If a custom order arrives with a production error, or does not match the design, sizes, colours or customisation you approved, we want to hear about it straight away. Send photos or a short video, we verify the claim, and we resolve it by remaking the affected pieces, sending replacements, issuing a partial refund or issuing a refund. This page explains exactly what counts as a production error, what evidence we need, how long you have to raise a claim, and what happens after you contact us.
It is written so you can read the policy before you place an order rather than after something has gone wrong. Eliian has been manufacturing custom team sportswear in Xiamen, China since 1999, and every order is made on our own production floor, so a claim comes back to the people who cut and sewed the garments rather than to a middleman.
On this page
- What counts as a production error
- What is not a production error
- How to report a problem
- The four remedies
- What happens after you send photos
- Where Alibaba Trade Assurance fits in
- A real example: a size remake
- How we reduce the risk before production starts
- Frequently asked questions
What counts as a production error
A claim is a production error when the goods you received differ from what was confirmed in writing before production started. That confirmation is the approved digital mockup, the approved size breakdown and the approved specification — not a verbal conversation. Concretely, we treat all of the following as our error:
- Wrong design. Logo, crest, sponsor placement, name or number set that differs from the approved mockup, including misspelled player names and missing numbers.
- Wrong sizes. Garments that do not match the size breakdown you approved, or garments whose measurements fall outside the tolerance of our published size charts.
- Wrong colour. Colours that do not match the approved mockup or the agreed Pantone reference, allowing for the normal small variation between a screen and dyed polyester.
- Wrong customisation. Missing or incorrect embroidery, screen printing, tackle twill, heat transfer, trims or labels compared with the approved specification.
- Manufacturing faults. Open seams, broken stitching, print that lifts or cracks on arrival, holes, stains or damaged fabric.
- Wrong quantity. Fewer pieces than the confirmed order, or a size split that does not match the confirmed split.
What is not a production error
Being straight about this in advance saves everyone time. The following are real situations, but they are not manufacturing faults, and they are handled as a commercial discussion rather than as a claim:
- A wearer does not like the fit you chose. Our garments are cut to European grading and run roughly one size smaller than US domestic brands. If the garments match the size chart you approved, they were made correctly. Ordering a size set or a pre-production sample is the way to avoid this.
- A change of mind after approval. Once you approve the mockup and the size breakdown, production is cut to that specification. A design or size change after that point is a new production run.
- Normal variation. Small differences in shade between production batches, and measurement tolerance within the published size chart, are inherent to garment manufacturing.
- Transit damage. Damage caused by the carrier is a freight claim rather than a production claim, and the paperwork route is different. Tell us anyway — we will help you assemble the evidence.
- Customs duty and taxes. Duty, VAT, GST and clearance charges in your country are set by your customs authority, not by us. See our shipping and import duty guide for the actual rates.
In practice, the line between these categories is not always clean, and we would rather look at your photos and talk about it than argue over definitions. Several of the situations above have ended with us remaking garments anyway, because keeping a club as a repeat customer matters more than winning a point.
How to report a problem
- Email us within 7 days of delivery. Write to yunying@eliian.com with your order or proforma invoice number in the subject line. Raising the claim inside 7 days of delivery is what keeps the process simple, because the goods, the packing records and the production records all still line up.
- Send photos or a short video. Photograph the whole garment flat, then the specific problem close up. If the issue is sizing, lay a tape measure across the garment in the same place our size chart measures — chest across the underarms, and body length from the high point of the shoulder.
- Tell us how many pieces are affected and in which sizes and numbers. A claim on 6 pieces out of 60 is resolved differently from a claim on the whole run.
- We verify. We pull the approved mockup, the approved size breakdown and our pre-dispatch inspection photos for that order and compare them with yours. This normally takes hours, not days, because the records sit in the same building as the machines.
- We agree the remedy in writing before anything is produced or refunded, so both sides know what is happening and when.
The four remedies
There is no single fixed outcome, because the right fix depends on what went wrong, how many pieces are affected and whether you still need the garments for a season that has already started. These are the four options we work with:
| Remedy | When it usually applies |
|---|---|
| Remake | The affected pieces are cut and produced again to the approved specification. Used when the garments are wrong and you still need them. |
| Replacement shipment | Correct pieces are sent to you, often consolidated with your next order or shipped by express when a season deadline is close. |
| Partial refund | Used when the garments are usable but not fully to specification, or when only part of the run is affected and a remake would arrive too late to be useful. |
| Refund | Used when the order cannot be made usable for you, or when the timing means no remake or replacement can help. |
The remedy for a verified production error is provided as part of your original order, and the exact form it takes — together with any freight arrangements — is confirmed with you in writing before we start. Our overall liability on any order is limited to the value of that order, as set out in our terms of service.
What happens after you send photos
We assess claims from photographs and video, so you do not need to ship garments back to China before we can start. Custom kit carries your club crest and your players’ names, so returning it serves no purpose for us and only costs you time and freight. If a physical return is genuinely needed for a particular case, we agree that in writing first.
Every order is inspected before dispatch, and we keep those inspection photographs. That record is the reason a claim can usually be settled quickly: we are comparing your photos with our own pre-shipment photos of the same garments, not relying on memory. You are also welcome to appoint a third-party inspection company such as TUV or QIMA to inspect the goods before they leave our floor, which moves the check earlier and removes the argument entirely.
Where Alibaba Trade Assurance fits in
If you place the order through our Alibaba storefront using Trade Assurance, your payment sits in Alibaba’s escrow rather than with us, and the platform’s own dispute process runs alongside the policy on this page. That gives a first-time buyer a second, independent route to a refund that does not depend on trusting us. Buyers who order by bank transfer are covered by this policy and by our terms of service, but not by platform escrow. If it is your first order and the amount makes you uncomfortable, Trade Assurance is the safer route and we will happily set the order up that way.
If you are still at the stage of checking whether we are a real factory at all, our guide on how to verify a Chinese sportswear factory lists the documents and checks to ask any supplier for, including us.
A real example: a size remake
One customer contacted us after delivery to say the sizes they had received did not match what had been approved. We asked for photographs of the garments with a tape measure across the chest, compared them with the approved size breakdown for that order, and remade the affected garments and shipped them again. The club used the remade kit and has continued to order from us since.
We are not going to pretend nothing ever goes wrong on a production floor with 150 people and four lines. What we can say is what happens next, which is the part that actually matters when you are choosing a supplier.
How we reduce the risk before production starts
Most claims are prevented at the approval stage rather than resolved afterwards, so the process is deliberately front-loaded:
- A free digital mockup within 24 hours, revised until you approve it. Nothing is cut before you sign off.
- Published measurement charts rather than vague S/M/L labels. Our size charts give garment measurements in centimetres and inches so you can compare them against a jersey your team already owns.
- Pre-production samples in 5 to 7 days for jerseys and polos, or 7 to 10 days for jackets and activewear. For a first order with a large size spread, a sample or a size set is the single most effective way to avoid a sizing dispute.
- A written size breakdown confirmed by you before cutting, with names and numbers listed as they will be printed.
- Pre-dispatch inspection of every order, with photographs kept on file.
- Third-party inspection welcome, along with live video factory tours if you want to see the line running.
Frequently asked questions
What happens if the uniforms arrive wrong or do not fit?
Send us photos or a short video within 7 days of delivery, with your order number. We compare them against the mockup and size breakdown you approved and against our own pre-dispatch inspection photos. If the garments do not match what was approved, we remake the affected pieces, send replacements, issue a partial refund or issue a refund, and we confirm which of those it will be in writing before we start. If the garments do match the size chart you approved but a wearer simply wants a different fit, that is not a manufacturing fault, though we will still talk through the options with you.
Can I get a refund on custom jerseys?
Yes, a refund is one of the four remedies we use, and it applies to verified production errors where a remake or replacement cannot help you in time or cannot make the order usable. A partial refund is used where only part of the run is affected or the garments are usable but not fully to specification. Because custom kit carries your crest and your players names it cannot be resold, so a change of mind after you have approved the mockup is not a refundable situation.
How long do I have to report a problem?
Raise the claim within 7 days of delivery. That window is in our terms of service, and it exists because the goods, the packing list and the production records all still align at that point, which is what lets us settle a claim quickly rather than investigate it slowly.
What evidence do you need?
Photographs or a short video: the whole garment laid flat, then the specific problem close up. For a sizing claim, lay a tape measure across the chest at the underarms and along the body length from the high shoulder point, so the measurement can be compared directly with our published size chart. Tell us how many pieces are affected and in which sizes.
Do I have to ship the garments back to China?
No, not in order for us to start. We assess claims from photos and video, because returning custom garments that carry your club crest costs you freight and gains us nothing. If a physical return is needed for a specific case, we agree it in writing before anything is shipped.
What if only a few pieces out of the order are wrong?
That is the most common situation and it is usually the easiest to fix. We remake just the affected pieces and either send them by express if a season deadline is close, or consolidate them with your next shipment if it is not urgent. A partial refund is the alternative when a remake would arrive too late to be useful.
Is it safe to order custom uniforms from a Chinese factory if something goes wrong?
The risk is manageable if you check three things before you pay: that the supplier is a real factory rather than a trading company, that there is a written claims process with a stated time window, and that there is a payment route with independent protection. We are a factory assessed onsite by TUV Rheinland, our claims process is the one on this page, and orders placed through Alibaba Trade Assurance are held in platform escrow with an independent dispute process.
Who pays for a remake?
For a verified production error the remedy is provided as part of your original order, so you are not asked to buy the garments a second time. The exact remedy and any freight arrangements are confirmed with you in writing before production or refund begins, so there are no surprises on either side.
What is the best way to avoid a sizing dispute altogether?
Order a pre-production sample or a size set before the bulk run, and compare our published garment measurements against a jersey your team already wears. Our grading follows European sizing and runs about one size smaller than US domestic brands, so relying on a size letter rather than a measurement is the most common cause of disappointment.
Policy source and review date
The 7-day claim window, the requirement for photographic evidence, the remedy by replacement or refund and the limitation of liability to the order value are set out in our terms of service. Trade Assurance escrow protection is provided by Alibaba.com and governed by their platform rules. Lead times and sample times quoted here are our own operational figures. This page was written on 15 August 2026 and is reviewed whenever the underlying terms change. Questions before you order are welcome on our contact page or in our general custom sportswear FAQ.
Related guides: team uniform sizing and quality control.