Revisiting LBC Shipping Cart: Is It Still Reliable?

Saturday, February 11, 2017 Alexis Mendoza 22 Comments


Last 2015, I did a review of LBC Shipping Cart and how they conveniently handled two sets of packages from the US straight to the Philippines – you can read that if you haven’t yet by clicking HERE.


Shipping Cart was fairly new that time and as expected, their service was close to flawless that time. After reading a lot of comments on my post from disappointed customers last 2015 to early 2016, I decided to give their service a try again to see if it’s still the same.

The Packages


I did a little online shopping last September 2016 as a birthday treat to myself. I bought a couple of sets of Game of Thrones McFarlane collectibles from ToysRUs, I also bought additional Game of Thrones collectibles, a Tarot Card Deck, and a Pokemon Nendoroid knock-off toy on Ebay US – all of these were ordered and shipped early September. All in all, I have a total of 5 sets of packages all shipped to the Shipping Cart Warehouse in California.

Here are the shipping dates from merchant to delivery to the warehouse, in case you’re curious:

McFarlane Game of Thrones Iron Throne Room Set
Shipped from Merchant: September 3, 2016
Delivered to Shipping Cart Warehouse: September 6, 2016

Tarot Card Deck
Shipped from Merchant: September 6, 2016
Delivered to Shipping Cart Warehouse: September 8, 2016

McFarlane Game of Thrones House Lannister Banner Set
Shipped for Merchant: September 7, 2016
Delivered to Shipping Cart Warehouse: September 9, 2016

McFarlane Game of Thrones House Stark Banner Set
Shipped from Merchant: September 6, 2016
Delivered to Shipping Cart Warehouse: September 13, 2016

Pokemon Nendoroid Set
Shipped from Merchant: September 17, 2016
Delivered to Shipping Cart Warehouse: September 22, 2016

The Waiting Game Begins


September 9, 2016 when the first item showed up in my account, it was the McFarlane Game of Thrones Iron Throne Room Set which was delivered to their warehouse September 6. I though it’s going to be a super smooth transaction again that time because the package came in fast.


September 12, 2016 when my Tarot Card Deck showed up in my cart, just 4 days after it was delivered to the warehouse. I said to myself, “So far so good, hopefully the next ones turn out like this as well”.


And so it begins, the Delays


Unlike on my past two experiences last 2015 that I just had to wait for a few days after delivery on their warehouse for the items to show up in my account, the next ones took a little longer than I expected. One of the reason is their scheduled warehouse upgrade which happened mid-September (what luck, right?) which resulted in tons of backlogs in their warehouse – unfortunately, some of my packages were included in the delayed items.

Once they went back in service, I checked daily to see if my items are already in my account but it’s not. I tried calling LBC’s hotline but either it’s busy, no one’s answering or the agent in charge of Shipping Cart is out, their Facebook page and email support aren't helping as well.

I waited a few days more and the McFarlane Game of Thrones Lannister Banner Set which was delivered to their warehouse September 9, 2016 showed up in my account September 23, 2016. It took more than 10 days for it to show up in my account.


At this point, I only have two more items waiting to show up in my cart. It’s the end of September and I already gave up on the hopes that I will get my packages before my birthday month ends. October came in and I already sent Shipping Cart a few emails but no response from their end. I also tried calling their hotline again to see where my packages are or if they even actually received it.

I managed to connect with one of the Shipping Cart support team and raised my concern, they informed me that they received it but they are still dealing with delays. When I asked if there’s an estimated date on when I will see my missing items in my account, they just told me they also rely on the same dashboard where I see my account – so basically, they can’t email or contact their warehouse to check on it.

Finally, it showed up!


October 4, 2016 – just a day after I made the call, I checked my account and viola, my item that was delivered to their warehouse last September 13, 2016 finally showed up! It took them more than 20 days to process it.


October 11, 2016  - the last item I was waiting for finally showed up in my cart. It took them, 20 days again to process it and add on my account but I’m so glad it finally showed up. I successfully for the first time, managed to ship to Shipping Cart 5 individual packages and it all arrived safely there without getting lost in their warehouse.


Checking Out for Shipping to the Philippines


When I saw that all my items are now in my account, I did the standard checking of how much do I need to shell out for the shipping of all my items. Check out the computation sheets below:


Shipping it via Sea Cargo is quite cheap, it ended up costing just 800+ pesos but I already waited too long for my birthday shopping haul, so I opt for the Air Cargo which totaled to 2,100 pesos – I know it’s a little pricey, but I’m willing to pay it for these goodies.


Shipping Cart actually sent users affected by the delay with a 15% Off discount code, which I find nice since they know they screwed up a little during that time. So it decreased my shipping fee down to around 1,800 pesos.


Another Waiting Game?


Alright, so I thought I was in the clear with issues with Shipping Cart but it’s been a few days after I shipped out my items and the status in my account is still stuck in ‘Paid: Being Processed for Shipping’ and it stayed like that until October 24, 2016 – that’s already 11 days after I paid.

I gave Shipping Cart a call via LBC’s hotline and I managed to talk to representative but same as before, they told me they depend on the tracking number, which I still do not have at this point since the status of my package is still on ‘Paid’. They just told me the normal spiel of ‘rest assured it’s on its way to you, you’ll receive an email, blah blah blah’.

The day after, I checked my account and it’s now ‘In Transit’ with status update that’s in my city already. Looks like they have issues with their tracking & processing system and it just started tracking my package when it arrived in my city – email with tracking also was emailed on day of delivery.


Soon enough, I heard someone knocking at my door and it’s the LBC Delivery guy holding a big box filled with my birthday goodies all sealed and ready for me to unbox. My items are neatly packed inside the box, it’s almost a perfect fit.


I checked the content and everything seems to be undamaged & complete! The long wait was definitely worth it for these items, especially my Game of Thrones buildable sets that McFarlane already stopped manufacturing.


Will I Use Shipping Cart in the Future?


Definitely YES, it’s the third time I used their service and aside from the hiccups on this latest one, it’s still a great service. BUT, they really need to improve on their customer support service because they really fail in this department – last thing you want customers to feel is being ignored. So here are a few notes for Shipping Cart and how they can improve their service;

- Have someone on support who answers to inquiries on social in a timely manner. It’s already 2017, time to use social media to improve your service to the public. As a social media manager by profession, I recommend you set a person to focus on Social message & inquiries.

- Email support responds slow, which makes users customers frustrated. So improve it and try to answer emails within 24 hours & not totally ignore them.

- Live Chat Support? You do need one. Your mother company, LBC has one on their website, how come you don’t have one?


That’s it for my updated review of LBC Shipping Cart. Have you tried their service recently? Let me know in the comments below your experience!

Disclosure: This review is no way sponsored by LBC or LBC Shipping Cart and is independently done by www.alexbamin3D.com 

22 comments:

  1. Sir, you should really rethink your endorsement of LBC Shipping Cart. They just increased their rate by 200% in a very sneaky and untimely manner tantamount to holding your items hostage. Because why would you pay 10k when just yesterday they were quoting you 3k? Please visit their site today to see for yourself --- OR MAYBE NOT SEE BECAUSE THEY WON'T EVEN PUBLISH THE INCREASE WHERE EVERYONE SHOULD SEE IT. Not even on social media! That is supreme BS. They are like thieves in the night and they should be punished!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello!

      Alex here from Alexbamin3D.com, just to set things straight, we are not endorsing nor paid by LBC Shipping Cart for this review or the one I did last 2015. If you check the blog post above and the one I did last 2015, I placed a disclosure that stated:

      "This review is no way sponsored by LBC or LBC Shipping Cart and is independently done by www.alexbamin3D.com."

      Cheers,
      Alex

      Delete
  2. https://www.shippingcart.com/estimate-shipping

    "A flat door-to-door delivery fee of US$10.00 for Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao applies to your shipment when it arrives to the Philippines and is delivered to your front door."

    Is this different from the shipping fee? Another $10?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello!

      Yes, that is a separate delivery fee on top of your shipping fee from US to PH but upon check out on their site, you'll be given the grand total already that you need to pay. No need to pay anything when it gets delivered to you.

      Hope this helps.
      Alex

      Delete
  3. I also shipped my items with them. Most recent shipment was delivered to me separately and the items in the box was missing an item. The box was sealed though and 1 out of 4 of the same item was the one missing. The photo when it was received was showing 4 pcs. That was May 19. Its now June 15 and I have not received a resolution from them. Hotline person says the same old thing. The emails as well. They'll contact the warehouse team and they'll get back to me. For 3 weeks.

    I dont recommend Shipping Cart.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So sad to hear about this. :(

      I'll be doing an updated review of LBC Shipping Cart later next month -- I'm currently in the process of filling up my cart before shipping it out to the Philippines.

      Hope they'll resolve your issue!

      Delete
    2. Its true. They have even removed their chat line and respond via automated email response. My bellroy wallet has not been accepted nor posted in my cart since they received it on dec 4 2017.,neither do they repond to my emails except by automated response

      Delete
  4. they have stolen items from my cart - "lost in their wharehouse"
    this was after checking in the items
    and this has happened not once - but twice
    beware of them - they have sticky fingers

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh no, so sorry to hear about this :( It's best to immediately coordinate with them via phone call so that you can get a solid answer right away. Hope they find your item or a refund.

      Delete
  5. Where can I call to get status from my package? I have been emailing for update but no response? What's surprising is my box is not in the track your package anymor - so disappointed with Shipping Cart

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Nicole,

      It's normally accessible through your account, under Shipments. Have you tried contacting Shipping Cart through their support form? You can visit https://goo.gl/forms/KP4tibvOIHftcWJl1 to contact support.

      Cheers!

      Delete
  6. Try use my-shoppingbox.com it's good than shippingcart.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey there! I actually heard of them. Will make sure to keep them in mind in future reviews. :)

      Delete
  7. can you do a review on myus.com? you're reviews are very helpful. thanks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Bill!

      I've heard of MyUS.com already but never tried them yet. I might try them next year as I'm done with my rounds of shopping from US stores this 2017. Stay tuned. :)

      Delete
  8. LBC Shipping Cart is way better than PO Box. LbC has improved a lot.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Shipping Cart is no longer owned by LBC. They use LBC for shipping, but that's the only relationship. Be aware, that if a problem occurs, you will not enjoy dealing with "Customer Service".

    ReplyDelete
  10. Do i have to pay custom tax for an Epson projector worth 700usd? My uncle will be shipping it for me via lbc

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello, you don't. The grand total when shipping out with Shipping Cart is all you need to pay. :)

      Delete
  11. Hi. How do you call shipping cart? I also lost an item. It was supposed to be included among the things to be shipped but upon opening the box and reading their export decleration, the item was not listed. I mean this is a very valuable item. Bought it at 3k usd. I get response thru email but I always get same scripted answer from customer service. "Escalated to their warehouse team." "Will have update after 24-48 hrs"... i mean i need to talk to somebody from shippingcart US. Im very anxious already.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey Tonton! Best way to reach them is via email at customercare@shippingcart.com and mark the subject as urgent. They normally reply within 24 hours. :)

      Delete
  12. Their customer service sucks. I came to this page hoping to look for a hotline i can call. It is very frustrating to deal with email support. Everyday they assign a new ticket to me and i am just following up on the sa,e item

    ReplyDelete

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