# Amazon customer service?



## erneboy (Feb 8, 2007)

This has been interesting, for me at least.

I bought a little media player from Amazon.co.uk in November last year. It cost around £30 and came from one of their marketplace sellers.

I was pleased with it till it stopped working two weeks ago. I followed the Amazon procedure for returning it but got no answer from the seller. I contacted the seller via the Amazon web site twice but got no reply.

I then contacted Amazon asking for help. They emailed the seller asking them to sort it out for me but that too got no reply.

Meanwhile Amazon suggested that I claim under their A to Z warranty, I attempted to do that only to discover that it applies only during the first six months.

I contacted Amazon again pointing out that my contract was with them since I'd bought the item from them and paid them for it. I also said that I would settle for a partial refund as I has had use of it for several months. I said that under UK law they were liable but that a partial refund which they could regard as a goodwill gesture towards a regular customer who spend a lot of money with them would do. I said that I'd much rather not have to involve small claims court and that the amount of money at issue was very small.

Amazon have said that they can't help.

I'm a bit annoyed at their attitude and probably will do a claim. They seem to think they can dictate consumer rights to suit themselves.

It's interesting to reflect that if this item had come directly from Amazon the problem wouldn't have arisen. They'd have sent the return label by email by return.

So be aware that Amazon are not willing to see that their marketplace sellers treat customers as Amazon themselves do. I didn't know that till now.


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## Penquin (Oct 15, 2007)

We had a similar problem with a replacement battery for a handheld Dyson which did not work but also was from their "Marketplace". I called them up and explained the problem verbally and they sent the return address but were unable to do a pre-paid label due to system failure.

It was returned and then we reclaimd the postage as advised, all sorted within 72 hours - the telephone works better as you can discuss the problem with their rep.

If you have only tried e-mail, do try the phone, it works much better for some things..... you give them YOUR number a request a ringback and it comes within 30 seconds.

That system has worked well in most cases, we had a BIG problem with solar panels and it did take a few calls to sort it as they had been incorrectly priced and the UK centre was unable to send them from the UK and the EU centre would not accept the massive loss that would create (items marked at £19.00 rather than £190.00 for each one and we ordered 5.......).


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## caulkhead (Jul 25, 2007)

I have only had good experiences with Amazon customer services. Replacement goods or money back on several occasions, however I think in each case I had bought direct from Amazon rather than one of their Marketplace sellers. I have had similar good experience when returning stuff bought on eBay. I can't fault either of them to be honest......


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## Webby1 (Mar 11, 2012)

I have also had good experiences with their customer services.BUT recently when spotting an excellent bargain both on Ebay and Amazon the goods were not delivered, perhaps because they realised that they were underpricing themselves and "the market" would pay a little more.......................after a couple of months waiting I got my money back, but by then the original prices had gone up anyway.
I make sure to always give negative feedback, even though I got my money back cos I do think it is a deliberate ploy by sellers to establish the going price. In future I may go for the average price,which is usually reasonable, rather than the absolute cheapest.


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## Revise (May 13, 2012)

I am surprised by Amazon's stance. I have been selling on Amazon for several years through Amazon through direct sales and via Amazon FBA service. (This is where I send my product to Amazon and they pick, pack it and ship it on my behalf. 

I used to sell electrical products on Amazon several years ago, but no longer sell electrical items. If I sold an item directly on Amazon through my own shop and I shipped it, I had to sort the warranty out myself, But Amazon was very strict and I had to offer a 12 months warranty for refund or replacement. 

If I sold it via FBA (Fulfillment By Amazon) then AMazon would sort any refund or replacement out on my behalf. I have had items returned to Amazon after 18 months and Amazon just refunded the item, even without any input from myself. This is why I stopped selling electrical items on Amazon. 

My advice would be to ask Amazon to raise it to second level customer service, They try to deny this exists. But I can confirm I have been contacted by them on more than one occasion when sorting problems out. 

What some people tend to do on Amazon is buy an item. If it breaks a year or so down the line, order the same item from the same seller and then send the old one back for a refund saying the last item bought was faulty. Had it done to me several times. 

Good luck.


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## erneboy (Feb 8, 2007)

It certainly surprised me.

Perhaps I will try one more time.


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## erneboy (Feb 8, 2007)

Just this minute had a reply from the seller asking for details of the problem, which I'd already given. It took a week but at least they've answered. 

Small business, family problems or something of the sort maybe? Anyway we'll see how it goes.


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## greygit (Apr 15, 2007)

I try not to use Amazon due to their treatment of their workforce and their failure to pay tax.


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## drcotts (Feb 23, 2006)

It all depends on if amazon have taken your money or if the seller has taken your money and amazon taken a commission (like ebay).

If the seller has taken your money even through amazon then you need to establish if they are a business or a private individual.

Amazon themselves get confused as i used to deal with them as we sold through them when i worked for Hozelock. Sometimes you get someone who sorts it out no problem. Other days you get someone who has been brought in as a temp who doesn't know a thing about their systems or the law. They take on 100s of temps especially in Nov.

If you get no meaningful response you should write to the seller telling them what you expect them to do as i found that emails and letters go back and forth but when you tell them what you expect they usually respond favorably if its a reasonable request.

You are still covered by UK law if its a bona fide business but there are limitations in what you can claim for. Though a lot of companies will look on genuine complaints seriously others like BandQ wont give a toss and you will have to take them to court - only to find they will cough up at he last minute.


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## erneboy (Feb 8, 2007)

If I buy on Amazon I click the button to buy now. Amazon take the money, I'm not directed to any other site. Never have been.

Any way the seller says send it back and he'll check it.


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## Revise (May 13, 2012)

Take a photo of the item you are sending back before you pack it, Take a photo of the packet once you have wrapped it, and send it by tracked mail, insured and signature required upon delivery. Some sellers have been known to say the item was - Not received - the Wrong item sent back - received damaged in transit and you will need to claim off the postal service.


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## erneboy (Feb 8, 2007)

Well I could but it is a £30 item. They haven't agreed anything beyond looking at it if I send it back. Then, depending on their deliberations they may offer something, but that may not be the full cost because I had it for nearly 10 months. I expect it'll cost me around £10 to send registered and insured and they may only offer £15 or £20 if I'm lucky. 

To be honest I was thinking of just chucking it in the bin and forgetting about it. Given that it took almost two weeks and intervention from Amazon to get them to reply to me and then an exchange of emails practically telling me I hadn't understood how to connect it and use it before they agreed to have it back I don't hold out much hope. 

I asked about a return label and was told postage was down to me. Never had that with an Amazon purchase before, though I've returned very few of the many, many things I've bought. 

I may just put it down to experience and avoid marketplace sellers in future.

Would you bother sending it back Revise?


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## eurajohn (May 9, 2005)

I do use Amazon a great deal and have bought some large and costly items from them and always found (if and when needed) their customer service to be excellent.
However we have a problem with my latest purchase via one of their marketplace sellers which was a Neff oven at €902, on its second time of being used the inner glass of the door shattered with a loud (sounded like a small explosion) bang. 
Checking the Amazon site for info, it told us we should in the first instance contact the seller, I contacted the seller via the Amazon service and told them we required a refund as my wife is now genuinely concerned over the suitability of this oven. 
The first reply was that they would try to arrange a replacement glass, I then escalated the matter with Amazon via their A to Z service which they tell me can take between one and two weeks, it did prompt some more reaction from the seller, with them requesting I send some pictures of the problem, which I've done.

Now I'm sure that under the Neff guarantee we could get the glass replaced but we now have no confidence in this particular oven and want a refund, or at the least a new replacement.

Am I expecting too much? opinions please, bearing in mind the thing did cost almost a thousand Euros.

.


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## raynipper (Aug 4, 2008)

Just as an aside. I bought a data CD off Amazon this morning. First time in three years and their system remembered me and only had to update the CC I now use.

John, we also dislike the triple glass door on our Whirlpool oven. When cleaning we always end up with runs and smears between the glass panes. This necessitates taking the whole door off and dismantling each pane and seal just to clean the runs off. Mad idea and precarious. 

Ray.


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## erneboy (Feb 8, 2007)

I'd agree with you and not want it John. Not sure what the position is though. A phone call to trading standards might be informative.


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## eurajohn (May 9, 2005)

erneboy said:


> I'd agree with you and not want it John. Not sure what the position is though. A phone call to trading standards might be informative.


Only problem with that is we are in France, customer service is not the strong point of French commerce.

Aside from that I'm not sufficiently fluent to enable the likely dialogue.

.


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## raynipper (Aug 4, 2008)

Perseverance is the only answer with French customer service John. Even writing a letter to head office in English and Google translate.
It's worked twice for us with a carpet and printer.

Ray.


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## jhelm (Feb 9, 2008)

We us Amazon in Italy quite a lot. I find their customer service site a bit hard to negotiate, but my opinion is that the sellers on both Amazon and Ebay are generally afraid of getting booted off. I just got a full refund, 215 euro, on a phone I bought last November 2016. It was a great phone an odd Chinese brand. My son dropped it on a concrete floor and the screen would no longer work. The manufacturer said we had to contact the seller for service the seller said they were done after 30 days. The phone was of course also still under warranty but probably not covered. After a few back and forth emails I wrote a fairly detailed explanation of my problem to Amazon and asked them to help me. Just a few hours later I got email back telling me they were giving me a full refund and included free shipping back to them. A couple days ago I got the money in my Visa account my son ordered a new phone got in one day and everyone is happy. 

I understand they are hurting a lot of small businesses but buyers go where prices are right and service is good.


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## bazzal (Apr 15, 2006)

I have had reason to contact Amazon regarding orders and I used the phone on all items and had no problem,


in fact last week I had to call about my Kindle and they called me back and spent 45 minutes on the phone with them and they


talked me through a reset with it and it worked and my Kindle is 7 yrs old. 


I can only suggest that you the phone them as I do rate them as good.


Baz....................................


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## raynipper (Aug 4, 2008)

Ironic. After using Amazon two days ago for the first time in several years, I am now bombarded with scam/spam mail about credits, failed orders and problems with my order.
What suddenly triggered all these scams, Amazon???

Ray.


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## jhelm (Feb 9, 2008)

raynipper said:


> Ironic. After using Amazon two days ago for the first time in several years, I am now bombarded with scam/spam mail about credits, failed orders and problems with my order.
> What suddenly triggered all these scams, Amazon???
> 
> Ray.


Many many sites other than Amazon that you go on have connections to Amazon, Facebook, Ebay etc. Look at something on Amazon and your Facebook page will suddenly show ads for it. You probably got hooked that way. We were doing a translation for an Italian prefab house builder and in the small print disclosures were listed all the ways your inquiry were relayed to those big sites. It's just life on the internet, hard to avoid unless you just turn off your computer and phone.


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## Revise (May 13, 2012)

erneboy said:


> Well I could but it is a £30 item. They haven't agreed anything beyond looking at it if I send it back. Then, depending on their deliberations they may offer something, but that may not be the full cost because I had it for nearly 10 months. I expect it'll cost me around £10 to send registered and insured and they may only offer £15 or £20 if I'm lucky.
> 
> To be honest I was thinking of just chucking it in the bin and forgetting about it. Given that it took almost two weeks and intervention from Amazon to get them to reply to me and then an exchange of emails practically telling me I hadn't understood how to connect it and use it before they agreed to have it back I don't hold out much hope.
> 
> ...


Personally no, I would not send it back. I would put it down to experience. When I purchase from Amazon I try to purchase from Amazon directly. This way you are only deling with Amazon.For people who get confused with FBA sales, this is how to tell the difference.

*Dispatched from and sold by Amazon. Gift-wrap available.* (This is Amazons own stock and they are responsible for all returns)

*Sold by Hair Additions UK and Fulfilled by Amazon. Gift-wrap available.* (This is my stock, But Amazon picks and packs it on my behalf. Amazon will accept returns for 30 days on my behalf. But after 30 days Amazon will refer you back to myself.)

*Dispatched from and sold by Hair Additions UK.* (This item is sold directly from my stock. I pick, pack and ship the item directly to yourself. I am responsible for all returns.)


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