[Daniel Ricardo]

I bought a Simgot Fermat on November 16, the box arrived yesterday and there was a Moondrop Moonriver 2Ti instead of what I paid for.
Of course, knowing all the hoops that Linsoul puts in place to get away with your money, I made the unboxing video they ask for in their policy, sent them all the proof required and got an email saying that I had five days to return the product at my own expense with no real assurances that I would be reimbursed besides "trust me bro" and then wait an unspecified amount of time for their quality control to inspect the product (which is still factory sealed, mind you).
Again with no time estimates about it, basically a BS way to wait out the customer protection time window of my payment method.
So far, part for the course of ChiFi, but my jaw truly dropped when the email also stated:

"8) Please also help to declare the value at $30 to help to process the customs clearance."

Which is a crime in every jurisdiction I know.

Of course I escalated the issue to PayPal and if that doesn't pan out, I'll simply call my bank and say I was scammed, which is precisely what happened, I'm also letting Chinese authorities know about their charming little tax evasion practices.

I've had issues with online businesses before but asking me to defraud customs is a solid first.
Funny because they change their tune completely when selling through Amazon but whatever.

Did anyone here had a similar experience? If yes, was it solved to your satisfaction?

 

[SilverEars]

Now I know precisely what issues can arrise from foreign purchases, in which seems too risky for me to partake.

 

[povidlo]

Take a deep breath, op. There's is no crime or tax evasion being committed. You'd be returning an item, not selling it. Declared value should be $0 in those cases. Returns/warranty repairs shipped internationally are not supposed to be taxed. They probably said $30 in case you have to declare some non-zero value when shopping from your country. The part about paying for shipping to them is not cool, but PayPal covers return shipping doesn't it? Linsoul is a large chi-fi retailer, you really think they're out there to scam you for your measly $200? Just return your item, don't buy from them again, and move on.

 

[helloh3adfi]

I bought a Simgot Fermat on November 16, the box arrived yesterday and there was a Moondrop Moonriver 2Ti instead of what I paid for.
Of course, knowing all the hoops that Linsoul puts in place to get away with your money, I made the unboxing video they ask for in their policy, sent them all the proof required and got an email saying that I had five days to return the product at my own expense with no real assurances that I would be reimbursed besides "trust me bro" and then wait an unspecified amount of time for their quality control to inspect the product (which is still factory sealed, mind you).
Again with no time estimates about it, basically a BS way to wait out the customer protection time window of my payment method.
So far, part for the course of ChiFi, but my jaw truly dropped when the email also stated:

"8) Please also help to declare the value at $30 to help to process the customs clearance."

Which is a crime in every jurisdiction I know.

Of course I escalated the issue to PayPal and if that doesn't pan out, I'll simply call my bank and say I was scammed, which is precisely what happened, I'm also letting Chinese authorities know about their charming little tax evasion practices.

I've had issues with online businesses before but asking me to defraud customs is a solid first.
Funny because they change their tune completely when selling through Amazon but whatever.

Did anyone here had a similar experience? If yes, was it solved to your satisfaction?

Poor you. I hope you won't get into jail now. /sarcasm off

The question is did you pay taxes when you got your Simgot Fermat?

 

[Daniel Ricardo]

Take a deep breath, op. There's is no crime or tax evasion being committed. You'd be returning an item, not selling it. Declared value should be $0 in those cases. Returns/warranty repairs shipped internationally are not supposed to be taxed. They probably said $30 in case you have to declare some non-zero value when shopping from your country. The part about paying for shipping to them is not cool, but PayPal covers return shipping doesn't it? Linsoul is a large chi-fi retailer, you really think they're out there to scam you for your measly $200? Just return your item, don't buy from them again, and move on.

Many things are not supposed to be taxed but under declaring is still not ok, besides, by under declaring the value, I'm not eligible for insurance in case things get lost and if it does get lost, I'm positive this will be at least one more month of back and forth with Linsoul.
As for Linsoul being above pocketing 200$, there are many posts about them on HeadFi and Trustpilot moving heaven and earth to pocket as little as 20$.
Of course I'll return the Moondrop gadget dumped at my house, will never buy from them again and move on the minute I'm reimbursed but for now this ain't it.

Poor you. I hope you won't get into jail now. /sarcasm off

The question is did you pay taxes when you got your Simgot Fermat?

Of course, it's attached to the price of the product or did you think Linsoul paid those taxes for me out of the goodness of their hearts? Lol.

 

[Lindholdt]

Of course, it's attached to the price of the product or did you think Linsoul paid those taxes for me out of the goodness of their hearts? Lol.

There are companies that cover import taxes for their customers, I'm pretty sure HiFiGo has this option.
Not sure about Linsoul, haven't bought from them.
I have to say, I also think you are overreacting a bit here. Its completely understandable that you are frustrated with having the incorrect item shipped to you, that's really annoying. But you are fighting them, which is cool if that's what you want to spend your time on. Otherwise just return the item as they have asked, and then get the money back ASAP and move on, as @povidlo also say.

 

[Daniel Ricardo]

There are companies that cover import taxes for their customers, I'm pretty sure HiFiGo has this option.
Not sure about Linsoul, haven't bought from them.
I have to say, I also think you are overreacting a bit here. Its completely understandable that you are frustrated with having the incorrect item shipped to you, that's really annoying. But you are fighting them, which is cool if that's what you want to spend your time on. Otherwise just return the item as they have asked, and then get the money back ASAP and move on, as @povidlo also say.

Returning the Item as they have asked is expensive, vague, long and convoluted 10 step process, also keep in mind that although it isn't mentioned in their email, you can go through all that crap and still be stiffed because of their "All customers must take an unboxing video of their sealed parcel and packaging when opening their parcels and products. Any claims about wrong or missing item(s) will be voided should you fail to provide us with that."

Sally (Linsoul Audio) Nov 24, 2023, 11:57 GMT+8 Hello there, Thank you for your reaching out.We sincerely apologize to you for this mistake. We kindly request your assistance in returning the incorrect item to us and we will promptly dispatch the correct product to you. We understand that returning the item may require some effort on your part, and to make things right, we will reimburse you for the return shipping cost. After the shipment, please provide us with the tracking number and a copy of the shipping receipt. We will promptly process the refund for the shipping cost upon receipt. We are going to start the Return & Replace process for you. Your RMA number is RMA2023-0560-102809. Attached is the RMA document that you MUST fill out and put in your return package. 1) The item has to be returned first for the Quality Control Team to inspect. 2) Kindly print out the attached RMA document, fill up the details and include the RMA sheet in the parcel. 3) Please take a picture of the parcel content before packing and shipment. 4) Please pack the item in the box it came with, ensuring it is well-protected and properly sealed against shipping damage. 5) Please arrange the pick-up of the parcel within 5 working days, otherwise, this RMA process will be canceled. 6) Please send us the tracking number once you shipped it out. (Please note: Fail to do this may cause the item to be lost in the delivery and we will not be responsible for it) 7) Once the parcel has been picked up, please monitor the tracking link and contact us if there are unforeseen circumstances. 8) Please also help to declare the value at $30 to help to process the customs clearance. 9) Our Quality Control Team will send an email update after receiving the parcel. 10) We will process your case based on our return policy and we kindly suggest you to double-check our policy here to avoid any misunderstanding. https://www.linsoul.com/pages/terms-and-conditions Sorry again for this kind of case and thank you for your time. Best Regards, Linsoul Audio Customer Service Team

 

[hakunamakaka]

Created an account on head-fi to moan about Linsoul return policies...Wow some folks seems have nothing else to do I guess

 

[Daniel Ricardo]

Created an account on head-fi to moan about Linsoul return policies...Wow some folks seems have nothing else to do I guess

I've been lurking here for ages and this is far from the first post here moaning about Linsoul's return policies. I'd just like to know if anyone else had to go through a 10 step return process and wait ages to rectify a mistake that wasn't theirs to begin with. Did you? Didn't you? If personal remarks are all you got it's safe to assume you're not too far behind me in the lack of things to do department but who's counting?

 

[psklrdk]

Yeah, Linsoul is known for difficulties if you have a problem.
Not only me from what i have heard.
I stopped to buy there after i had to make a videos about defective new 2pin to mmcx adapter.
I dont't even know how to record a defect on a such a small unit
It had no contact in the socket on one side.
they won't get any money from me anymore.

 

[Daniel Ricardo]

Yeah, Linsoul is known for difficulties if you have a problem.
Not only me from what i have heard.
I stopped to buy there after i had to make a videos about defective new 2pin to mmcx adapter.
I dont't even know how to record a defect on a such a small unit
It had no contact in the socket on one side.
they won't get any money from me anymore.

I had the reflex to do the video because I noticed the box was much lighter than it should be before opening it but lemme tell you. It's not easy to put the camera in place and make sure you're getting everything when unboxing the stuff. The video didn't help the case in any way and I'll still have to shell out my own money to ship it back to China for it to be inspected lol.

 

[Lindholdt]

Returning the Item as they have asked is expensive, vague, long and convoluted 10 step process, also keep in mind that although it isn't mentioned in their email, you can go through all that crap and still be stiffed because of their "All customers must take an unboxing video of their sealed parcel and packaging when opening their parcels and products. Any claims about wrong or missing item(s) will be voided should you fail to provide us with that."

Sally (Linsoul Audio) Nov 24, 2023, 11:57 GMT+8 Hello there, Thank you for your reaching out.We sincerely apologize to you for this mistake. We kindly request your assistance in returning the incorrect item to us and we will promptly dispatch the correct product to you. We understand that returning the item may require some effort on your part, and to make things right, we will reimburse you for the return shipping cost. After the shipment, please provide us with the tracking number and a copy of the shipping receipt. We will promptly process the refund for the shipping cost upon receipt. We are going to start the Return & Replace process for you. Your RMA number is RMA2023-0560-102809. Attached is the RMA document that you MUST fill out and put in your return package. 1) The item has to be returned first for the Quality Control Team to inspect. 2) Kindly print out the attached RMA document, fill up the details and include the RMA sheet in the parcel. 3) Please take a picture of the parcel content before packing and shipment. 4) Please pack the item in the box it came with, ensuring it is well-protected and properly sealed against shipping damage. 5) Please arrange the pick-up of the parcel within 5 working days, otherwise, this RMA process will be canceled. 6) Please send us the tracking number once you shipped it out. (Please note: Fail to do this may cause the item to be lost in the delivery and we will not be responsible for it) 7) Once the parcel has been picked up, please monitor the tracking link and contact us if there are unforeseen circumstances. 8) Please also help to declare the value at $30 to help to process the customs clearance. 9) Our Quality Control Team will send an email update after receiving the parcel. 10) We will process your case based on our return policy and we kindly suggest you to double-check our policy here to avoid any misunderstanding. https://www.linsoul.com/pages/terms-and-conditions Sorry again for this kind of case and thank you for your time. Best Regards, Linsoul Audio Customer Service Team

Well, we see things quite different, I guess. What I see is a detailed, well formulated, step-by-step guide on how to increase the chances of a successful RMA. I don't see them asking for anything unreasonable, and telling you to do an unboxing video, when doing an RMA makes little sense, as it it obviously too late at this point. But I bet that video is mentioned in the T&C's you agreed on when placing the order?
It might be a lot of steps and annoying to go through, but imagine being them, shipping out most likely thousands of order worldwide pr week. How many times do you think customers are trying to scam them or rip them off some way? Many. And these steps are to try and minimize this happening to them, normal business practice IMO.
Yes, there is a lot of negative feedback on them, and you are not alone. I haven't been in this hobby for long, but I've seen them mentioned many times, which has hold me from placing an order with them.
I guess you might also be annoyed that you didn't take these warning seriously, or that you didn't spend enough time reading up, before placing the order, that fully understandable. But it's not Linsoul's fault :/

 

[hakunamakaka]

I've been lurking here for ages and this is far from the first post here moaning about Linsoul's return policies. I'd just like to know if anyone else had to go through a 10 step return process and wait ages to rectify a mistake that wasn't theirs to begin with. Did you? Didn't you? If personal remarks are all you got it's safe to assume you're not too far behind me in the lack of things to do department but who's counting?

Products may or not satisfy you but you'll get no issues with refund. I was able to get a refund with Linsoul only because of delayed delivery as I bought a different dongle. This is a return of an item and you forget that it's a trade between EU & China. Marking item above certain threshold will push it to the customs which will add additional delay for your returns.

As others stated you make this too big of the problem

 

[Daniel Ricardo]

Products may or not satisfy you but you'll get no issues with refund. I was able to get a refund with Linsoul only because of delayed delivery as I bought a different dongle. This is a return of an item and you forget that it's a trade between EU & China. Marking item above certain threshold will push it to the customs which will add additional delay for your returns.

As others stated you make this too big of the problem

Fair enough.

 

[Daniel Ricardo]

Well, we see things quite different, I guess. What I see is a detailed, well formulated, step-by-step guide on how to increase the chances of a successful RMA. I don't see them asking for anything unreasonable, and telling you to do an unboxing video, when doing an RMA makes little sense, as it it obviously too late at this point. But I bet that video is mentioned in the T&C's you agreed on when placing the order?
It might be a lot of steps and annoying to go through, but imagine being them, shipping out most likely thousands of order worldwide pr week. How many times do you think customers are trying to scam them or rip them off some way? Many. And these steps are to try and minimize this happening to them, normal business practice IMO.
Yes, there is a lot of negative feedback on them, and you are not alone. I haven't been in this hobby for long, but I've seen them mentioned many times, which has hold me from placing an order with them.
I guess you might also be annoyed that you didn't take these warning seriously, or that you didn't spend enough time reading up, before placing the order, that fully understandable. But it's not Linsoul's fault :/

Fair enough, they still don't inspire confidence tho, specially after I read some horror stories here of returns that took forever and they still got the wrong item in the end.
They're well within their right to take steps to ensure I'm not a scammer and so am I for not willing to jumpy through so many hoops with the risk of Linsoul moving the goal posts at their discretion. Thank god I did this through PayPal and Amex.