Inspection limits and seller-dependent returns
Understand the difference between a limited warehouse check, a seller’s return terms and your decision to keep an item. An inspection exclusion is not a blanket decision about every remedy.
What inspection does not establish
Some concerns cannot be resolved by an ordinary warehouse inspection. 100buy’s Inspection Information page names three things its check does not cover: color difference, small differences in size, and how well an item performs. These inspection exclusions describe what the warehouse checks. They do not by themselves establish that a seller will refuse a return, or that a specific claim in the listing was accurate.
- Color difference. Studio light and screens shift color; a shade that looks different from the photos is not a wrong option.
- Small size differences. Read any stated tolerance and compare measurements taken the same way. There is no single tolerance that proves every seller’s item acceptable.
- Usage effect. A fabric that feels thinner than you hoped, a bag that holds less than you pictured.
- Fit you chose. A size that does not fit your body may be a change-of-mind issue. A garment that differs from a specific stated measurement is a different question; preserve the measurements and ask the agent.
For colour, compare the selected option and any specific written description. A daylight photo beside a neutral reference may help explain a difference, but lighting, cameras and displays still affect appearance. No photograph guarantees the shade you will perceive in person.
Custom, worn and sealed goods
Some goods fall outside the standard return arrangement because of their type or condition; any other arrangement needs seller agreement. 100buy’s return page lists the kinds of goods that do not get the five-day return and exchange arrangement, in which case 100buy can only negotiate with the seller:
- anything made to order, and anything you asked to have unpacked, untagged or stripped of its accessories;
- used goods, goods sourced from outside the Chinese mainland (Hong Kong and Macao included), and newspapers or magazines;
- underwear, socks and leggings; adult products; food; and orders of fifteen or more books;
- opened goods that must meet special packing standards to go back, and anything else the seller’s own rules exclude.
The current return article lists exclusions and resale requirements for certain products and packaging conditions. A missing component is different from a change-of-mind return. Ask how the stated conditions apply to this order; do not infer that any sign of wear eliminates every possible warranty or defect claim.
Keeping it as a decision
Keeping the item is an option only if the difference is understood and the item still serves its purpose. Record any concern before cleaning, trimming or airing it. A smell or stain cannot be assumed harmless, removable or outside every remedy merely because it seems small.
Compare the actual cost of the proposed remedy with the value of keeping the item. Use a real shipping quote and the seller’s written offer. This guide does not assume that postage always exceeds the item price or that accepting the item closes every unrelated issue.
What keeping should not be is a default you slide into by not looking. The warehouse photos are there to be read, and the report window after delivery is short. Keep because you chose to, not because the time ran out.
If a small visible difference does not affect the purpose of the item, keeping it may be an option. Decide that only after checking that the difference is understood and is not a functional or safety concern. There is no need to invent a complaint, but neither is there a reason to release a parcel while an important question remains unanswered.
Orders that never reach a remedy
Check product eligibility before ordering. 100buy publishes restrictions on infringing and prohibited goods; a product link appearing in a catalog is not an exception. If an order is rejected, ask the agent for the recorded reason and the order-specific handling and refund position rather than assuming a universal penalty or remedy.
The same goes for items that cannot be shipped at all. If the warehouse marks an item as unfit for air transport, 100buy asks you to arrange a return with the seller; that is a shipping matter, not a remedy for a fault.