Suckered: Man pays $447 for phone on Lazada, receives plastic straw instead

Sometimes what you see isn't what you get. 

Wanting to gift his wife a phone after her mobile plan expired, a man surnamed Zhang went on online shopping platform Lazada to look for a suitable model, reported Shin Min Daily News.

Taking advantage of the platform's monthly sale, the 55-year-old said he managed to snag a Samsung phone for $447, which he claimed was $180 cheaper than buying it from a brick-and-mortar store. 

A few days later, a small and flat package arrived at Zhang's house, which caused him to think that something was amiss. 

Opening it up, Zhang was greeted by a black plastic straw, instead of the phone he'd ordered. 

Zhang promptly asked the deliveryman to snap a few photos as evidence, and contacted Lazada for an explanation. 

Speaking to a reporter, Zhang said he had looked through the seller's profile before making the purchase. Although the profile was relatively new, he decided to go with it as there was a physical address listed. 

As a precaution, he even sent some of his friends screenshots of the listing prior to the purchase.

"They didn't find anything suspicious about it. That's why I made the purchase. Unfortunately I didn't get what I paid for." he lamented.

Police report made

Zhang shared that this isn't his first time doing online shopping – he'd previously received products that were of a different colour compared to what was advertised, but he has never received something that is such a far cry from what he ordered. 

"Lazada's customer service told me they would handle the matter, and they've asked me to send the goods back for verification. But so far I haven't received a reply from them, so I called the police." 

Responding to Shin Min's queries, the police confirmed that they've received the report.

Shin Min also spoke with the owner of the handphone shop who explained that they do not sell their products on Lazada. He added that they have since posted on Facebook warning customers about the fake profile on Lazada. 

Later, Zhang found out that he wasn't the only one who had fallen into the scammer's trap, and that there were five other buyers who were similarly duped.

Bummed out by this experience, Zhang said that he would only purchase mobile phones from physical stores from now on. 

Back in May, a woman ordered a stepladder worth $39.90 from Shopee, but ended up receiving a piece of cardboard. 

The woman, who goes by Gen, tried to confront the seller via text, but was stonewalled. She also requested for a full refund. 

"I hope this seller will be banned from selling," she told Stomp then. 

In an advisory released on Sept 15, the police advised members of the public to "remain vigilant" when purchasing electronic products online. 

When buying such items off online platforms, members of the public should only purchase from authorised sellers or reputable sources.

In addition, they can also opt for buyer protection, which is a built-in payment option that only releases payment to the seller upon delivery of products. 

ALSO READ: Scams involving fake Lazada and Shopee lucky draws see victims lose $247,000, police investigating

claudiatan@asiaone.com