[JavaTraveller]

Recently, I was trying to get snow chains for my Triber RXZ. I tried to check some online sites, including but not limited to Amazon and Flipkart, but strangely, I couldn't find any snow chains for the tire size 185/65-R15.

I also enquired with some offline stores around the Northern part of India, but I still couldn't get one that fits the exact size. Then I came across Desertcart(https://www.desertcart.in/), where I was able to find the snow chain that matched the exact tire size I was looking for.

The snow chain I was looking for was supposed to be shipped from the United Kingdom. After going over their social media pages and reviews(to gauge the genuineness), I went ahead and ordered the product from the site on 8th January 2025.

Since this had to go through multiple hops, I already considered a delay around this and set my expectations accordingly.

Booking Experience -


The booking experience was pretty straightforward. It is similar to any other online shopping site. I was getting a discount on the shipping charges for my first order if I opted for the Pro membership. The shipping charge was showing approximately Rs. 3000. Initially, the first month's Pro membership was free and from the next month, the membership fee was supposed to be deducted but one can opt out of Pro membership before 1 month and the amount won't get deducted. The final order value was Rs. 9779. The initial estimated delivery time shown on the platform was between 17th January 2025 to 22nd January 2025.

Most of the widely used payment options were available on the site like, Debit Cards, Credit Cards, UPI, etc. I went ahead with the UPI option that was driven by the Cashfree Payment gateway. After placing the order, I received the payment success and order receipt confirmation mail from Desertcart.















Order Tracking Experience -

I downloaded the Desertcart App available on the Play Store for easy tracking of the order. Initially, it was just showing the major milestones and the ETA's for reference. The first shocker for me was that the status did not change for several days. Finally, I reached out to their chat support and they informed me that there was a delay from the seller's end and that they would follow up with the seller to quickly ship the product. Finally, on 19th January 2025, the status changed.

The shipment was supposed to come from the UK to India via Dubai. Now, the next hiccup came when the shipment arrived in Dubai. The shipment reached Dubai Distribution Center on 23rd January and it left Dubai on 31st January 2025.

Finally, with some more delay in India, I received the product on 8th February. So, it took a full month for the order to get delivered.











Although I had to reach out to chat support multiple times during this whole process to keep track and escalate the matter, the good part is I received the exact product that I had ordered in good condition.

Sharing some pictures of the product received.












I have not yet used the product, so I will hold my feedback on the chains as of now, but I can only say that Desertcart is indeed a good site to order shipments from outside India. Just be prepared for the delays and lack of support.

[d.w.w.]

Originally Posted by JavaTraveller

Desertcart is indeed a good site to order shipments from outside India. Just be prepared for the delays and lack of support.

Did you pay import taxes separately or was it included?

[blahman]

Originally Posted by d.w.w.

Did you pay import taxes separately or was it included?

Everything on Desertcart with the pro membership is inclusive of shipping and Customs. Ive got around 16+ items from them and none had any issues wrt to shipping/extra charges (customs).

[Aditya]

Desertcart.in | My experience buying snow chains from UK - Posts moved to a new thread.

[Rahkehs]

I purchased Samsung Soundbar’s Rear Speaker Kit SWA-8500s through Desertcart 4 years back. The item was shipped from Dubai and cost me way lesser (1/3rd)than amazon.com.

[JavaTraveller]

Originally Posted by d.w.w.

Did you pay import taxes separately or was it included?

As rightly said by @blahman, if you have the Pro membership, the price shown on the portal is the final price and no additional taxes need to be paid. If you are not a Pro member, they will add shipping charges including all the duties and taxes.

[NinerWhiskey]

Interesting! I've always been skeptical regarding this website but good to know it's trust worthy.

Note: The Indian Customs are really understaffed which they politely conveyed to me.

I had ordered a pair of mitts and other clothing materials twice from the UK, which requires no inspection/taxes as it's considered apparel under value XXXX/- and it took them roughly 30-40 days to clear it from the customs department.

[reignofchaos]

Have ordered multiple things. All reached in great condition. One was non functional. They did a reverse pickup and refunded.

[Poppy]

Sharing my experience with the site. I have been ordering on the site these past 5 years.

My necessity, for a long running ailment (Severe Dry Eye), was a common use Parrafin based Eye lubricant ointment which was easily available in the domestic market, but was suddenly discontinued by the company due to low sale volumes. Was thus forced to explore other options, after prolonged wait, research and multiple attempts to source locally failed.

My use case is, I order multi packs, twice a year. Delivery usually takes lesser than a month depending on source of supply, whether the UK or US. Cost also depends on the supply source, as also whether single/multi pack etc. Never failed. Proper tracking and updates. Didn't find the Pro membership beneficial for my use case of twice yearly purchases and also since i don't usually shop for other items.

Another positive experience, (although the wish remained unfulfilled) was when i ordered zero drop Xero shoes from them. Went in for ordering from them based on my positive experience of medicines delivery and since i didn't have any experience of amazon international deliveries. Their CC got in touch when they were unable to source the specific model i had ordered on time. Was offered other models available, which i declined. Instant refund. No issues.

The USP of the site seems to be to satisfy customer needs by sourcing them from across the globe, unlike amazon which has marketplaces country wise.

In my case the site has been a god send for fulfilling the need for what was an essential item.

[varkey]

I ordered a bunch of items recently from desertcart.in and received everything in a reasonable time frame without any follow-ups. I did make use of the Pro free trial, not sure if I'd have ordered the same items without the free trial ie with shipping costs.

With some of the promotions they have running, the final price is very economical compared to other options. This week had ordered a TP-Link access point, which is some 17k locally, however after discounts was able to get the same item for 10k from desertcart.in. It looks like the item is getting sourced from Amazon.ae and the price I paid is same as the listing price on Amazon.ae.

During the Pro trial period, I even got a flat Rs 1000 coupon (they send it by email) with no minimum order value. I ended up ordering 4 x DCL Active Dried Yeast by paying just Rs 156