Anyone interested in selling physical goods online will no doubt be familiar with websites that provide large quantities of stock at greatly reduced rates, and one very popular website in this field is liquidation.com.
However, in recent times there have been a number of complaints online about liquidation.com and the quality of the stock that you can purchase on their website.
Is this just another example of buyers not getting exactly what they paid for, or is it a genuine case of liquidation.com misleading its customers? We take a closer look…
First of all, liquidation.com was established in 1998 as a liquidation auction site, and over the following years, it became established as a standard within the industry.
By late 2010 it was averaging around 70,000 visitors per month, as buying and selling goods from companies like liquidation.com peaked in popularity.
But during this period of growth, it also received many negative reviews from customers who felt they had been misled or misinformed over the stock they were purchasing.
So I decided to write this post following an email from a regular workfromhomewatchdog.com visitor who felt she had a bad deal at liquidation.com.
What the heck is going on here?
Is liquidation.com a genuine service, or is there no smoke without fire??
The first thing to remember is…this is a service very similar to eBay, where liquidation.com simply lists details of stock available to purchase via auction.
The difference is, liquidation.com sells goods in bulk and in various states of condition.
From my own research and understanding of the complaints made against them, the majority came about between 2007 – 2010.
The more serious complaints against them appeared to have slowed considerably since that time.
Could this mean that liquidation.com eventually got its house in order? Probably, although I’m not going to say that is definitely the case.
Instead, I would like to focus on what I consider to be the biggest problem with stock sold on liquidation.com. Unfortunately, I think it will always be a problem area…
Buyers feel they are being misled about the quality of the stock they are buying.
During my investigation, this was a consistent complaint, and it is a big concern.
Of course, buying stock that is not new carries a degree of risk anyway – especially if the value of your purchase is a few thousand dollars.
This leads nicely to the next most-reported problem by those who have used liquidation.com – customer service/support.
I would imagine that offering support to customers buying stock of this type is one tough job, and would therefore require a solid support network along with strict policies.
Whilst many of the complaints are focused on the quality of the goods, people are generally as unhappy with the fact that liquidation.com hide behind their terms and conditions.
In doing so they do not lose out when it comes to their cut of the deal.
Is this ethical? I don’t think so.
In my opinion, this combo of negatives is bad news for the most important component of the liquidation.com process…the customer.
What concerns me the most is they do attract people who are fairly new to this type of business. People who maybe can’t see through the marketing fog.
I can now see why a lot of the complaints focus on misleading information.
For the record, I don’t think the information is necessarily misleading, but I can see how people reach that conclusion.
One final point of interest that I discovered during my research…since May of 2011, the traffic stats for liquidation.com have dropped substantially by over 20,000 visitors per month.
I know from my own online experience this could be mostly related to Google search engine ranking updates that have taken place.
However, I’m also inclined to believe that all the negative feedback online is starting to affect liquidation.com.
Or could it just be that selling liquidation stock is perhaps not as lucrative as it has been in the past?
Liquidation.com is, without a doubt, an established business, but that doesn’t always count for much online.
If you are considering using Liquidation.com, my advice is to proceed with caution for the reasons stated above.
Marcus – WFHW
So obviously there is a risk factor associated with these wholesale auction sites. With liquidation.com, I didn’t even find a feature where you could get an item by item quality description within the lots themselves (I quickly perused the site, I apologize if this observation is not universal to the site). Buy at your own risk seems to be their general policy. With all this dubiousness, it seems to me that if these liquidation sites were screwing their customers with every purchase that they would have been out of business LONG ago, unless they manage to get a new batch of saps that latch on to the trend every few months.
There are obviously people having some degree of success with wholesale liquidation sites out there. Its something that could be incredibly lucrative. Does anyone have any sort of tips for someone who is new at buying from sites like these?
Great overview of the risks and possible benefits associated with buying from auction sites, Michael.
It’s a bit of a minefield to be honest, and in my experience this comes down to the fact that many scammers sell goods on auction sites. Scam types vary greatly from poor quality goods to not receiving the goods at all, so you do have to be very cautious.
The best approach is to make contact with the seller first and decide for yourself if they come across as trustworthy. No matter what your decision, NEVER buy in bulk before buying a much smaller order, if possible. This will allow you to assess the quality of the goods before considering a larger order.
As I say, it is very much a risky business, but one that can also be lucrative if you proceed with caution. You might want to take a look at other wholesale reviews here on my site (above) before taking the plunge.
All the best,
Marcus
WFHW
I have worked for a World Fortune 500 company at an executive level for over 33 years., and really thought I was a very sharp business person. When a friend of mine opened up a new retail location he came to me to see if I would help him with some start up inventory on consignment. Not having a lot of time for research, I turned to liquidation.com, which has turned out to be the biggest business mistake in my career.
I bid on items that I thought would sell well in his type of business and at what I thought was a decent price. I spent several thousand dollars on this inventory and as someone else mentioned I paid a hefty price for shipping no matter how small the items were(I really think a lot of their revenue comes from these inflated charges).
When I started receiving some of the merchandise I started doubting the quality as stated in their descriptions under the listings. I began looking up individual items and determined I had been took to the cleaners on several item. If you want to really see what you could purchase some of the knives, binoculars, rifle scopes, lighted walking sticks, Airsoft Guns, tool kits and more go to defender knife.com and you will see where a lot of their merchandise is obtained. You will notice that all bids have a minimum 100.00 starting price, however there are so many items at defender knife available to everyone at a 1/3 of the starting bid price for the same number of items, it almost seems criminal and false advertising.
In addition one of my wins was for 1000 ladies bangle bracelets. The pictures and the descriptions were for a really upscale looking bracelet. When I received the bracelets and opened the box, none of the bracelets in the pictures or in the descriptions were included in the shipment. I tried to get resolve from liquidation.com but received so much run around that I filed a chargeback with my credit card company (huge mistake)! Under their terms and agreement all the protection is weighed toward them and in their statement they could even have you arrested for filing the chargeback.
Someone needs to file a class action lawsuit against this company or at least report them to the attorney general for their unethical business practice. The company I work for goes out of its way support their customers. Liquidation.com goes out of its way to best their customers.
I have dropped the dispute because I have more important issues to deal with and this company is not worth one more minute of my time.
If you are considering doing business with this company, please for your health and peace of mind, run away from this company as fast as you can
Rick,
Thanks so much for taking the time to explain your situation in detail.
There seems to be a constant issue with the quality of goods from auction sites, and I have to stress that this is not exclusive to liquidation.com.
Saying that, we do get many reports about the quality of the goods auctioned on their site, so it’s an area that they need to address – for the good of their business.
As a smart business person, Rick, they even managed to trick you into this unfortunate situation. I’m really sorry to hear about your experience. As you rightly say, it’s time to round up these companies and deal with them in a way that will benefit the paying customer. Until that day comes, we must all remain vigilant when purchasing goods online from auction sites.
Best wishes for now, Rick, and thanks again for sharing your experiences with WFHW.
Marcus
WFHW
Liquidation is company that will send you some good lots first trying to drag you in into more heavy purchases and than once you into it they will send you lots that is not worth to buy for the price they sell. They will try to do everything to scam and rip you off. They will deactivate your account on the end leaving hanging purchase and will not give you money back. You will not reopen your account.
Stay away from liquidation.com there is better bulk liquidation auctions out there.
Thanks for sharing your interesting observations, Vadim.
They pretty much echo our own thoughts in respect of proceeding with caution with Liquidation.com.
Thanks again for the wise words.
Marcus – WFHW Founder
I have purchased from these company actually no, I have made purchases THROUGH this company. Liquidiation is nothing more than just a market with different sellers. Its no different than going to yourLocalMall. You bid on auctions or BIN and hope to get what you paid for. Take in mind some keywords, USED, SALVAGE and REFURBISHED, if you avoid these 3 times keywords, you will be one happy buyers.
Example of what I used the site for
I purchased some products from Alibaba, 8 ti 30 iPhone Pin Adapters at 2.21 a piece, I purchased 10 so the total was 47.90 (including shipping) meaning I paid $4.79 per each item. Well, I found 100 items of the same product, for 100, no one was bidding so I bid and won the auction. 5% to the site and the rest to the seller, the s hipping was around 50 dollars.
meaning I got each unit for $1.50!
Some deals are worth it, some are not. Make sure to always check the avarage selling price of the items you arelooking and make sure its not cheaper to buy them indivually than in bulk.
One issue is people LOVE competition and start bidding just for the thrill, later they find out its now costing them more than what they could have got them individually
Joe, you raise some excellent points here.
The big problem with sites of this type is they tend to (happily) rely heavily on the ability and knowledge of the person bidding on the goods. On the whole, in our experience, most people go into these auctions not fully knowing what they are getting involved in. They trust the website because it’s a popular name, but 9/10 they are at the mercy of the person selling the goods and end up out of pocket, or with some sub-standard goods.
Your advice is great Joe, and I hope that anyone reading this will take it on board. Do your homework before committing to a deal otherwise there’s every chance that you will be unhappy with your purchase.
All the best,
Marcus
WFHW Team
Huge scam won a necklace that was suppose to be 18k gold 5 genuine pieces diamonds and weigh 12 grams ,what I got was 18kgp weighs 4 grams and not worth crap,every single pawn shop said its fake!and liquadation didnt want to solve the dispute when i provided evedince ,got scammed so bad ,please for the love of god don’t use liquadation ! You’ll thank me !
Hi Jacob,
Thanks for letting us know about your experience and warning our visitors of the potential pitfalls with Liquidation.com.
Best wishes,
Marcus
WFHW Team
I’m real sorry to here about you guys getting takened but I’ve been using liquidation.com for years and I went into it with half a brain. Returns mean there was something wrong with the product or the customer just didn’t want it. It’s a risk. Most people go into this business thinking they can get good products for 1% of their worth. They are stupid entrepreneurs. I know the risk and I usaully make 400% from a skid of course I live near a facility so I can pick mine up. It’s not a scam, just a business that takes over stocked new, used, salvaged stock and resale it. Don’t take the risk if you don’t understand how it works. Liquidation will never go out of business and if they do another will take over with the same rules. The more people talk about their scams, the better off I am because there will be fewer people bidding on stock which is a plus.
Good Advice there Jerry, and we appreciate you taking the time to share your experiences with liquidation.com.
Best wishes,
Marcus
WFHW
Liquidation is a SCAM with all the capital words. I just bought 100 dress with the following description:
100 Bridesmaid Prom Formal Gowns Dresses Jim Hjelm – MRSP $29,900
100 Jim Hjelm Occasions, Alvina Valenta and Lazaro designer gowns.
Brands:
73xJim Hjelm Occasions
16xAlvina Valenta
11xLazaro.
Sizes:
1×4
1×6
2×8
36×10
56×12
2×14
1×16
1×18.
There are 93 different styles and 7 of the same from a cancelled bridal party.
All the dresses are made in USA, in excellent condition with original manufacturer hang tag(s) attached.
The dresses on the pictures are included and many more.
Total: 100 pieces Retail Per Item: $229-$369
\Retail Value: $29,900
I read all the information and I paid U$3500.00 dollars for 100 dress that i truly believed would be what was described as sizes 4 to 16!
I got 100 dress all sizes 4 or smaller. They don’t even fit my daughter 14years old.
I don’t have nobody to buy a dress so small.
The description says it was dress with tag in, all the dress are sample sales, with a tag that says style 12 (read collection 2012). I’m a fashion Designer and I know exactly what a sample sales dress is. It was made to guide the production. The dresses has hand notes inside of the labels!
I will never be able of to sell them. Its impossible to find 100 people interested in dresses size 4 or smaller!
I was ripped off, cheated and robbed by liquidation.com.
They also said the dress was worth U$299 and up! This sample sales dress are not worth to U$20.00 Dollars.
I cant even express how hard my family is missing the over U$3500,00 Thousand Dollars that I paid for this dress.
The mix sizes offered by Liquidation.Com on theirs description was a totally lie.
I’m in shock and without any option. I don’t know what to do and Liquidation.com said by email that the dress are sold and delivered by the way it is.
I will never even look to Liquidation.com and will make as much as possible to alert others about this scam miserable company.
Hundreds of people like me are literally being victimized every day and nobody does nothing.
Thank you Silvia.
Hi Silvia,
Sorry to hear about this very expensive purchase for you.
I agree that it was completely misleading, and the fact that Liquidation.com is distancing itself from their part in the sale outlines the risks people face when making purchases in this way, on websites like this.
The only possible workaround that I can suggest is to try selling them on yourself, obvious at less than what you paid for the dresses, to at least try and recover what you have lost. Of course it shouldn’t be that way and you should receive all of your money back, but it looks like that isn’t going to happen.
Best wishes to you, and all the best for your future online ventures.
Marcus
Liquidation.com
Auction listings created at this company are far from accurate. Buyer BEWARE!!!I was involved in two auctions where the quantity stated in the auction was not even close to being accurate and then they canceled my account for disputing the shortage. I will probably lose my dispute but that just shows the integrity of this company.
This was a bad judgment error on my end because their was a problem on the first auction I was involved with regarding quantity and I should had noticed the red flags then.
Liquidation.com is only set up for sellers scamming buyers with their misrepresented auction listings in order to gain profit from honest business people.
Thanks for your valued input Charles, and we wish you well with all future business ventures.
Marcus
WFHW
I did quite a bit of research before buying from them, I have watched a you tube video of some guy opening a case of “returned” purses and handbags. He said the whole auction was useless and that he would sue. He said that the auction was “returns”and when you look at the descriptions for returns it clearly states that some or all of the merchandise may be used or defective.
I purchased a lot on their site last week and am basically happy with it. I am most unhappy about the outrageous shipping charges they impose on us. But overall, I will make money after re-selling what I bought.
Final thoughts: I think that the biggest problem here is, like you said, this type of website draws a lot of “newbies” that want to break into the online marketplace. That in itself is not a problem, but the lack of research, and just taking the time to READ the descriptions can be a problem.
I believe liquidation.com “gets” us with shipping, but then again, eBay “gets” us with selling fees. Everyone needs to make a dollar. Liquidation.com is not a scam, you just have to research what you are buying. Also worthy of mentioning, the manifests that they provide in their auctions are very useful, and often give descriptions that include condition. I would be reluctant to purchase a lot of assorted items that did not have a well documented manifest.
Overall Liquidation.com is an option for people who do not have other connections to build their inventory quickly.
SheilaB
Ebay_Seller
PS – I also forgot to mention, I dont like the fact that you cannot contact the seller. What reason could they have to keep the seller and buyer apart? Money!
Hi Sheila,
Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts.
I agree with everything that you have said, and when all is said and done it all comes down to being vigilant when making a purchase through liquidation.com. That in itself is the No1 reason why people complain about this company, but as i stated in my review, Liquidation.com are smart enough to ensure that they are within the boundaries of being “ethical”, and it’s a tactic that we’ve seen before.
Thanks once again for the excellent appraisal Sheila, and for anyone else reading I will repeat what I stated in my review…proceed with caution.
Marcus
WFHW
the seller just cancelled my transaction. Took him two weeks to decide not to send my merch. I paid in less than 2 days. Upsetting that I already had plans for the merchandise. OH WELL. Guess I should’ve done my research first. If they don’t refund my money in full, I will be getting my LAWYER brother in law to contact them.
Hi Peggy,
Sorry to hear about your experiences, and we hope they resolve this situation in the right way for you.
All the best,
Marcus
WFHW
A scam, false, misleading information… even in their invoice! take a look at this:
Units Description
6 10.2″Touch Screen Android Tablet PC WIFI HDMI GPS Camera 3G
$321.21
Shipping & Logistics $40.25
Buyer’s Premium $16.06
Grand Total $377.52
One would think that 6 units are being purchased in this lot, but surprise! They twist things around an one ends up paying $377.52 for just ONE UNIT that breaks down into 6 parts they call “units” for which one pays $54.00 for each one, i.e. $54.00 for the charging cord, $54.00, for the pouch bag, $54.00 for the ear piece, $54.00 for the memory card and so on and these auctions are for things called “lot” and “bulk purchases”. You can´t contact the seller or warn others about these practices. You can´t withdraw your bid and if you do not pay they charge your card a fine bigger than the value of the auction!
Sweet thigs await at iquidation.com
Hi Alfonso,
That is definitely misleading. Have you tried speaking with Liquidation directly and asking them if there’s anything they can do? They should at least be interested in the misleading attempt to deceive on unit amounts. This can only reflect badly on them, so it would be in their best interests to investigate.
Please let us know how you get on Alfonso.
Marcus
WFHW
Hi Matt,
Your views very much echo what we uncovered during our investigation of liquidation.com, and I appreciate you taking the time to let us know.
The big issue here continues to be the actual quality of the goods, and we believe that liquidation.com could do a much better job of reporting it with greater accuracy.
As you rightly say, customer service is at the core of their problems, and if a business can’t get that part right then they need to re-evaluate.
Thanks again for sharing your thoughts, and I wish you success with your online endeavors.
All the best,
~Marcus
WFHW Team
this company may not be a scam or fraud but in my dealings they care nothing of their customers. i joined thinking i could invest some money in buying bulk to resell come to find out all the descriptions of items are false and full of lies. and that items arent inspected i have no complaints of things i can control i read all their terms and policies and learned that shipping is expensive but still its your choice to buy and i did. but the items are so misrepresented with false info lies of value or apprisals and condition. i have evidence just way to much to state. thanks for trying to inform