What to do when a vendor sends you a bad product

It happens. You order from a vendor, and something is clearly wrong — the product looks off, doesn't reconstitute properly, or produces no results at standard research doses. Here's the step-by-step approach.

Step 1: Document everything before contacting the vendor
Take photos of the packaging, the vial, the reconstituted product. Save all order confirmations and tracking information. Note the batch number on the vial. Write down your observations — what specifically is wrong, when you noticed it, and what your research protocol was.

Step 2: Contact the vendor directly first
Give them a chance to make it right. Most legitimate vendors have policies for quality complaints. Describe the issue factually — "The reconstituted product appears cloudy/discolored" or "At standard research doses, I'm not observing expected results consistent with published literature." Be professional. Many quality issues are batch-specific problems that a good vendor will acknowledge and remedy.

Step 3: Give them reasonable time to respond
48-72 hours is reasonable for an initial response. If they respond promptly, explain the issue, and offer a replacement or refund, that's actually a positive signal — good vendors take quality complaints seriously.

Step 4: If the vendor is unresponsive or dismissive
If you get no response, a generic response, or outright denial with no investigation, escalate. Leave an honest review on VialTalk's Vendor Directory. Post your experience in this category with full documentation (photos, timeline, communications). File a chargeback with your payment provider if you paid by credit card. If you paid with crypto, your options are more limited — which is why card payment offers better protection.

Step 5: Consider independent testing
If you suspect the product is mislabeled or severely underdosed, sending a sample to a lab like Janoshik for testing produces definitive evidence. This costs $50-100 but creates hard data that's invaluable for the community. A COA showing the product is 60% pure when the vendor claimed 99% is irrefutable.

What NOT to do:
Don't blast the vendor publicly before giving them a chance to respond. Jumping straight to a negative review without contacting the vendor first undermines your credibility and prevents a potential resolution.

Don't make accusations you can't support. "This didn't work for me" is an observation. "This vendor intentionally sells fake peptides" is a claim that requires evidence.

Don't threaten the vendor with bad reviews in exchange for free product. That's extortion, and it violates our community rules.

The community benefit:
When you document a bad experience thoroughly and share it here, you protect other researchers from the same problem. That's the whole point of this platform. Your negative experience, documented honestly, is one of the most valuable contributions you can make.