13/06/2017 - 22:42
    Merged from eBay sellers in Australia

    I am finding it more & more difficult to find Ebay sellers that are actually located in Australia selling and posting items on Australia.

    I'm going away in about 9 days but I want to buy a bluetooth shutter for my phone before I go. They are all over Ebay but I'm not sure I will actually get them in time as I'm not quite sure thry are legit.

    Are there any tips anyone has to make sure my items will actually come from Australia?

    Thanks

    • ronnknee on 13/06/2017 - 22:49
      +2

      You can actually filter the results by Item Location. Select "Australia Only".

      There is also an estimated arrival date.

      • spackbace on 14/06/2017 - 00:08
        +6

        As below, they advertise they're in Darwin when really shipping from HK

        • ronnknee on 14/06/2017 - 09:22

          Well yea it's not entirely foolproof but the intent of the filter is to filter results by item location. Like anything else, people aren't always honest on the internet and some judgement is required eg. looking at feedback, check if there's a warehouse locally etc.

      • tinyorca on 14/06/2017 - 11:23

        Sorry but this doesn't work anymore. I have had a lot of goods claiming to be from "AU" that actually come from China. Actually a lot of goods aren't in Australia even when they say "AU Stock"

        • ronnknee on 14/06/2017 - 11:32

          Again, it's about working with the information that we have ie. item location, feedback, item description, estimated arrival date. If the seller still manages to lie through all those, then there's nothing much that we can do.

          If you want a guarantee to have it before your trip, then purchase it for 3x more from a retail shop. Everything else is a gamble.

        • kenchan12311997 on 13/12/2018 - 15:01
          +1

          suppose ozBargain add one more rule that the seller needs to state which is Australian Inventory or Australian Stock. As per rules frrom ebay, Inventory means the real products are exactly locating in such places stated, aka, say Darwin Inventory, mean the goods are exactly locating in Darwin Australia, nothing meaning else. When interrupt the rule, eBay can even ban the account.

          I thinksuch rules helps the ozBargain people to prevent from getting mis-lead to make the wrong buying decision.

          I am from Hong Kong, I know exactly many people, who has reral address in Australia, maybe the family, school accomindation or even virtual drop ship address, however, when ship, still ship from Hong Kong, and when the address get trackable online, there are hard to dispute the money from PayPal.

    • xyzed on 13/06/2017 - 23:19
      +8

      Be careful of those that list Darwin, or some town top left of WA as they are really from China and using the location as an excuse for the delay in delivery. Wish eBay had a report seller location for those claiming they are in Australia, yet when the item arrives was actually posted from China days/weeks late.

      Best is to look at the estimated arrival date and lots of feedback for ‘fast postage’.

      • shmoney on 14/06/2017 - 00:00
        +1

        Wish eBay had a report seller location for those claiming they are in Australia, yet when the item arrives was actually posted from China days/weeks late.

        They do have a policy, but they don't do much about it

        • tinyorca on 14/06/2017 - 11:24

          I have complained a lot but I don't think eBay really care

    • [Deactivated] on 14/06/2017 - 00:42

      read the feedback, 99% gives you a good indication where it's local or not.

    • whooah1979 on 14/06/2017 - 06:29

      bluetooth shutter for my phone

      the first ten on the best match list is shipping from sydney or local.
      https://www.ebay.com.au/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_nkw=b…
      http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/301543037073

      • Apple96 on 14/06/2017 - 10:02
        +1

        Brought something from "Sydney" recently, its getting shipping though china post. so I can't even trust Sydney.

      • tinyorca on 14/06/2017 - 11:29

        flyingonline-oz: Apparently from Sydney but feedback says different, items never arriving, arriving late etc.
        izonaustralia: Also in Sydney with negative feedback about delivery times and items never arriving

        Sorry but I don't think they are in Sydney or local.

        • whooah1979 on 14/06/2017 - 12:21

          flyingonline-oz: Apparently from Sydney but feedback says different, items never arriving, arriving late etc.

          They're probably a dropshipper or 3pl located in Sydney. Some of these items are shipped from Rydalmere or silverwater.

    • websterp on 14/06/2017 - 10:38

      Also check where they are registered in and this is a very good indication about the seller's locality. This bit of information is found on the seller's feedback page and goes like "Member since: dd-mmy-yy in Country"

    • Mr Mrrtn on 15/06/2017 - 20:59

      reading recent feedback helps, you have to do a bit of research. you can also contact the seller, sometimes they answer honestly

    • lazyevenings on 16/06/2017 - 16:54

      This has pretty much killed my eBay business which is currently on life support. They are able to have items dropshipped from Asia, packaged in Sydney and delivered maybe 3-4 business days later than what we can do. Can you really blame eBay buyers for using these cheaper sellers when they list as being Aussie and the packaging suggests that they are as well? I wonder if the Netflix tax will change anything but I am sure they have already figured out a way around it.

      • whooah1979 on 11/07/2017 - 08:44

        3pl is the future of ecommerce. You should think about changing your business model to match your competitors.

        • lazyevenings on 11/07/2017 - 09:07
          +1

          Fair enough but I suppose that is not really the issue. EBay listings should say: "Item Location: Hong Kong. Delivery 3-6 business days" instead of "Item Location: Sydney, Australia. Delivery 3-6 business days". This allows the consumer to make an informed choice about where their money is going.

          From what I can tell Ebay is well aware that this is happening and don't care. A prominent retailer in my space does it and is often featured in eBay promotions.

          • tinyorca on 23/07/2017 - 11:06
            +1

            @lazyevenings: I couldn't agree more! We should have a right to choose where our items come from and not the dropship address in Australia. To me it is misleading and deceptive conduct which is against consumer law. But these laws rarely protect us anymore.

          • D C on 07/05/2018 - 19:17

            @lazyevenings: @rachyloulou:

            have a right to choose where our items come from

            Then start making stuff.

            Everything on eBay is Chinese so that's where the money ultimately goes.

            Some people are happy to pay the "Australia tax" in order to get their Chinese item quickly (but get screwed over anyway). Sort by 'Highest price+postage first' and you might have better luck.

    • Some Human on 19/06/2017 - 23:38

      For future reference, to view items from Australia:
      Filter- nearby - maximum distance: 50km from my location
      Or something like that.

      Australia only seems to mean sellers will ship to Australia only. And they could be sellers from anywhere.

      • tinyorca on 23/07/2017 - 11:10

        Australia only is listed under item location, not delivers to.

    • lazyevenings on 11/07/2017 - 08:37

      My better half purchased makeup from an eBay drop shipper that uses the Strawberry net framework (item located in Asia at time of purchase) on Friday. Purchased wine from Victoria on Thursday. The makeup went from Asia to Victoria and was just delivered to the ACT. The wine hasn't arrived.

  • GOCAT9 on 29/06/2017 - 12:09
    Merged from Misled by eBay Store- Misrepresentation of Item!

    Okay will probably classify this as a first world problem but I thought I'd get it off my chest.

    I purchased some photographic accessories from an online store on eBay. I could have bought it cheaper from China/Hong Kong but chose this particular store specifically because they said the item location was in NSW. I didn't have time to order it from China due to the 4+ week delay. I needed it before two weeks I have left before my overseas travels.

    Okay so I ordered and paid for it. After it was shipped I decided to be proactive and ask the seller to confirm that it was indeed shipped from Australia and not China/Hong Kong. The initial emails from them did not specifically answer my question but just said it would arrive soon. Subsequent emails asking for confirmation from where it was shipped were ignored. I smelt a rat. I think they were advertising that the item was located in Australia but were actually drop shipping out of China. I told them that unless they confirmed the origin of the shipping I would be reporting them to eBay for deceptive and misleading advertising and giving them negative feedback. They have not responded since to 2 emails!

    So I'm planning to do just that and move on – what else can I do?

    • MrHyde on 29/06/2017 - 12:23
      +1

      What was the estimated delivery time?

      Once it is passed that, raise an ebay or paypal dispute that the item has not arrived asking for a refund.

      • GOCAT9 on 29/06/2017 - 13:31
        -1

        Purchased on 26 June, expected arrival time=16 July. That's why my suspician was raised as to where it was shipped from.

    • currentfad on 29/06/2017 - 12:24

      Did any feedback suggest this was the case?

      • GOCAT9 on 29/06/2017 - 13:33

        They refused to confirm from where it was shipped- why wouldn't they want to do that? Were they trying to hide something?

        • altomic on 29/06/2017 - 14:51

          Did any feedback suggest this was the case?

    • ausdday on 29/06/2017 - 12:25

      This might help you:
      https://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/item-location.html

      It happens a lot. The city in Australia they like to use most, is in fact Darwin. As the usual delivery time between Darwin and other Major city is longer than norm.

      It happened to me before as well. I live in Darwin, and have the same thought of buying from Darwin will speed up the delivery. When I receive the packet 3 weeks later, it's definitely from China, due to the packaging and the ePostal label (I have bought enough items from ebay to tell the origins of item based on packaging :). However, I do not have the proof as the label doesn't mention the city of origin.

      When I confronted them, they put the blame on Auspost.

      • GOCAT9 on 29/06/2017 - 13:36

        Interesting, I once bought something from Darwin also and it took weeks to arrive I suspect what happened to me was what also happened to you they were miss representing and actually drop shipping from China and not Darwin

    • Clear on 29/06/2017 - 12:41

      Always check their profile before purchasing. That'll tell you if they're in Australia or not.

    • KitchenSink on 29/06/2017 - 13:54

      If the delivery is expected to be 2 weeks or more its most likely from overseas.

      Shipping in from state to state, city to city in Aus (even with Auspost) in my experience is 1 week at the most for most things.

  • drspy00 on 20/08/2017 - 14:54
    Merged from eBay Sellers Who Lie about Location, Why Is eBay Allowing This?

    I'm looking for a good deal for a new or used smartphone as my phone is broken and I can't believe how hard it is to tell what is actually Australian stock or international. I need the item now, or possibly pickup so I cant afford to get from overseas. I've found at least 5 sellers who are selling new phones at good deal prices but further research claims most of their feedback, the phone is not new and also not located in Australia and took months to arrive.

    Don't eBay have a rule that items must be located in Australia to have Australia as the location? It makes it really difficult when you are looking for items when half the listings are fraudulently listed as in Australia with people confirming it in their feedback.

    • mitcheo on 29/08/2016 - 13:05
      Merged from Website's and eBay Sellers Lying about Being Based in Australia. Can Anything Be Done?

      I have recently had an experience buying motorbike parts from a website that had AU in the company name / web address. Their homepage had a big Aussie flag on it and in there Q.A they said that there stock is shipped from Sydney NSW.

      I was in quite a rush for parts so I wanted to buy from Sydney rather then cheaper from overseas. I was given an international tracking number and ignored when i questioned why the parts hadn't arrived in a couple days. I wasn't happy with being ignored so I opened a Paypal dispute (mainly because i knew they would respond) and they said "in rare cases some parts shipped from Korea" Which I know is a complete lie.

      I've also noticed when you search eBbay "Australia only" "price + postage lowest first" Sellers are doing the same thing and saying there items are located in Darwin NT or WA or sometimes just NSW.

      Is there anything that can be done about being deceived like this? Or is it just a case of buying from well known reputable sellers / websites and if you want to bargain hunt expect to be deceived?

      • htrans on 29/08/2016 - 13:24
        +32

        I am also interested in this.

        It's happened to me before, buyer location was Darwin NT. Once item was purchased, I received an international tracking number and found my item was being shipped from HK.

        I personally chose to pay that little bit more to make sure I was receiving stock from within Australia for faster shipping. I waited 3 weeks for a package to come from "Darwin, NT"

        • Almost Banned on 29/08/2016 - 13:27
          +6

          Same here.
          I suspect the only thing that can be done is to lodge a Paypal dispute

        • SnoozeAndLose on 29/08/2016 - 16:30
          +1

          Just get a refund for item is not as describe then if needed return the item back and seller is responsible for the return postage.

        • MrTweek on 29/08/2016 - 16:32
          +4

          Yeah, pretty much everything on ebay from Darwin is being shipped from somewhere in Asia.
          I ordered a couple of these things, from different sellers and they were all shipped from Bangkok. And I suspect they are all the same seller as well, just different accounts.

          One item broke, so I asked for a return for warranty and they gave me an address in Thailand. When I said, I bought it from Australia, so I won't send it overseas to return, they just gave me my money back without a word.

        • SirFlibbled on 30/08/2016 - 16:17
          +17

          With Aussie post, it probably would have been quicker to come from China rather than Darwin lol

          • StopThatBus on 30/08/2016 - 21:10

            @SirFlibbled: Yh whats with that.. Letter/post last week 10 Days from Victoria to South Australia.
            Most is pretty quick. Some is mega slow..and some fail to arrive.

        • battler on 30/08/2016 - 23:14
          +1

          same. paid a dollar extra on a $5 item to get it from australia as I was in a hurry for the item (~2 weeks)
          arrived from overseas day before I needed it.
          Koala-OK was the ebay seller. Will not use them again for their supposed Darwin-NT stock.
          Asked ebay chat about what I could do, they pretty much dismissed me.

          • htrans on 31/08/2016 - 11:32

            @battler: I have had the same issues with that same seller "Koala-OK" too.

            I'll be raising a dispute next time I come across the same issue.

      • [Deactivated] on 29/08/2016 - 13:32
        +1

        Link to the seller?

        • Savas on 29/08/2016 - 15:37
          +2

          Pretty much all sellers that sell their product slightly cheaper

      • apple2016 on 29/08/2016 - 13:38
        -6

        I think even if the seller is based in AU the item that you have ordered was not labeled as AU made. Or was it labeled as AU made?
        Shipping cost is mush cheaper if shipping from some Asian countries rather than shipping from AU.
        I know some Ebay sellers do this just to avoid high shipping cost.
        If the Item was advertised as made in AU and if it was not made in AU then you should be able to use Ebay/Paypal buyer protection.

        • k-rokfm on 29/08/2016 - 13:48
          +8

          I think the issue that theyre saying here is that the item specifically states that the item ships from NSW/Australia but then it is coming from outside Australia. So they are deliberately stating something thats not right for situations like this where people want items shipped quickly. Thus getting more business.

          OP you should definitely be giving them a very bad rating once the item has arrived and the seller doesnt do anything (refund part of the cost or anything like that)

          • Euphemistic on 01/09/2016 - 16:21

            @k-rokfm: Regardless of the response form the seller you should be posting negative feedback.

            I experienced similar. Picked an item from 'darwin' and recieved it obviously from somewhere else. Messaged the seller and they said sorry, we will refund if you still leave positive feedback. I refused that and left the negative feedback as it was only a cheap item (<$5). I also contacted ebay.

        • MrTweek on 29/08/2016 - 16:37

          It's not about where it's made, but where it's shipped from.

          The problem is that mail from outside Australia can take anything between 1 and 8 weeks to arrive.
          If I need something quicker than that, I order from dealers in Melbourne or Sydney. This is usually more expensive, but I know that it should arrive within 2-4 days.

          I find it reasonable to give a negative review in these case. If enough people would do that, they'd struggle to keep their business running like that.

          • apple2016 on 29/08/2016 - 17:51
            -6

            @MrTweek: Well I was just trying to address the point "Website's and eBay Sellers Lying about Being Based in Australia".
            In this case I feel the seller could be based in Australia and probably also pays taxes in Australia.
            Its the fulfillment is done from overseas. I don't see any issues in this.

            If you are claiming that the ebay listing is misleading because of delivery times stated, then I agree with you.
            But not sure if you would be able to get a refund due to the delivery time frame.

            • MrTweek on 29/08/2016 - 21:35
              +11

              @apple2016: Ebay calls this "item location" and not "country where seller is registered for tax purposes".
              I don't even care where they pay taxes, or if at all. All I care about is whether I get my usb charger in 3 days or 6 weeks. That is an issue for me. If I have the time, I order directly from China for half the price.

          • meong on 30/08/2016 - 17:49
            +6

            @MrTweek: This.

            I no longer cared about contacting the sellers. I chose to leave negative reviews due to the above. At least other potential buyers can see it.

      • ode1online on 29/08/2016 - 13:44
        +6

        A lot of sellers are very sneaky, they usually call themselves OZZYPC or OZZYCAMERA or OZZYLIGHTS etc and claim they have Australian Warehouses but if out of stock they Might have to ship from there HONG KONG warehouse. It is usually hidden in the description. You can REPORT an item on eBay, but I'm an unsure if that's a category you can report them on.

        • sys2061 on 29/08/2016 - 14:28
          +20

          Yes, it is a category you can report on. After you click on the link "Report item" on the listing page, choose these on the "File a report" page:

          Report category: Listing practices
          Reason for report: Other listing practices
          Detailed reason: Item location misrepresentation

          I've reported a few items. If we keep reporting them, maybe they'll do something…

          • mitcheo on 29/08/2016 - 14:32
            +3

            @sys2061: thanks will start doing it.

          • whodidthat on 29/08/2016 - 16:35
            +2

            @sys2061: Good luck with that

          • Aceboy884 on 31/08/2016 - 04:27
            -2

            @sys2061: Ozgameshop.com is a typical crimal of such offense

            • Vanit on 31/08/2016 - 09:09
              +3

              @Aceboy884: I think you're being a bit unfair here. There's a bit of history to Ozgameshop such that it makes sense. Ozgameshop used to be just http://www.365games.co.uk/, but they noticed they were sending a lot of games to Australia (this is maybe 7 years ago when Call of Duty was going for $120 and Australian game prices were way out of hand), so they made an Australian purpose store with prices in AUD.

            • corneliu on 31/08/2016 - 10:07
              +2

              @Aceboy884: OzGameshop clearly specify they are based in UK and all items ship from UK on their about page.

            • Aceboy884 on 31/08/2016 - 21:31

              @Aceboy884: @corneliu:

              It's the name that implies they are from OZ
              Read the thread fan boy

      • whodidthat on 29/08/2016 - 13:53
        +6

        As far as on ebay, they are SUPPOSED to take action when item location is misleading but I wouldn't bother trying to report any. ebay don't care, especially when those types of sellers are bringing the money in.
        Despite ebay saying they want people to feel comfortable and have a positive buying experience, all they are really interested in is getting as much money as possible.
        Sad but true. Certainly not what ebay used to be like.

        With websites, you could try Fair Trading as it is deceitful practice.

        Oh and yes, I've come across it before. I wanted something quick so ordered from one supposed to be in Sydney.
        Took a month to arrive - from China.

        • MrTweek on 29/08/2016 - 16:40

          My guess is, ebay doesn't do anything because they rarely get reported for this. Of course they don't kick a huge customer out because of one report, but if enough people complain, they probably will take action.

          You are blaming ebay of doing nothing even though you can't be bothered complaining yourself. That's not how it works.

          • whodidthat on 29/08/2016 - 16:44
            +1

            @MrTweek: Who said I haven't complained to them?
            I have - many times, as have plenty of others I know.
            That's how I know they do nothing.

            Same as all the fake and misleading items.

            I even put my quids worth in at PeSa just over two years ago, directly to Jooman Park - results? ZERO

      • altomic on 29/08/2016 - 14:02
        +16

        leave negative feedback.

      • mitcheo on 29/08/2016 - 14:20
        +2

        i have noticed it normally doesnt take the usual 3 - 6 weeks, its a little quicker. But definately not 2 or 3 days like it should when coming 5 hours from where they claim to send there stock from.

        The problem is with paypal and ebay to report you have to choose a category. With the motorcycle website i chose "item not received" but in the end the parts came so from paypals point of view i got the parts thats the end of it.

        With ebay ill start leaving negative feedback and i hope others do aswell, as long as i cant receive it back.

        • silverrat23 on 29/08/2016 - 15:10
          +2

          With ebay ill start leaving negative feedback and i hope others do aswell, as long as i cant receive it back.

          Sellers can't leave negative feedback (not sure if this used to be the case). The only options are 'Positive' or 'I'll leave feedback later'.

      • juventino on 29/08/2016 - 14:22
        +3

        the warehouse is just a front. They are basically dropshippers. You ordered from them, they asked the supplier in China to send. Easy money. Dont even have to get out of the house.

        • mitcheo on 29/08/2016 - 14:24
          +2

          Thats it, hence why i asking if we can do anything about it.

          • PJC on 29/08/2016 - 15:26

            @mitcheo: They took your money, you're telling the truth, so … name and shame, perhaps as a warning to others.

      • Mumbles on 29/08/2016 - 18:46
        +2

        Try using eBay and PayPal's buyer protection systems to make it costly to do business with you. Purchase 1000 of the same items that shipped from overseas. When they arrive from outside NSW raise a dispute with PayPal (item not as described). If PayPal consider it a dispute they might freeze their sellers PayPal account. Mail all the items back at the expense of the seller/PayPal protection.

        Rinse and repeat with other eBay accounts until PayPal refuses to refund you or they ban the seller from having an account on eBay/PayPal.

        • pandabun on 30/08/2016 - 10:23

          Problem is your account will get flagged by Paypal when you raise certain number of dispute.
          I think there was an ozbargainer whose Paypal got blocked or banned or something similar.

          Unless of course, you can be bothered creating 1000 different Paypal accounts.

      • Sunshines bright on 29/08/2016 - 20:56
        +1

        I paid 2400.00 for a computer on a website I thought was located in Australia. WRONG!!! Found out through web reviews that the are in Hong Kong. Waited over 30 days, no item. Asked for money back and about 10 days later they took the web site down, wrote me they were in liquidation in hong kong. I took it to NSW fair trade before I knew, then they recommended I go through the tribunal, it is a pending case right now, but not looking good.

        • bluedufflecoat on 30/08/2016 - 07:49
          +3

          Paid with credit card? Charge back?

        • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 30/08/2016 - 22:54
          +1

          How can you have a pending case against a HK company? Jurisdiction?

          • Sunshines bright on 31/08/2016 - 07:35

            @Typical16-bitEnjoyer: This is part of the conundrum, they are authorized to sell in Australia and have an ABN number for it. I was told if they have an ABN I can get the Tribunal to force them to pay me back.

            BUT what I am learning as I go with this case is that they (Valuebasket.com) have set up different companies with the same/similar names to make it hard to hold them accountable. The main part of said company and maybe even its parts are based in HK but I did not know this when I made the purchase.

            Now I get a message from the company through the tribunal that I am addressing the "wrong" company so they can not be held accountable. Claiming that I should be addressing a Hong Kong Based company. It is all getting way too confusing, and I go to the Tribunal on Friday to look into what can be done.

            Your probably right and I have been screwed big time by the whole thing and since the company is located in Hong Kong I will not get my money back no matter how hard I try or who I go through… but for over 2000.00 it is worth giving it a try.

            One thing I did want to accomplish when I started (besides getting my money back) was to get Australia to stop allowing them to trade in Australia. Well my efforts did not get the Aussie Govt to stop them but they no longer have a web presence now, they shut down the web site (all of them in all countries) when I started all of this and sadly for me have gone into administration which will probably prevent me from ever seeing my money.

      • Clear on 30/08/2016 - 07:08
        -5

        Just click on their profile and it'll say if they're in Australia or not.

      • lazyevenings on 30/08/2016 - 08:01
        +6

        As has been mentioned, eBay doesn't really care as long as they get their money. My business sells on eBay and our two biggest competitors state the item locations as Australia but both drop ship from Hong Kong and all items are located in HK at the time of purchase. The items arrive in Australia 2-3 business days later, are packaged by logistics at Mascot and sent with Australia Post. We have complained to eBay many times but they never respond. One of these sellers is clearly very important to eBay as they are often featured in the special % off promotions. The problem is that it is done deliberately so that these sellers can promote themselves as being trustworthy and Australian. If buyers knew the item was coming from HK they would be more likely to pay a little extra to purchase from an Australian seller instead.

      • [Deactivated] on 30/08/2016 - 10:36

        I have always used the Item Location Australia filter
        and this is the new practice the dubious sellers do to get there.

        I bought 2 phones listed as australia
        4 weeks later i called the seller and they claim awaiting on stock from over seas

        They are Just in Time sellers, Selling items 'Located in Australia' but really themselves ordering the item on demand, delivered to themselves and then on delivering locally.

        I've found plenty of items i have purchased recently appearing to come from overseas and get repackaged and shipped locally after significant delays.
        They also in many cases ship directly from overseas, I don't like my address being given to some 3rd party wholesalers

        Resulting in 2-8 week delivery windows.

      • lainey13 on 30/08/2016 - 10:40

        What did the estimated date of delivery say? You checked that first yeah?

        • [Deactivated] on 30/08/2016 - 11:57

          same day shipping

          but you can look back and say yes that was true because same day shipping from the wholesaler might be true

      • Charity on 30/08/2016 - 11:57

        Click on where they registered their account. (click on their username)

        If it is reg'ed from anywhere other than Aus, one should be weary.

      • brakenick on 30/08/2016 - 12:26
        +4

        There are handful of sellers all in 'Darwin' that sell the same products that do this. I have bought an item from them and it was delivered faster than the usual China airmail but it wasn't sent from within Australia. I use the location search for within 2000km of 2000 which gets Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne sellers and excludes Darwin to get local listings.

        I run a small eBay store and have to compete with these sellers on my own listings. I doubt eBay would do anything about it as removing them would cut a lot of profit for them.

        • whodidthat on 30/08/2016 - 12:56
          +1

          Small being the clue here.

          ebay do not care about "the little guy" who got their business to where it is now (albeit in a mess). They now prefer to chase "the big guy" as in big name sellers or sellers selling almost millions of items (often dropshipped). This group being called "diamond sellers". They ignore bad practices by this group but hammer small sellers for an insignificant "infringement" of their rules.

      • [Deactivated] on 30/08/2016 - 13:52

        On certain items known to be problematic, drop the seller a message before you buy and you'll have a better case later on and an indication of how Australian the operation is. It's a pain, but any ebay item that does not have the u-beaut actual item picture probably has some small trick or quirk somewhere.

      • netsurfer on 30/08/2016 - 14:57
        +2
        • Check the seller's feedbacks, negative and neutral feedbacks are generally more useful than positive ones.
        • Check the ratings, there is one for postage time.
        • If the item is already cheap and the postage is free or unusually low, then it is a sign the item might be located overseas.

        It is actually not the item located overseas being an issue. I purchased items located overseas before and the seller posted using DHL or other express couriers. They arrived within 2-3 business days. Even for local sellers, if the item is located in WA, and you live in NSW, VIC or QLD (or the other way around, you live in WA and the seller is in NSW for example), with standard postage, unless you purchase the item on the correct day(s) of the week (and the seller is experience enough to know the best days to post the items), you could very well end up waiting more than 7 days to get your item.

        You generally don't buy items you need urgently from feeBay, unless you are willing to pay for the expensive fast postage (or the items are cheap enough that the DHL postage (which at the end of the day, you are still the one paying for it, even if the seller listed as free postage) is not an issue.

      • cheesecactus on 30/08/2016 - 16:44
        +3

        Pretty much everything in Darwin, NT is from china. They usually arrive in 2-3 weeks in my experience. So not the slowest china post, but not from australia.

        • cdaddy on 01/09/2016 - 16:47

          Yep it's always the flogs with "location Darwin". Leave negative review and PayPal dispute and you get the item free.

      • Janko on 30/08/2016 - 17:39

        Ordered some heatshrink from Darwin - still waiting for it 3 weeks later and had to go to Bunnings to buy as couldn't wait any longer. I know the scam now at least. Not even thinking twice about leaving neg feedback.

        Not sure ebay (or gumtree) give a toss about things like this. For instance, there's a coffee machine company in Sydney advertising machines on gumtree where drilling down the listing reveals it's an ex-GST price and the warranty is parts only. He's survived there for ages.

      • Parentheses on 30/08/2016 - 17:56
        +3

        Dispute the transaction, get the item for free, leave negative feedback.

        I love finding those sellers, it's so easy to rip them off (and completely guilt free, nothing wrong with scamming a scammer).

      • uppitt on 30/08/2016 - 20:52

        I bought something recently where the item location was Darwin NT, and thought it was dodgy after a while, especially when the item took longer then expected to arrive. I bought the more expensive item thinking it was in Australia, when it was some 40% cheaper if buying from a seller where it was listed in China or Hong Kong. But seeing how others have had the same experience, my gut feelings are confirmed.

      • Cyberninja on 30/08/2016 - 21:47

        ebayPolicy states following. Not sure how promptly ebay responds.

        Sellers must be clear and accurate about the location their item will be shipped or picked up from. We don't allow false, inaccurate, vague, or misleading information about the location of an item in the Item location field or description. When listing items for sale, sellers are expected to provide the city, state and country of their item so shipping charges and delivery times can be accurately calculated and communicated to buyers. Also, if there is a location stated in the item description, it has to match the location in the item location field. Make sure your listing follows these guidelines. If it doesn't, it may be removed, and you may be subject to a range of other actions, including limits of your buying and selling privileges and suspension of your account.

      • UFO on 31/08/2016 - 00:27
        +3

        What to do? Easy…

        Dispute with Ebay, then negative feedback AFTER you receive your goods.

        If I'm buying anything substantial from Ebay, I always check neg history.

        Some of these cheap Asian sellers will also hold your money/item until negative feedback is removed (in the case of items not being received in the first place). Keep my $1, and you keep my neg. I'll reverse credit card transaction separately.

        Don't change negative feedback when a seller finally wants to do the right thing! For every seller that does this, another buyer is ripped off!

        Best way to weed out crooks!

      • bozbargain on 31/08/2016 - 09:33
        +2

        Their homepage had a big Aussie flag on it

        Ironic in a way that this is your best indicator (or should I say 'flag') that the seller is in fact not based in Australia.

      • OzzyOzbourne on 31/08/2016 - 11:41

        It's definitely an increasing problem.

        You also end up having to return items to overseas addresses when they go wrong, even when they state they are based in Australia.

        Neither PayPal nor eBay were interested when I reported this issue.

        The seller will then not pay for postage and you have to try to claim through PayPals 3rd party postage claim service, which has not worked for me amd there's no way to track or follow up your claim.

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