AliExpress offers you the possibility to cancel your order before the seller ships it. However, the seller must accept this cancellation. If you’ve tried to cancel your order, and they haven’t accepted your request, here’s what you can do.
On AliExpress' own customer service page you can find more information on how to cancel your order as you can see here.
When can I cancel an order?
Main article: How to cancel an order on AliExpress
If you have left an order pending payment, it will be canceled only after a few days. Either way, you can also cancel it by going into the details of your order. However, the most common thing is to want to cancel an order after having paid for it, whatever the reason.
If you cancel during the time the order is being confirmed (this process takes from a few minutes to a few hours) you won’t need the seller to accept it. So learn this trick: if for some reason you have to cancel your purchase, try to do it during the first hours after paying.
Once the order has been confirmed, the cancellation must be validated by the seller. We always recommend selecting “Other reasons” when canceling an order, because if you cancel for specific reasons the seller may be penalized and may refuse to cancel the order.
The seller doesn’t accept the cancellation: What to do?
The first thing you should know is that if the seller doesn’t respond to your cancellation request during the first 48 hours, the order will be automatically canceled. So don't worry if they haven't responded yet, it may be to your advantage.
But if the seller has rejected your request, this doesn’t help you at all. As we’ve mentioned, according to the conditions of the purchase page, the seller has the right not to accept the cancellation. The purchase continues and will be shipped in a few days.
Tips to follow to get the seller to accept the cancellation
In case you don’t want to follow through with the order, we recommend you write to the seller and explain the reasons why you don’t want the order. Most sellers agree to cancel the order if the buyer explains the reason well: if you’ve made a mistake when choosing the features, when you see that the product isn’t going to work, etc.
Another good way to try to get the seller to cancel the order is, as mentioned above, to select “Other reasons” when making the cancellation request. The seller won’t receive any penalty, so they will probably be more willing to accept.
Can I open a dispute?
You can only open a dispute a few days after the order has been shipped (at least in the case of AliExpress). So you won’t be able to do it if the seller hasn’t shipped anything. And if it has already been shipped, the seller will probably reject the dispute and the platform will ask you to wait to receive the order.
Once you receive your order, you can open a dispute and request the return of the product. Below we’ll explain if this is a good option or not (if the case is that you don't want what you have bought).
Alternatives to follow if the seller doesn’t accept the cancellation: Are they reliable?
We’ve seen that some users have shared some tricks they use when the seller doesn’t accept the cancellation. Here, we’ll evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of each one.
Return the purchase
Main article: How to make returns on AliExpress
There are some sellers that offer free returns with their products. If this is the case with the product you’ve purchased, and it applies to your country, all you need to do is accept the order and arrange the return.
If this isn’t your case, the return may be more expensive, since you will have to pay the shipping costs. However, if you have to send it to China, the shipping can be quite expensive, sometimes more than the order itself.
Report as an unrecognized purchase to the bank
If you’ve paid by credit card, most banks offer their users to report the charges they have received on the card for fraudulent use. However, in return, your bank will probably ask you to cancel the card and apply for a new one to avoid further charges.
Additionally, in recent years and after many users using this technique, most banks only agree to return the money if you make a complaint to the police. And if not, the bank will initiate an investigation to find out what the security problem was.
Therefore, it doesn’t seem like a good alternative.
Don’t accept the order from the courier
If the seller finally sends the order, many users believe that by not accepting the order, the package will be returned to its origin, and they will get their money back. For this, you’ll have to open a dispute and claim your money back.
However, the seller will have paid shipping costs and perhaps some product return costs, so you will most likely not get 100% of the money back.
This is why it is a risky decision.
Resell the products
Nowadays, there are a lot of online pages where to sell second-hand products; or groups on social networks such as Facebook, where users sell products they don’t use or, in this case, new products that are of no use to them.
This can be a good option if none of the above has helped you. Depending on the product you’re trying to sell, it could have a lot of output, and may even be sold at the same price you bought it.