After weeks of searching for two bar stools for our condo, we finally decided to order from Lazada Philippines. They’re the only shop that carries the design we’re looking for and we want to have stools for our dining area already so we had no choice.
I love Lazada Philippines – for their items like Ikea organizers – but I refrain from buying items over P3,000 from them because of the horror stories I’ve read online. But, since they have the stools we’ve been looking for and we needed those ASAP, we clicked ‘Buy’ with closed eyes.
The day came – our much awaited dining area stools arrived. We assembled the first of the two stools and were very happy because it looks perfect with our dining area.
Then, we opened the next box. The first part we took out was the cylinder stand. We saw a few scratches, but we shrugged it off because we don’t want to go through the hassle of returning the products. So, what’s a few scratches, right? The other parts of the stool came out – the seat, the stand, then the ring.
To our horror, the ring was broken into three.
I immediately called the delivery guy, but he didn’t answer.
I called Lazada Philippines via their hotline (02) 795-8900. My call was immediately answered (a big improvement after my first experience) and I was given two options: Replace or Refund.
What to do if Lazada delivers a damaged item
If you wish to have your item replaced or would rather get a refund, you need to re-package the item to its original packaging. Everything must be placed back in: all parts of the item, receipts, info sheets, etc. Head to Lazada.com.ph then go to My Orders (under My Account). The delivery status must be marked Completed for you to request replacement or refund. This is usually updated 24 hours after your item has been delivered.
You will need to request for Refund or Replacement via the website, print it out, then attach the print-out to your package. Bring it to the nearest LBC store so they can ship it back to Lazada for evaluation. Item returns are FREE so you shouldn’t be charged anything for this.
We decided not to return our items or get a refund because we didn’t want to go through disassembling the tools, repackaging them, and bringing the package to LBC. Time-wise, this is not possible for us because our schedules are booked from 5 AM to 5 PM – no kidding. Also, the item has been fully paid so we were scared that if we returned it, it might not come back. I’ve read lots of complaints about this so it really happens!
So yes, we’re keeping the item…even if it’s damaged. We’ll just have to have it repaired. Our only concern is, we believe Lazada knew the item is damaged and still packed it and delivered it to us. Why? Because our item came with a report pasted on the box about the item being damaged.
Lazada Philippines knew the item was damaged, yet they still delivered it to us
You see, our two stools came in two separate boxes, placed in one bigger box. There were no notes whatsoever in the big box, so we didn’t see the report right away. The report was pasted on one of the smaller boxes, which you will only see when you pry open the bigger box. It states:
It looks like the item has been delivered to someone else then returned to Lazada because of damages on June 7, 2016. Despite this, Lazada still delivered the item to us. Quality control = ZERO points.
I appreciate that they have return-and-exchange and refund options in place. However, aside from it being a huge hassle, it’s also a bit scary to return the items especially if there are a lot of complaints about returns/refunds not pushing through after so long.
However, it’s unacceptable that they delivered a damaged item even if they already know that it’s damaged. The report pasted on the box is very clear, so I don’t understand why they’d send it to a new buyer.
Will I buy from Lazada Philippines again?
Smaller items, yes. But expensive ones like the stools we got? Never again!