Problems with a dress purchased online from company overseas
MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- The internet makes it easy to buy anything from anywhere. FOX6's Contact 6 spoke with a young woman who thought she bought the dress of her dreams, but she soon realized the popular website where she got it wasn't the best fit!
Bailey Mahnke thought she had found the perfect dress, but when it didn't fit, all she wanted to do was return it, for a better size.
Mahnke bought the dress from DHGate.com -- an international wholesale website based in China. It is like eBay in the United States -- a site where sellers market their products, like dresses, and buyers deal with the sellers directly.
However, Mahnke couldn't get the seller -- using the nickname "BridalMail002" to cooperate.
"Can I get my refund back and can I send the dress back - and they always ignore it. They'd never answer it," Mahnke said.
Mahnke kept all of the emails send back and forth with BridalMail002, and filed a formal dispute with DHGate.com.
"That's when the seller messaged me and said cancel the dispute and we'll make it work for your dress. So I unfortunately did cancel the dispute and got in this whole mess of now I'm not going to get my money back!" Mahnke said.
Lied to and ignored, Mahnke is stuck with a dress that doesn't fit, and is out about $200. It's a lesson for all of us.
"Federal laws, in terms of buying and delivery and replacement, don't protect you if you look at a website and find that you're dealing with an off-shore company," Ran Hoth with the Better Business Bureau said.
"You have to be careful when ordering internationally, because it can all go down the drain and you could lose a lot of money because of it!" Mahnke said.
FOX6's Contact 6 sent emails to DHGate.com and the seller -- both in China, and the messages were not returned.
Contact 6 says consumers shouldn't be afraid to purchase something from overseas -- but should be sure to read all the terms and conditions, including any return policy, before buying.