What can you do if you get scammed in China

Here are my answers to this question:
1.If your supplier is a registered factory or company, you can go and meet local officials in person, seeking help from local government authorities in China. Normally you can contact following organs in China:
AIC(Administration for Industry &Commerce), Tax Bureau, Fair Trade Department with Ministry of Commerce and local Police Station etc.

2.If your supplier is not a registered factory or company, you can contact local Police Station if you know their Chinese name and ID in China.

No matter what kind of your suppliers is in China, you're required to report your case in details in Chinese to local officials if you need their help. Most of local officials know nothing about English and it's hard to catch the scammers with their created English names online. For example, in China, there are nearly 300,000 people sharing the same Chinese name 'Zhang Wei'. Normally local officials will help you out if you or your authorized Rep reports the case to them in person in Chinese, and the scammer can be heavily fined, jailed or forced to refund you as soon as possible. But sometimes the scammer is too crafty to be caught and also some local officials are badly corrupted and they are not willing to help you out sometimes. So Case-Report with enough proof is not 100% sure to get your money back esp when you did not sign any contract with your suppliers before.

If local officials do not help you out, you're suggested to make a small biz investigation to collect enough proof on their daily business activity, then consult local law firms and get ready to sue the bad supplier for their bad credit in China. By this way, you can get back your money; at least your supplier will suffer more from your case if you take above measures.For Alibaba members you can also contact Alibaba service team for help. For other scams, you can report your case to MOF for official assistance: www.mofcom.gov.cn

You can also book a Case-Report service from China STIN if you know nothing about Chinese.STIN service team has successfully got back millions of USD for their clients worldwide so far in China..

New fraud cases and their countermeasures in China

Recently we've come across some different fraud cases from typical scams in China and I'd like to share some of them with Alibaba members here, hoping you'll learn a lesson from these cases in the future transactions:

Case One:
Product related: Chemicals (GPPS and HIPS)
Chinese Supplier: Wuhan Hangyu Co., Ltd (a so-called Gold and trust pass member on Alibaba)
Case Details:
A South African buyer placed an order for GPPS and HIPS with Wuhan Hangyu in Nov, 2012, the client also booked a STIN Company Verification service in China and confirmed that the supplier was a fully registered exporter before payment.The supplier also showed a SGS QC report regarding the target product in China and the SGS report was authentic as well. In March,2013,the client received the container and found out the product received as NOT the one they ordered at all, they look similar but not the same one in their SGS report. Then they came to a trade dispute and the client lost more than 35000 USD for this trial order. The supplier now disappeared in China and local police station is still tracing them.

As far as we know there are many business fraud in the field like Chemicals, Used Cooking Oil, and Mineral (none-ferrous metals) business etc. For those products, the order is normally big and the professional scammer can simply register a very small company in China, then vanish after they obtain the deposit or full cost from the clients worldwide. Lot of cases found that some professional scammers will use Offshore Trade companies as a tool to scam businessmen worldwide. They did have a company and they did send you the goods, but the problem is that they will send you a bag of copper scraps when you're buying Gold from them.

Countermeasures:
1.A Factory Inspection service or Auditing service from a third-party business service company like STIN is very important in China before placing any large orders.
2.A formal Purchase Contract in Chinese and an On-site Quality Control Inspection service is also very important for such cases in China.
3.If the client booked a 'Loading Process Supervision Service'from local experts in China, then such losses could be avoided as well.

Case Two:
Product related: HDMI cables
Chinese supplier: Changzhou Best International Co., Ltd (a so-called Gold and trust pass member at Alibaba )
Case Details:
A UK buyer had a deep communication on all the trade terms and conditions with this supplier in China (the direct contact is: David Lee ), later they reached an agreement on everything and got ready to make a deal, and the buyer –Mr. A ( True names are not allowed to display without permission ) remitted more than 2000 USD to Changzhou Best International Co.,Ltd in Oct, 2006, as a deposit or down payment to get the production started in China. Mr. A is very serious with his business and he employed a local inspector from STIN to offer a Basic Verification on this supplier in China before payment, and this supplier does exist in China (confirmed with local officials), the key problem is their credit was too bad ! Later the supplier could not meet Mr.A's buying demand and they didn't ship him anything. They promised to refund by T/T for several times when Mr. A claimed his payment back. They either ignored calls and messages or took it as nothing. So far they have neither shipped any goods to the buyer nor refunded. They badly ruined their image in overseas market !

Countermeasures:
1.Employing a local Chinese to report their bad credit to local government authorities in China directly and get them punished or fined. Bringing an accusation against them if your order is large enough, please note that you may have to collect enough evidence, say a formal sales or purchase contract, verification report, payment receipt etc.
2.A legitimate company could also be a cheater in international trades, you'd better pay them in full only after a Pre-shipment QC Inspection in China.

Case Three:
Product related: auto parts
Chinese supplier: Zhuji Hongxing Co.,Ltd (a Trustpass member from another famous platform in China, but I note their website www.zhujihongxing.com has been closed recently. )

Case Details:
A USA buyer----Mr.B got their information online and contacted their CEO called Tony Lin by emails. They had several pleasant communications and Tony claimed that he was the real manufacturer in China and he seemed to be a professional in this field. Mr. B bought several samples from Tony without any due diligence work in China in April, 2007. The samples were quite good. Good quality, reasonable prices , fast delivery and good communications surprised Mr.B a lot and he fully trusted Tony then, in May, 2007, Mr. B requested an OEM service from Tony's factory and placed a large order, they reached an agreement regarding every trade terms and conditions and both parties seemed satisfied with it. Mr. B paid Tony 120000 USD within 10 days by T/T after they reached an agreement as a deposit to get the production started in China. The rest balance is nearly 200000 USD and would be paid after the production. One month later, Mr.B simply wanted to learn the production information and employed a local business service company to pay a visitation/inspection to Tony's factory in China. Tony explained that he was abroad and inconvenient to meet his rep then for the first time, only a week later all his contact ways have been shut down (telephone, website and mobile phones etc), Tony disappeared in the air. Finally the local auditor went to their factory without notice (according to their address online, offered by the client ), to our great surprise, their company did not exist at all, nobody in the offices except an old man reading newspaper there. Their address is true but it's for another company in China! That's to say, the scammer is cheating the clients by using other companies' information! So Mr.B lost more than 120000 USD. ( I guess the scammer Tony just bought the auto parts from other factories in China and tried to gain the trust from foreign buyers for the first time.)

Countermeasures:
1. Samples could be good but it does not mean their massive production would be the same in China. Signing a formal contract with any of your suppliers for sake of better protect of your interests, esp when your order is large enough.
2.Fulfilling a Basic Company Verification on your supplier to make sure he is not a scammer and qualified enough to be your business partner in China.
3.Fulfilling a detailed auditing service if you'd like to place large orders and a during-production QC inspection and a pre-shipment QC inspection is very important for such cases. A local expert can help you a lot in such cases.

Case Four:
Product related: human hair products (wigs)
Chinese supplier: China better hair co., ltd (This is a SilverKey member from another well known platform----Tradekey )

Case Details:
A Portugal buyer----Mr.C got their information online and contacted Mr.Guo----the foreign trade manager from Better Hair in May, 2007. One month later Mr. C placed a trial order with them in China, amounting over 5000 USD. What Mr. C required is 100% human hair products and Mr. Guo is also selling authentic human hair wigs as well as synthetic hairs. Mr. C met lot of trouble in his market as he received lot of complaints from his customers in Portugal, claiming their product is not 100 % human hair and mixed with animal hairs and synthetic hairs etc. Mr. C suffered great loss owing to the quality issue.

Countermeasures:
1.The best way to avoid such cases is to book a Pre-shipment QC Inspection from a local expert team like STIN before delivery in China, esp when your order is large enough.
2.Don't forget to sign a formal contract with any of your suppliers, apparently this supplier is a trade company in China but they claimed to be a real manufacturer in this field. Why not audit them before payment? It would be much easier to control the quality if you deal with a factory directly. 

3 out of 3 Gold or Trust Pass Members fail site Inspection

Last week I paid several factory visitations to some Shenzhen-based companies in China upon request of some foreign buyers.

All the three companies are Gold member or Trust pass members in Shenzhen, who all claimed that they were real manufacturers of electronics in China. I’m sure most of the foreign businessmen will be astonished at the result of my visitation in Shenzhen; here is the basic information from our On-site Factory Inspection Report:

Company One: 
Declined my visitation on the pretext of goods shortage, but they promised to receive us before our departure to Shenzhen. 

Company Two: 
Received us at an office in a hotel, there are 3 salespersons working in the office. We cannot even find a Logo on their company in the office and on the door. They are checked out to be a small offshore trading company in HK. 

Company Three: 
This is the best one among the three. They are a registered small trading company in China, however, they do not have their own right to export ( I mean they do not have the Certificate of Import & Export issued by local government authorities ), they normally export their goods via Freight Forwarders, for which the buyer may bear some risks.

They registered only on 2005.08.26; however, they claimed themselves they registered in 1999 online. They do not have any factories at all. They cannot show me any quality control measures and after sale services in written forms; they cannot even show me a formal sales contract!! 

My suggestion:

You’d better deal with larger trading companies or manufacturers directly for sake of better quality control and after-sale service in China. Lot of trading companies disguise to be a real manufacturer in China, so a factory auditing or inspection service is very necessary for a large order in China! A factory inspection can tell you everything about the supplier and it’s one of the best way to verify your Chinese supplier at present ! 

What can a factory inspection performed by a local bring you? 
As we all know, there are many false things on the web, which perplex us often when we are going to make a decision. The case is also true with buyers who are going to buy from oversea suppliers. Here I bet a factory visitation (better by a local person) is a second-to-none solution.

1.Genuine or False? 
The local person can go and check the company (the potential seller) and all its factory registration information to see if it’s a genuine and serious enterprise. This is the basic thing that any buyer has to do before any sincere cooperation!

2.Production Competence (Throughput)? 
The inspector can enquire about the factory’s production capacity (also known as throughput) with the director of Production Department. How much can they produce in a month or a quarter? By learning their production competence, the buyer can avoid the risk of a delayed delivery to some extent.

3.Quality Control? 
The inspector can try to get to know the factory’s quality control system with the help from the director of Quality Control Department. He can also get to know more by inspecting their assembly lines or work shops. Good quality is always one of the crucial things that buyers are always pursuing.

4.After-sale Service? 
After-sale service is also important for buyers. Here the visitor or inspector can make sure if the factory can offer good and effective after-sale services and also confirm if they can include after-sale services as one clause in the contract? After-sale services can keep you free from some troubles.

5.Export License? 
Some suppliers do not really have export license. Here the inspector can check the supplier’s registration information with the local customs to see if it can really export directly to the buyer’s country. This is also one of the factors that can free you from being scammed. Other qualifications of the supplier can also be checked out by a local expert in this field in China. 

STIN (China) Business Service Co., Ltd (www.chinabizservices.com or www.bizinchina.cc ) offers a ONE-STOP business solution services for their clients worldwide,covering Sourcing, Quality Control, Verification, Factory Inspection, Shipping etc. Any question is welcome. 

How do Chinese scammers cheat you online ?

Internet is the most popular tool for scammers nowadays, here are some common ways for them to cheat overseas buyers in China. Scammer, here referred to any company or individual businessman who did not register themselves with local Chinese government authorities. In China, your business will not be protected by Chinese government authorities in case you deal with illegal Chinese companies. This is why you have to check out your partners before doing business. 

Generally speaking there are two types of Chinese scammers online: 
1. Non-registered scammers
In China, esp in some poverty-stricken areas or less developed areas, you can see scammers everywhere. ' Money makes the mare go.' With enough money, you can make everything, like fake diplomas, fake IDs, fake goods, fake certifications, fake tickets, replicas of branded goods etc. By submitting some fake IDs, some scammers can register themselves and pass the surveillance of some foreign business to business platforms like www.tradekey.com, www.alibaba.com, www.go4worldbusiness.com etc. By this way, some scammers have come to obtain some trust from foreign buyers worldwide. Usually, they never offer real information about their add, tel, fax, legal person names, detailed company profile etc on their websites. I've checked out dozens of such kinds of scammers for foreign buyers in China. Some scammers created a wrong add or contact information online. E.g. Room1302, Building 6, Tianjin Road, Tianjin City, Fujian province. Tel: 0594-55554777, Fax: 0594-5555688 This place doesn't exist in China at all. No cities is called Tianjin in Fujian, Tianjin is a big city in North China. This tel number is not a registered company number, not exist at all and the fax number does not exist either. Business scammers cannot offer you a right company number and refuse to answer local Chinese's verifying questions. Normally they attract foreign buyers with very low prices and then ask buyers to pay some down money as a guarantee etc. They will disappear after steal your money or they will send you some defected goods or replicas etc.

2. Registered scammers

You have to be more cautious with this kind of scammers in China as they seem quite legitimate and honest in China. They can offer you every legitimate document issued from Chinese government. For example, in August this year, Mr. Xu from a famous hair product manufacturer in China signed an contract with Ms Lindova from Romania, everything seemed ok because Mr. Xu was the salesman from that famous manufacturer in China. However, I note that the PI ( proforma invoice ) offered by Mr.Xu was not issued by the real manufacturer, it's issued by a trading company hundreds of kilometers away!!! And this trading compay had nothing to do with this factory. Why didn't Mr.Xu sell the products directly from this manufacturer in case it had its own right to export? I found out that Mr.Xu was a business scammer here because he was selling the goods in name of that manufacturer but he was buying low quality from other factories and trying to get all profit for himself!

Another case is that an Australian client placed an order for tire from a supplier in Qingdao city, but the supplier used another Offshore trade company account to receive the money. The supplier disappeared after he got 20000 USD from the client and they cancelled the offshore trade company as soon as they received the money in China, then the client lost everything. 

If you'd like to seek professional Sourcing, Verification/Investigation, Quality Control and Shipping Support service etc, please have a look at STIN: www.chinabizservices.com or  www.bizinchina.cc , they might help you out at any time in China !

Tips for how to find a good purchasing agent in China!

Should I work with a Chinese purchasing agent or buying office? Lot of foreign clients raised this question to me. Actually a good purchasing agent service plays a very important role among international trade nowadays in China, it's a bridge for sellers and buyers, however, it's hard for foreign buyers to choose a good purchasing agent in China too. A good purchasing agent can act as your own 'buying office, assistants and eyes' etc. There are not only lot of Chinese individuals working as a purchasing agent but also lot of service companies like STIN offering‘Purchasing Agent’or‘Buying Office’ service in China. Of course it is better to work with a company as they are a team of professionals or local experts. I also heard that an individual purchasing agent in Guangzhou disappeared suddenly after he got lot of deposit from a French client last year.

Please also have a look at these posts: Why do You Need a Purchasing Agent and How to Find a ONE in China:

Any qualified purchasing or sourcing agent in China must feature as following:
1. Good morality and Reliability
There is a Chinese saying goes as 'All the business shall be built based on reliability and credit.’So the good agent will take‘credit, reliability and reputation’as their life, they should never cheat their clients during any formal business. How to check the credit of your‘agent’service? Ask them for references at your end and fully check them out before formal cooperation.

As a sourcing or purchasing agent, they should behave well and protect foreign buyers' interests in China at all times. He should never 'sell' his buyers to scammers in China, and never eat his own words, never cheat buyers as well as sellers. As far as I know, some purchasing agents even ask for kickbacks (commission) from both sides (the seller and buyer). This is terrible for a good purchasing agent service in China but those agents are mostly individuals as every formal service company has strict regulations on such cases in China, this is another important reason that you'd better work with a service company instead of an individual in China.

2. High-quality Service
High-quality service features as: Smooth Communication, Efficient Work, Fast Feedback etc. Some service companies require instant communication with their clients and some require 12-hour-feedback, which means all the inquiries shall be replied within 12 hours.
Good command of English or other foreign languages, both in written and verbal forms are also required. Language is very important in communication among businessmen worldwide. However, there are not so many people speaking fluent English or other foreign languages in China, esp for some individual purchasing agents.

3. Rich import and export experience
Rich experience in this field can result in a fast solution for some problem in your business in China: sourcing, quality control, shipping, customs clearance, documentation, insurance etc. Any qualified purchasing agent should also have good relationship with local government authorities and have rich knowledge on China's policies in import and export business; All the latest regulations or laws regarding export and import in China should be kept in mind.

4. Rich experience in sourcing and purchasing the target product.
As a purchasing agent he should be very familiar the target product in this field, say, how to source and purchase the target item as soon as possible?
Where is the best place for this product?
How many well-known trade fairs are linked with this product?
How can I obtain the most favourable prices? Etc
Where are the manufacturing bases for this product?
Actually each city or province in China has their own pillar industry, so you can check the market information first before sourcing suppiers or purchasing agents. For example, Liuyang is called ‘Home of Fireworks', there are more than 400000 peole directly or indirectly engaging in fireworks production or sales in China, ‘Liuyang-made’fireworks account for 70% of China market and more than 40% of global market at present. So when you're sourcing fireworks, you can simply come to Liuyang and work with some local purchasing agents there when necessary.
You can raise as many questions as possible to check your agent whether they have enough experience in this field or not before formal cooperation.

5. Be familiar with your product or industry.
Try to work with a professional agent. You have to forget them if they know nothing about the product specifications, technical descriptions or industry associations etc. For instance, if you're buying ductile iron castings, you'd better find a service company with rich experience in this field because there are so many terminology in this field. Of course there are some terminology in any other field, the same word may carry different meanings in different fields.

6. Have a good knowledge of international laws and regulations related.
As a purchasing agent, he has to learn much about some international practice, including the quota issue, certificates issue, anti-dumping issue and tax issue etc. For instance, if you sell beef to Musilin countries, your products have to been certified with a special label and ratified from your target country.

Please also have a look at this post: What is a Professional Sourcing and Why?

So when you choose a purchasing agent in China, you'd better ask more questions and be careful as well! As a professional sourcing, purchasing, business services office located in China, STIN (www.chinabizservices.com or www.bizinchina.cc) warmly welcome any reliable foreign buyer to visit and have business.Our mission is to save you more and reduce the risks in your business in China!

Chinese Company or China Supplier Verification: Ways to self-check your Chinese suppliers easily !!!

MOST of Chinese suppliers are honest and reliable, however, there are still some stupid scammers in China ruining our good image on the globe. Recently a stupid scammer has ripped my friend off nearly 7000 USD. Here I may tell you some tips again on self-check your suppliers only by checking their company names, telephones and addresses online, it's very easy!!

Take www.pickyourlike.com for example, let's look at their contact information and company profile one by one:

1.Company profile
They do not have a good company profile, and their company name Pickyourlike cannot be registered in China according to the regulations with China Corporation Registration Law at my end. As a normal company, usually we have a basic company profile online.

2.Address
Their address: quanzhou city,fujian provice,china
This address actually does not exist in China. It's similar to: New York, the USA. With such an address online, how can you trust this supplier? How can you find a non-existing company among millions of people in Putian or Quanzhou city?

3.Telephone
8615860073320
This is a mobile phone number instead of a registered office number in China. What's more, this number is registered in Putian instead of Quanzhou, from this number, you can easily judge that this is a stupid scammer in China. They tell you that they are in Quanzhou but actually they in Putian, China according to their telephone information.

By the way, everybody can position a mobilephone number simply by fill the number in the following blank:
http://www.hao123.com/haoserver/showjicc.htm

4.Email address:
This is possible, because lot of us Chinese businessman are using free mailboxes in China. So we cannot judge their company by their mailboxes.

5.Business scope (product lines)
Please look at their product information, you may note that they are selling too many fast and hot-selling products online, actually this is impossible when they register in China, there are many limitations in the registration of a trade company in China, esp when you deal with branded products online. The business scope for each company is limited in China.

6.Unbelievable prices:
If their prices are too low to be true, you have to forget them or ask them for reference before doing any business with them. Ask them why their prices are so low. If your order is large enough, then you'd better book an On-site third-party China Supplier or Chinese Company Verification or Factory Inspection service from STIN or similar service companies in China to check them out in person before further discussion.

7.International brands:
Every international brand has their own distribution channels, you have to ask them for their Authorization proof from the brand owner. If you’re buying international brand products, say, Apple, Sony, Dell etc, you’d better contact their authorized distributors at your end. As a small buyer, you cannot buy directly from their authorized factories in China. For instance, Foxconn is the authorized factory for Apple products (IPAD etc) but Foxconn is not able to sell even ONE piece of Apple products to you from China. Every product has their unique ID number and the prices for the original brand products are nearly the same at anywhere on the globe. Actually when we are buying original Apple phones, the price in China is even much higher than that of the USA !!Please note that Putian is famous for scammers in China, but now, some of Putian scammers are moving to other big cities like Beijing, Guangzhou and Shenzhen etc to continue their scams online. What we have to do is to do enough Due Diligence work before your payment with the help of local experts.These tips are only for some stupid scammers in China, as for some professional scammers, of course, the best and most effective verification way is to inspect them in China! STIN verification or auditing service can help you out if you know nothing about Chinese!

STIN - YOUR EYES, ASSISTANTS AND OFFICE IN CHINA! www.chinabizservices.com 

What to do when you receive fake products or replicas from China suppliers?

Whether you're doing some personal shopping or sourcing goods or raw materials for an import-export business, it's safe to say that buying online is one of the fastest and most convenient options available.

However, while online purchases are generally very safe transactions, there is always the chance that something could go wrong - for example, you could end up with fake products. So is there anything that can be done if you open a shipment only to find that the item inside the box is not what you were expecting? Here is a quick guide to dealing with fake products. 

Act fast
If you receive a fake product from a supplier, fast action is essential. If you are indeed working with a fraudulent seller, they could disappear quickly and there will likely be a contractual time limit to getting a refund. 

Contact the supplier
Gather proof that the items are counterfeits, present these to the seller and ask for an explanation. If they offer a refund, make sure they absorb the cost return shipping - the threat of further action can help you be more convincing, but remember to always stay civil and calm, as it's possible the vendor was unaware of the problem.

Get in touch with your payment company
If you've paid for a shipment with your credit card or PayPal, you will probably be protected against fraudulent dealings. Each company will have different procedures for processing disputes, so get in touch with them to find out how to proceed. 

Leave negative feedback
Consider leaving feedback about the situation to warn future customers about potential problems, but be sure any claims you make can be supported, as you don't want to be caught with a libel claim against you.

Contact the authorities, and the genuine brand
This will vary, depending on your location, the location of the seller and the specifics of the situation, but in most cases you should get in touch with the authorities to report the goods.

The real brand or manufacturer may also be grateful to receive tips on fake products, and the evidence you provide will help them with investigations.

Please contact MOFCOM for official assistance: www.mofcom.gov.cn 

Contact STIN service team for help if you know nothing about Chinese:

www.chinabizservices.com  or  www.bizinchina.cc

Resource: http://resources.alibaba.com/topic/801220532/What_to_do_if_you_ve_received_fake_products.htm

What can a factory inspection service bring you in China?

Last week I paid several factory visitations to some Shenzhen-based companies in China upon request of some foreign buyers. All the three companies are Gold member or Trust pass members in Shenzhen, who all claimed that they were real manufacturers of electronics in China. I am sure most of the foreign businessmen will be astonished at the result of my inspection in Shenzhen; here is the basic information from my visitation report: 

Company One: 
Decline my visitation on the pretext of goods shortage, but they promised to receive us before our departure to Shenzhen. 

Company Two: 
Received us at an office in a Hotel, there are 3 salespersons working in the office. We cannot even find a Logo on their company in the office and on the door. They are checked out to be a small offshore trading company in China. 

Company Three: 
This is the best one among the three. They are a registered small trading company in China, however, they do not have their own right to export ( I mean they do not have the Certificate of Import & Export issued by local government authorities ), they normally export their goods via Freight Forwarders, for which the buyer may bear some risks. They registered only on 2005.08.26; however, they claimed themselves they were registered in 1999 online. They do not have any factories at all. They cannot show me any quality control measures and after sale services in written forms; they cannot even show me a formal sales contract ! 

My suggestion: You had better deal with larger trading companies or manufacturers directly for sake of better quality control in China. Lot of trading companies disguise to be a real manufacturer in China, so a factory visitation or inspection is very necessary for a large order in China! A factory inspection can tell you everything about the supplier and it is one of the best wayd to verify your Chinese supplier! 

What can a factory visitation performed by a local inspector bring you ? 
As we all know, there are many false things on the web, which perplex us often when we are going to make a decision. The case is also true with buyers who are going to buy from oversea suppliers. Here I bet a factory visitation (better by a local person) is a second-to-none solution.
1.Genuine or False? 
The local person can go and check the company (the potential seller) and all its factory registration information to see if it is a genuine and serious enterprise. This is the basic thing that any buyer has to do before any sincere cooperation!

2.Production Competence (Throughput)? 
The inspector can inquire about the factory’s production capacity (also known as throughput) with the director of Production Department. How much can they produce in a month or a quarter? By learning their production competence, the buyer can avoid the risk of a delayed delivery to some extent.

3.Quality Control? 
The visitor can try to get to know the factory’s quality control system with the help from the director of Quality Control Department. He can also get to know more by inspecting their assembly lines or work shops. Good quality is always one of the crucial things that buyers are always pursuing.

4.After-sale Service? 
After-sale service is also important for buyers. Here the visitor or inspector can make sure if the factory can offer good and effective after-sale services and also confirm if they can include after-sale services as one clause in the contract? After-sale services can keep you free from some troubles.

5.Export License? 
Some suppliers do not really have an export license. Here the inspector can check the supplier’s registration information with the local customs to see if it can really export directly to the buyer’s country. This is also one of the factors that can free you from being scammed. Other qualifications of the supplier can also be checked out by a local expert in this field in China.

STIN (CHINA) BUSINESS SERVICE CAN OFFER professional Factory Inspection and Auditing service for clients worldwide in China: www.chinabizservices.com or

  www.bizinchina.cc 

Tips for you to verify Chinese companies and stop you from professional biz scammers in China

We have checked out countless Chinese companies for our clients or friends worldwide this year. Some of the companies, even the Gold members of Alibaba turned out to be a business scammer in China. Your business cannot be legally protected by Chinese government authorities if you're dealing with illegal Chinese companies. Hence, it's very important to verify your business partner as there are more and more business frauds coming forth in China. Here are my tips for you to verify a Chinese company:

Generally speaking, there are some links online for you to check out companies in China:
www.yp.net.cn
www.chinaeall.com
www.cnaic.org.cn
www.114win.com
etc
However, there is no English version of above services so far in China, you have to know a little Chinese to check it all by yourself. Also lot of the companies did not register themselves with above yellow pages. So yellow page is not the key way to judge a business scammer in China! The best way to check out a supplier in China is to visit them in person or check them out with local government authorities in China.

If you don't know Chinese, still you can pre-verify your business partners from following aspects:

1. Contact information
Please note that whether their contact information is right or not, most of the scammers don't offer a right address, tel and fax number online. Some of the tel numbers are empty and some add and tel don't exist at all, they don't offer a company tel number, a private number or mobile phone number instead.

2. Registered corporate number
Every legal company in China has to register itself with Chinese government authortities and obtain an unique company number. If your business partner cannot offer you a unique registered corporate number, definitely he is a scammer, of course, he may submit you a fake number, so you have to check it out with local administrative government organs with the number he offered. There is a Chinese government organ called Bureau of Industry & Commerce ( have branches at all levels ), which is the only government organ responsible for the registration of legitimate companies or enterprises in China. For example, for any legitimate companies from Changsha of Hunan province, you can contact the local administrative organ for confirmation: http://www.csaic.gov.cn/ Tel: 86-731-2891606 or http://www.hunancom.gov.cn/ Tel: 86-731-2287058 , the problem is you have to report your case in Chinese sometimes because most of the local officials do not know too much English in China.

3. Incredibly low prices, esp for international brands
Most of Chinese scammers usually attract foreigners with a very low price. If the prices they offered is too low to be true, you may have a further investigation on your partner to know why their prices are so low. Most of the scammers in China profit a lot by selling replicas or fakes of some branded goods to the overseas market, this is very risky because the goods shall be confiscated or detained by Chinese customs houses in case it considered illegal in China. By the way, please remember that the price for authentic /original brands like Sony, Apple, Nokia, Dell etc should be almost the same at anywhere on the globe. You cannot import from the unthorized brands distributors with cheaper price in China. They must be selling relicas, fake ones or copies of brands etc ! Please simply forget such suppliers in China !

4. Payment and shipment terms
The scammers never accept L/C as their payment terms, they prefer Western Union, Paypal and T/T etc. Also they never deliver goods through formal channels in China, they prefer to deliver samples by Express like Fedex, TNT, EMS to avoid more examinations from Chinese customs house. Most of the scammers use Private Bank Accounts in China!

5. Warranty and after sale services
Scammers never take some measures to guarantee their quality and after-sale services after your payment, they may promise you a lot before payment. It's lip-services only!!!

Be careful with some of the Chinese suppliers!
By the way, I have to mention that, it does not mean the manufacturer has the right to sell or buy in case he has obtained a legitimate unique company number from local BIC in China. In China, all the enterprises with the right to import and export has to apply and obtain a certificate called Certificate of Import & Export from Ministry of Commerce of PRC and its authorized local organs in China after their registration at local BIC. Also a formal trade company has to register with Chinese Customs House and its branches before his formal business with foreign counterparts in China. Then he has to register himself with local Bureau of Inspection & Quarantine in case his products are in need of quality control. Without the registration from above local government authorities from China, no company can deal with you in formal channels in China.
If your order is very big, you'd better book an On-site Factory Inspection & Auditing Service from us to avoid future trouble. Please contact us for any question related: bizinchina1@gmail.com   or Skype: momochong1   Our mission is to save you more and reduce the risks in your business in China!

STIN: a ONE-STOP import &export service provider from Mainland China!

STIN is aiming to offer professional sourcing, quality control, auditing and shipping support service etc for clients worldwide from China. STIN is a team of local sourcing specialists, buyers, auditors, QC inspectors and lawyers etc. Our mission is to save you more and reduce the risks in your business in China!   www.bizinchina.cc     or www.chinabizservices.com      Skype: momochong1  STIN -- Your Office, Assistants and Eyes etc in China! Please contact us for details.

Our main services are:
1. STIN SOURCING SERVICE -- Looking for the most competitive suppliers 

 2.  QUALITY CONTROL MANAGEMENT -- Your own eyes at the factories !  

3. Factory Auditing & Inspection Service

                  --- The first step for your successful large business in China

4. Purchasing Agent & Buying Office Service 

                  --- The ONE-STOP business solution service for you in China

 5. Business Secretariat Service & Business Guide 

             Your local 'secretary', 'associate' and 'guide' from China !   

6.  Business Investigation  -- Your own auditor and investigator in China!

  

7. Fair /Show Participation or Presentation -- Your own sourcing assistants 

8. Shipping Support Service -- Your shipping agent and assistant

   A good shipping agent will protect the client interests after they pay the supplier, they will control the 

goods during transportation from the beginning to the end of the business. This is why most of the buyers

 or sellers having their own shipping agents worldwide. STIN can work as a shipping agent or Logistics 

assistants for their clients in China, STIN provides following delivery services: sea transportation, air 

transportation, Express delivery, inland roadway and railway transportation. Undertake multi-model transportation of container, warehousing, customs clearance and commodity inspection, cargo 

insurance, logistics consultation, lateral container transportation, special container, freezer container and 

other kinds of transportation, which is total logistics service. Collection of items from different factories 

and supervision of loading process etc can also be available upon request. STIN has good biz relationship 

with many partners in China and the detailed cost can be discussed case by case. 

9. Supervision of Loading Process -- -- Your own eyes at the factory warehouses

   Supervision of Loading Process service means STIN inspector shall go to the factory's warehouse 

together with the shipper, overseeing the process of loading on behalf of the clients in China after they 

pay the factory. The purpose of a Supervision of Loading process is to make sure the factory will deliver 

the right Quantity or Quality after the buyer pays the order. This service is catered for large orders in China. 

11. Case-Report Service - -- Get back your money in China? Try this one !

   (Debt Collection via official channels) 

   This service is catered for any foreign victim or companies defrauded (swindled or deceived) by Chinese 

companies or individuals. An on-site Case-Report Service might be able to get your money back or at least the scammer will get heavily fined or jailed 

if you can obtain official assistance. Please contact us for details. It is a kind of official debt collection service

 in China.