Scammed by SourceMore -- Is China Post Complicit?

[NoLeak]

I paid sourcemore for gear. Tracking showed it was delivered yesterday. Nothing was delivered. I talked to a supervisor at the local USPS office. There's no record of the package in the USPS system. According to him, the tracking info is total fiction. He recommended I charge back ASAP.

I was home, in my garage with the door wide open at 8:58 AM when the package was supposedly delivered TO MY GARAGE.

Here's a screenshot of the tracking info. I've blanked out part of the tracking number and my city, state, and zip codes. I point out details of the fiction below.

This is what the supervisor at my local USPS office had to say after looking over the tracking info:

His first problem is that there is no record of the tracking number in their system. It's impossible for USPS to deliver a package without it being in their system.

He said packages do not go directly from Chinese airports into the City of Industry distribution center without hitting customs first.

Then there's the fact that it's at City of Industry at all. He said that Chinese EMS packages come to my town through a different US city.

This is the best one. All China Post EMS packages are considered express mail. In my town, express mail is never delivered by our regular postal carriers. All express mail is delivered by supervisors and they don't even begin those deliveries until long after 8:58 AM.

He said "This is fake. You should call your credit card company and do a charge back."

This was my first order from sourcemore. I researched before ordering and found many reports stating they're a legit company, including here on ECF. The fact that they have a forum here and submit products for review on ECF gave me the confidence to order from them.

However, I've since found a few recent reports of things going not so well. There was one person who ran circles with them to get his stuff. Supposedly, they gave him the "wrong" tracking number multiple times.

In my case, even if this was the tracking for someone else's order (in my small town!) there are still multiple impossible things on it. This is no case of "the wrong tracking number."

The other question I have is HOW they manage to generate this fake tracking. I checked the tracking number against a couple online website and they all report roughly the same thing. I assume these websites contact China Post to get data on China Post packages. Is China Post generating fake tracking data? Seems highly unlikely but how else are they be pulling this off?

ECF needs to review sourcemore's place on the site. I do believe they were a trusted supplier for some time but it seems things may have changed.

 

[Letitia]

Sourcemore is well known for bad tracking numbers. You simply need to email them and tell them what happened, then ask for an updated tracking number. Believe @hittman has had this happen a time or two.

 

[Territoo]

Sourcemore, when it goes right, is a legit company, but they do have a history of shipping problems. You can't do a chargeback until you have tried contacting the company, so go ahead and email them. They aren't known for getting back to you very quickly, but they do eventually return emails. After trying a couple of times and waiting a few days between tries, you still don't get a resolution, then you can contact your credit card company for a chargeback. I had to go through this before. Not with Sourcemore, but a shop in the UK called Hyde Vapors. I know it's a hassle, but the more you have done to resolve this prior to going for a chargeback, the more likely you are to get a refund. Also, file a lost package report with usps. It probably won't do any good, but go through the motions, anyway. I'm sorry that you are going through this.

 

[englishmick]

If it was really handed over to USPS then I assume the only information about its progress that SM would have access to would be the USPS tracking system. That's what I remember happening, something arrives from China, gets handed over to USPS, and from then on you get the regular USPS updates. USPS doesn't say things like

"have been received, has been cast, has been placed"

I wouldn't give up hope though. My guess, it's more likely to be a tracking screw up than a scam. It seemed to be impossibly fast travel anyway. Most likely outcome is it arrives in a couple of weeks. Definitely contact them.

 

[NoLeak]

If it was really handed over to USPS then I assume the only information about its progress that SM would have access to would be the USPS tracking system. That's what I remember happening, something arrives from China, gets handed over to USPS, and from then on you get the regular USPS updates.

Exactly! A package that's not in the USPS system can't generate USPS tracking updates. All of the tracking info on the USA side must be fake.

Sourcemore is well known for bad tracking numbers. You simply need to email them and tell them what happened, then ask for an updated tracking number. Believe @hitthas had this happen a time or two.

This isn't a "bad" tracking number. A "bad" tracking number is one that doesn't show up on a package tracker because a digit is wrong, or it does show up but has the wrong destination address or something because it belongs to someone else's package.

I can understand that. That's a mistake.

What I have is a tracking number that returns fake shipping events on the package tracking websites. It has the correct destination city & zip. It makes it look like I received my order when I did not.

That is not a mistake. That's something that's done on purpose.

The supervisor at my Post Office said very clearly "This is fraud."

 

[NoLeak]

A tip for anyone in the same boat with any vendor...

Include the word CHARGEBACK in the subject of your email.

Nothing gets overseas vendors' attention quicker than that word. Too many chargebacks and bye bye merchant account. No merchant account, no more American business.

I had a reply from SourceMore in two hours flat.

 

[NoLeak]

Here's the resolution.

SourceMore provided me with a totally different USPS tracking number from my order. According to USPS.com it's valid and shows the package as delivered.

Interestingly, the origin of the second tracking number was not in China.

I went to my local Post Office with the new number. A supervisor looked it up and provided me with GPS coordinates of the delivery event. I checked the coordinates and sure enough the package was delivered to my home.

SourceMore canceled two other orders that hadn't shipped yet, as I requested. I received credits to my credit card.

I informed SourceMore that I will not do a chargeback since the package was delivered.

Still, I feel that SourceMore is responsible for my missing package because they initially gave me a totally fake China Post tracking number. If they had given me a real tracking number I would have known to expect the package and I would've brought it in as soon as it was delivered.

I'm signed up for USPS Informed Delivery which emails me daily with a list of every package headed my way. I know exactly when to expect every piece of mail. I usually get two days notice before a package arrives. Strangely, the second tracking number did not show up on my Informed Delivery emails. I haven't gotten to the bottom of that yet...

I'm out over $150 because of SourceMore's fake tracking shenanigans.

I suppose you can continue to order from SourceMore as long as it's safe for packages to show up completely unexpected and sit outside until you notice them.

 

[NoLeak]

Coincidentally, I just received a shipment notification from a different vendor.

This is what happens when you get a REAL China Post tracking number.

I enter the China Post tracking number on USPS.com.

The USPS website states "Label Created, not yet in system."

That means USPS recognizes it as a valid international package.

There's a button under the tracking number on the USPS tracking result that says "Add to informed delivery."

That button allows me to confirm the package belongs to me.

When the package hits US soil it will start generating USPS tracking events that'll show up in my Informed Delivery emails.

I'll know exactly when to expect my package and it wont's sit around all day and night and get stolen.

Compare that to SourceMore where the China Post tracking number they provided still doesn't exist according to USPS.

 

[Nailz]

They use to be one of the best china vendors, all I used for about 3 years, but now I won't risk it, my last 2 orders had tracking problems, one having to be re-shipped, as just disappeared, now I use FT if want something, and they ship cheaper too.