How to get a refund

I. Confirm refund eligibility

 

1. Familiarize yourself with the refund policy
   • Carefully review the refund policy of the independent e – commerce website. These policies can usually be found in sections such as “Help Center”, “After – sales Service”, “Refund Policy” at the bottom of the website. Focus on the conditions under which refunds are allowed, for example, whether the goods can be returned within a certain period (such as 7 days, 14 days, or 30 days after receiving the goods), and whether the goods need to be in an intact, unused state with complete packaging.
   • At the same time, pay attention to the refund regulations for some special goods. For example, customized goods, perishable goods, personal care products (once opened), etc. may not be eligible for refund unless there are quality problems with the goods themselves.
2. Determine that the refund reason complies with the policy
   • Based on your situation, judge whether the refund reason complies with the refund policy of the independent e – commerce website. Common refund reasons include quality problems of the goods (such as damage, defects), the goods not matching the description (such as color, size, function, etc.), and no longer wanting the goods (in cases where it meets the returnable time range and the requirements for the state of the goods).

II. Submit a refund application

 

1. Apply for a refund through the website’s refund function (if available)
   • Log in to your account on the independent e – commerce website and find the “My Orders” or “Order History” page. On this page, locate the order of the goods for which you want a refund.
   • Click on the order details to see if there is a “Request Refund” button. If so, after clicking the button, fill in the refund reason, refund amount (if partial refund is possible), etc. according to the system prompts. Some independent e – commerce websites may also require you to upload relevant supporting documents, such as photos of quality problems of the goods, records of communication with customer service, etc.
   • After completion, submit the refund application. The system will inform you that the application has been submitted and may tell you the approximate review time.
2. Contact customer service to apply for a refund (if the website has no refund function)
   • Look for the customer service contact information of the independent e – commerce website. Generally, you can find the customer service phone number, customer service email address, or online customer service chat window in the “Contact Us” section at the bottom of the website.
   • When contacting customer service, inform them of the order number for which you want a refund, the purchased product information, and the refund reason. Provide relevant details as required by the customer service, such as the purchase time, payment method, and the current state of the product. The customer service will record your refund application and inform you of the subsequent processing flow and the approximate review time.

III. Wait for the refund application to be reviewed

 

1. Review time range
   • The independent e – commerce website usually reviews refund applications within a certain period. Under normal circumstances, the review time may be 1 – 3 working days, but during peak sales periods, busy business periods, or in complex situations (such as the need to further verify product problems), the review time may be extended.
2. Notification of review results
   • You will receive a notification of the refund application review results via email, in – site message, or text message. If the review is passed, the notification will include details related to the refund, such as the refund amount, the estimated refund time, and the refund method; if the review is not passed, the notification will explain the reason, such as the goods not meeting the refund conditions, incomplete application information, etc.

IV. Refund processing

 

1. Refund to the original payment method (common way)
   • If the refund application is approved, the independent e – commerce website will usually refund the money back to your original payment method. For example, if you paid with a credit card, the refund will be returned to the credit card account; if you paid through PayPal, the refund will be returned to the PayPal account.
   • The time for refunds to be credited to different payment methods varies. Credit card refunds may take 3 – 7 working days to show in the account, depending on the processing speed of the bank; PayPal refunds are usually faster and may be completed within 1 – 3 working days; refunds to e – wallets (such as Alipay, WeChat Pay) also take a relatively short time, approximately 1 – 3 working days.
2. Other refund methods (if available)
   • Some independent e – commerce websites may offer other refund methods, such as refunding to a gift card or account balance. If this is the case, the notification will inform you of how the refunded amount can be used for subsequent purchases on the independent e – commerce website or how to withdraw the gift card balance or account balance.