Intro: LightInThe Box Reviews | Is LightInTheBox Safe?
Shopping online has become a passion for many people looking for the best deals and unique items that they can’t find in local stores.
Are you looking for a way to save a few dollars on your must-have purchases? Prefer to do all of your shopping online without having to change out of your pajamas? Then a retailer like LightInTheBox may have come up on your radar.
What is LightInTheBox, you might ask? If you haven’t heard of it yet, you probably will soon. This online discount site, referred to as both LightInTheBox and Light in the Box Limited, offers deep discounts on everything from clothing to electronics.
LightInTheBox is a global online retailer that was founded in 2007 and specializes in offering customizable products at steep discounts.
Some of the popular offerings they sell include Light In The Box dresses, LightInTheBox wigs, smart home devices, and much more.
Light In The Box Shoes
However, LightInTheBox reviews argue that the retailer might not be all it’s cracked up to be. The many Light In The Box reviews online argue that the service they’ve received may be just a scam.
Customer complaints include never receiving items, shipping taking longer than promised, and difficulty with Light In The Box returns.
But on the flip side, there are customers that praise the company in their Light In The Box review saying they got a great item for an excellent price.
So, is LightInTheBox safe and is Light In The Box legit? Let’s take a look at the evidence to find out in this LightInTheBox review.
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Exactly What Is LightInTheBox?
LightInTheBox is a global retailer that specializes in several key categories of online goods. These include:
- Apparel (women’s, men’s, and kids/babies)
- Lights and lighting
- Jewelry and watches
- Shoes and bags
- Toys and sporting goods
- Beauty and hair products
- Automotive
- Consumer electronics
- Smart devices
- Personal protection
One of the main reasons people are starting to ask the question, “Is LightInTheBox safe?” is because the company is located in China. Light In The Box Limited’s primary headquarters is in Beijing. Online budget retailers from Asia don’t typically have a great reputation for quality or customer service.
In addition to the headquarters, the company has two other addresses listed on their website, including a US address and an address for Light In The Box UK, located in London.
While it appears that LightInTheBox is a legitimate business and not just a front for peddling stolen goods or a phishing scam, many Light In The Box reviews tell of difficulties getting the product they ordered or getting their money back.
Why is Light In The Box Limited such a big draw? It’s the wide array of attractive products at deep discounts, listed at up to 95% off retail.
Another factor that causes many to pull the trigger on an order even though they may wonder, “Is LightInTheBox safe to order from?” is that they advertise expedited shipping through DHL in 3-5 business days.
The rock-bottom prices are the key attraction, and LightInTheBox is great for finding wholesale pricing on miscellaneous or difficult-to-find items, particularly if you are interested in buying large quantities of protective items like face masks or gloves.
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Our LightInTheBox review found that the website does offer legitimate payment services that make it feel like there might not be a LightInTheBox scam.
PayPal
Everyone recognizes the PayPal name as a safe and secure way to send funds around the world. You can take advantage of the inherent security of PayPal’s e-commerce platform to pay for your Light In The Box purchase and protect your credit card information from being shared.
Is Light In The Box safe to order from? Is it a legitimate online shop you can count on? Most would agree that the payment options offered at the final checkout do ensure a secure checkout process to protect the cash in your accounts.
Some Light In The Box reviews do label it as a phishing scam, but phishing could happen through most retail sites of that scale. The fact that they accept PayPal orders affirms the answer to “Is Light In The Box Legit?” as far as payment processing goes.
Western Union
Not a fan of putting your credit card information into a website that often comes up in reviews on searches of “LightInTheBox scam?”
You can choose to pay using a wire transfer through the reputable Western Union payment option.
Google Checkout
This payment option is not listed in their main Light In The Box Limited payment methods, but you’ll see it in other areas of their FAQ. They note that it is not available to use on all Light In The Box dresses, LightInTheBox wigs, Light In The Box shoes, or other items.
Google Checkout is an online payment processing service hosted by Google, designed to speed up the payment process and may be an option on certain purchases at Light In The Box.
Consumers trust Google Checkout to be fast and secure – definitely a favorable feature in LightInTheBox reviews.
NYSE Listing | LightInTheBox Review
Another factor that helps answer the question, “Is LightInTheBox safe to order from?” is the fact that it is a public company, under the name, LightInTheBox Holding Co., Ltd.
LightInTheBox is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under LITB after having undergone a rigorous application process to provide its articles of incorporation, company by-laws, key information on the company, and contacts for executives.
Even then, the New York Stock Exchange has the discretion to apply more rigid criteria, particularly in the form of collecting additional sales records to prove how much profit the company is actually generating.
This lends some legitimacy to an online discount retailer like Light In The Box Limited, as many of these types of companies aren’t publicly listed and don’t undergo the scrutiny that comes with that process.
That being said, plenty of other companies have been listed on the New York Stock Exchange just to end up scamming people out of money.
Companies like Enron, HealthSouth, and Tyco International were all large-scale enterprises that created a business around fraudulent sales and marketing.
With all of the public companies available globally, it would be almost impossible for the New York Stock Exchange or the Securities and Exchange Commission to detect every possible fraudulent endeavor.
But being listed on the NYSE does speak to a level of legitimacy and should be taken into consideration when evaluating a company.
So ultimately, while the NYSE listing does put LightInTheBox on the map as a legitimate business, it doesn’t necessarily mean there isn’t also a LightInTheBox scam.
The best source to answer, “Is Light In The Box Safe?” are the customers that have used them and shared their experiences. We’re going to look at Light In The Box Reviews from consumers next.
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Is LightInTheBox Safe to Order from? | LightInTheBox Reviews
Among the Light In The Box reviews, you’ll find that the site is best known for its customizable wedding apparel and eveningwear and other Light In The Box dresses.
Brides and their entourages flock to this site in hopes of scoring the wedding dress of their dreams at a fraction of the cost of traditional retailers. Better yet, the customizable features of the website mean they won’t even have to pay for custom-tailoring.
Light In The Box Dresses Reviews
However, for every delighted bride-to-be that receives her flowing white gown, there’s another Light in the Box review that tells a different story.
LightInTheBox reviews abound that call it a “LightInTheBox scam” or a “Light In The Box rip off” because their order never arrives or comes in the wrong size or looking nothing like the photo on LightInTheBox.com.
This can ruin someone’s special day, whether they were ordering Light In The Box dresses for a wedding or a prom.
Not receiving an item is especially concerning for those who are considering using LightInTheBox for larger purchases, like appliances or electronics.
The LightInTheBox reviews on forums would suggest that you might want to think twice about the question, “Is LightInTheBox safe to order from?” when making a large ticket item purchase.
Here are some highlights from customers that gave a LightInTheBox review on some of the popular review websites.
LightInTheBox Reviews on Trustpilot
Out of 24,506 reviews on Trustpilot, its LightInTheBox review gave an overall score of 2.5 out of 5.
Just 50% of those who wrote reviews for Light In The Box Limited gave the company an “Excellent” rating. A total of 37% of reviewers gave a “Poor” or “Bad” rating with 34% of them giving just 1 star.
Generally speaking, this is an overall positive Light In The Box review, since a majority of the reviewers gave a positive rating for the retailer.
The positive Light In The Box reviews praised the quality of some of the items and fast shipping times. Those who gave a negative LightInTheBox review noted issues with Light In the Box returns, not receiving their money back, and poor customer service.
LightInTheBoxReviews on Consumer Affairs
Consumer Affairs is a site that may get compensation for referrals to retailers, but even with that affiliation, most reviewers on their site gave a poor rating for LightInTheBox.
Out of 278 total ratings, the retailer had a 1.5-star rating. The vast majority of consumers would answer, “No” to the question, “Is Light In The Box Legit?”
Many of the Light In The Box reviews expressed frustration with prolonged shipping times and miscommunication on sizing, the majority of which came from customers who had ordered Light In The Box dresses or Light In The Box shoes.
Among the few positive reviews was one for Light In The Box UK that mentioned getting a wonderful deal on a wristband fitness tracker at a fraction of the cost of a Fitbit.
LightInTheBox Reviews on Sitejabber
Sitejabber’s LightInTheBox reviews reflected the best overall scores of the three review sites.
Of the 4,364 reviews gathered, Light In The Box Limited got a score of 4 stars out of 5. The site also mentioned that Light In The Box reviews ranked the retailer 3rd among their Wholesale Clothing sites category.
While there are still plenty of disgruntled customers if you scroll through any site featuring Light In The Box reviews, you’ll also find many people who were completely satisfied with their purchases and the customer service.
Overall, many of the people who were pleased with their purchase seemed to be purchasing various clothing items, LightInTheBox wigs, watches, or small consumer electronics.
Our own Light In The Box review found that long shipping times were the biggest complaint in Sitejabber Light In The Box reviews, along with receiving canned replies when they tried to interact with customer support.
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How Does Shipping Work? | LightInTheBox Review
LightInTheBox scam comments run rampant on forums and message boards where consumers come to vent about never receiving their items. Sometimes, those Light In The Box reviews are made a little hastily though.
When we answered the question, “What is LightInTheBox?” we discussed that this retailer is actually headquartered in Beijing.
That being said, most of its items also ship from overseas, and shipping times aren’t exactly the fastest. Even the processing times can be long before an item even ships.
A few items process in just 24 hours, but the rest can span from 3 business days to a whopping 15 business days or more before they even leave the warehouse. One of the longest processing times is for LighInTheBox wigs, which have a processing time of up to 25 business days.
LightInTheBox Review | Processing + Shipping
A major LightInTheBox review complaint is the length of the shipping times. Their shipping policy is detailed below.
Postal Service-Tracking
Goods shipped with this method can make it to the United States in 10-20 business days from the time it leaves the warehouse. During peak season, this delivery time is extended to 15-30 business days.
Looking at a calendar, that means that it could be up to six weeks (counting the weekends) before your items arrive.
Postal Expedited
Choosing this method will certainly speed up the delivery process, cutting your wait time down to 5-8 business days. This brings it to approximately a one-week wait for shipping, even during peak delivery times.
Expedited Express Shipping
For shoppers who want their items as soon as possible, this is the best shipping option to consider. With Expedited Express, worldwide shipping is cut down to 3-5 business days.
Note: Some of the negative Light In The Box reviews mentioned paying for 3-5 business day shipping, but their orders taking longer than expected to arrive.
Our LightInTheBox review could not find any information regarding specific pricing for each shipping method, though the company does state that shipping will depend both on the weight of the package and delivery timeframe and is calculated at checkout.
When considering the generic Postal Service-Tracking shipping method, the longest wait falls just under nine weeks for an item to arrive after placing your order. And the processing time is added on top of that.
That’s a long time to wait and wonder whether you’ve become a victim of the LightInTheBox scam, or whether it is simply normal shipping times for a package coming from overseas.
It’s no wonder many customers ask for Light In The Box returns and refunds because they feel that their order will never arrive.
The issue also isn’t just in the US. Then looking at reviews for Light In The Box UK, the same problem was mentioned with long delivery times or never receiving an item.
It’s enough to lead anyone to ask the question, “Is Light In The Box safe?” after waiting that long for a potentially expensive package.
Before believing that you’ve fallen prey to a LightInTheBox scam, make sure that you’ve calculated both the processing time and shipping time that your item may take to make it to your home. Also, remember that their timeframes are in business days, which don’t count weekends or holidays.
Waiting a little longer may just save you from the hassle of initiating Light In The Box returns and refunds on your orders.
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Conclusion: Is LightInTheBox Safe Enough to Become My New Go-to Online Retailer?
Now that we’ve thoroughly answered the question, “What is LightInTheBox?” it’s time to answer the main question: Is Light In The Box safe to order from for my everyday online shopping needs?
While the Light In The Box reviews seems to be favorable on some sites, others tell a different story, so the jury is still out on whether there may be a LightInTheBox scam afoot or possibly just very poor customer service.
For those wondering, “Is Light In the Box legit?”, the answer would be positive. Yes, they are a legitimate company, but that doesn’t mean you’ll have a good experience. Experiences are very mixed.
Shopping the site can be a great way to get a steep discount on a wedding or prom dress, Light In The Box Shoes, or consumer electronics, but you will be taking a chance, judging from LightInTheBox reviews.
Overall, is LightInTheBox safe? It has plenty of secure payment options that would indicate that it isn’t a phishing site. If using PayPal, be sure to check their buyer protection policies.
Most unsatisfied customers aren’t complaining of stolen credit card data. Instead, these negative LightInTheBox reviews detail frustration with never receiving their goods or receiving substandard items.
Read any Light In The Box review about items never being delivered, and you might find that they simply haven’t waited long enough to receive their items in a world that is used to 2-day shipping from Amazon Prime.
The LightInTheBox reviews seem to indicate that you might want to try a few less expensive items first to see if you’re pleased with the customer service and shipping times before proceeding to purchase larger items.
If you do find that there’s a LightInTheBox scam or you have an issue with your order, at least you won’t be out the larger purchase amount.
Due to the extreme inconsistency of Light In The Box reviews and the number of unhappy customers, we’ve rated them with 2 stars. We will keep an eye on them, and should their ratings improve, we may revisit their rating in the future.
Image sources:
- https://www.lightinthebox.com/c/new-online-shoes_96637
- https://www.lightinthebox.com/c/top-selling_3916
- https://www.lightinthebox.com/knowledge-base/c1229/a3017.html
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