Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

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Doom&Gloom
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by Doom&Gloom »

Ervin wrote:If you don't like Amazon Prime, try the Walmart program for a month (I did). You'll get a whole new appreciation for Amazon. A+ in my book, despite the occasional USPS late delivery. Last year I lived in a rural area, and they used mostly UPS.

I also tend to use no-rush shipping for most of my orders. I guess I make back about $30+/year.
+1

A few months ago I ordered some items from Walmart rather than Amazon as they were for DS moving into a house at college. Items were slightly cheaper at WM and their delivery schedule appeared to fit our schedule better as we were afraid Amazon would deliver them too quickly.

IIRC there were three items: one was lost in shipment--not only was I not notified, the local WM was not notified. I subsequently cancelled it and ordered from Amazon. No issues with that. A second item from WM was left around the side of the house where no one would be likely to see if for days. Of course it was drenched from rain--maybe not entirely WM's fault, but again communication was an issue as we were not notified when/where it was delivered. The third item arrived uneventfully. Walmart is definitely not ready for prime time. I won't say never again for online WM orders, but it will undoubtedly be a few years before I give them another shot.
wander
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by wander »

I never had problem with either Fedex or UPS, but had some problems with USPS. Once, my packaged was marked delivered by USPS but was not at my door. I went to local office asking for it and I was told that it was delivered, they saw the same thing I could see on the web site. I kept going back and forth because the sender refused to refund the money, USPS kept telling me it was delivered, and no-one took responsibility. Then, a month later, it was found in my old post office box that I closed, returned the keys a few years ago. Another incident was a tracked priority mail, It was marked as delivered but I never seen it in my mailbox. I never heard people lost any package in my neighborhood, but then talk to post office returns nothing.
mancich
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by mancich »

Never had a problem, and with all the Prime services, it is IMHO a great value at $99/year
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kjvmartin
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by kjvmartin »

OP UPDATE HERE

Postal Product:
Parcel Select Lightweight

This item ordered Prime 11/28 still hasn't arrived as of 12/4. Tracking puts it in my state, but not near my city yet.

The tracking shows they shipped my Prime item using Parcel Select. Here's what the USPS has to say about Parcel Select Lightweight shipping -

What is Parcel Select?
Parcel Select is designed for large and medium sized shippers looking for an economical ground delivery service. The mail class offers the lowest cost option from the USPS for ground delivery. Price is determined by distance, weight and dimensions of the mailpiece.

How long does it take to deliver a Parcel Select package?
Parcel Select (non-presort) offers U.S. delivery within 2-8 days for packages being delivered to the contiguous 48 states. If your package is being delivered to or from Alaska, Hawaii or an U.S. territory, Parcel Select delivery times can be significantly longer. Overall, the service is very similar to the former Parcel Post mail class.


The cost of my Prime membership recently went up, and they're using cheaper shipping for slower speed and reduced reliability. First world problem, but I needed this item before the weekend started. I had to go local and buy a $29 part to do the same job.

kjvm
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oldcomputerguy
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by oldcomputerguy »

athan wrote:I think one of the major air carrier companies is having an issue with pilots on strike. Saw something about it last week. This could be a reason for recent delays.
It was ABX. According to this article, a judge ordered the pilots back to work, but Amazon won't start using them again until they're fairly sure it won't boil up again.
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itstoomuch
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by itstoomuch »

I ordered a Kindle Fire 7",early Nov 2013, along with a book. Book was shipped the next day by USPS from east coast USA and arrived 3-5 days later. The Kindle was shipped also the next day from LA where it traveled to Sacramento to Nevada to Pennsylvania (where book was shipped) back to Utah or Boise to Portland OR. I seem to remember it was on Fedex ground. . From Portland it went to Salem where I live and then by USPS to my home which took 4 days by USPS. Anyway, I gave up and bought the the same unit at FredMeyer on Black Friday for the same price. Monday, the Kindle arrived, 21 days after ordering. Amazon was very nice immediately gave a return authorization.

I think that Amazon isn't stingy but their shipping algorithm and logistics needed to be improved. They seem to be hiring a bunch (thousands) of people in Seattle which is putting a severe pressure on available housing. They are leased 20-B767 in 2016.

For small and common goods, I buy from locally.

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quantAndHold
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by quantAndHold »

Barefootgirl wrote:I recently had a problem with a return that did not receive the proper credit amount.

After twice trying to explain the issue, I got an email "sorry, we cannot help you any further"....which I translate as an inability or unwillingness to solve the problem.

The chat feature works more favorably as I believe the English language skills there are more advanced which enhances communication.
Pro tip: Amazon has "follow the sun" customer support. If you need support, using chat or phone during US (west coast) working hours will get US based support people. If you call after hours, your support person will be based somewhere where it's daytime.

Also, if your package isn't delivered on time, complain. Every single time it isn't delivered on time, complain. After 3 or 4 complaints, they will use a different shipper.
mwm158
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

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Taylor Larimore
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Convenience, Price and Speed.

Post by Taylor Larimore »

kjvmartin:

We use Amazon primarily for convenience and price. We order well in advance of need so that quick delivery is relatively unimportant.

We have been very pleased with Amazon.

Best wishes.
Taylor
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runner9
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by runner9 »

My item ordered Thursday is supposed to be here tomorrow (Tuesday) and Amazon e-mailed to say it was delayed. UPS tracking says a late trailer will make it late. I chat with Amazon for 10 minutes. By that time UPS says it's back on time. About ordering on Thursday and it not shipping until Sunday Amazon rep said I knew that it would be delivered Tuesday before I hit order so too bad.
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by tampaite »

Deleting my messages on this forum
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Mrs.Feeley
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by Mrs.Feeley »

About two months ago I ordered an item with 2-day Prime shipping. I really did need the item in two days. The Amazon screen said something like "Select 2-day shipping and receive item by Thursday." Thursday came and the item hadn't even shipped. I called Amazon customer service. I got someone in India. She claimed that in order to receive the 2-day shipping I would have had to place the order by 5 pm EST, but I didn't place the order until 6:30 pm. Like huh? "But the Amazon screen said 'Select 2-day shipping and receive item by Thursday' and that's what I selected," I protested. Makes no difference, she argued, and it doesn't matter what the Amazon screen said, I needed to place the order by 5pm EST to make the cut-off for 2-day shipping. We argued about this for quite a bit, and finally I hung up. :confused
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kjvmartin
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by kjvmartin »

Mrs.Feeley wrote:About two months ago I ordered an item with 2-day Prime shipping. I really did need the item in two days. The Amazon screen said something like "Select 2-day shipping and receive item by Thursday." Thursday came and the item hadn't even shipped. I called Amazon customer service. I got someone in India. She claimed that in order to receive the 2-day shipping I would have had to place the order by 5 pm EST, but I didn't place the order until 6:30 pm. Like huh? "But the Amazon screen said 'Select 2-day shipping and receive item by Thursday' and that's what I selected," I protested. Makes no difference, she argued, and it doesn't matter what the Amazon screen said, I needed to place the order by 5pm EST to make the cut-off for 2-day shipping. We argued about this for quite a bit, and finally I hung up. :confused
My item did arrive several days late. I had escalated it and received a full refund for my trouble. If I'm paying for "2 days" and it's not 2 days, there should be some kind of compensation.

If I order a ribeye and they bring me a hamburger at the restaurant.....
Quark
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by Quark »

Mrs.Feeley wrote:About two months ago I ordered an item with 2-day Prime shipping. I really did need the item in two days. The Amazon screen said something like "Select 2-day shipping and receive item by Thursday." Thursday came and the item hadn't even shipped. I called Amazon customer service. I got someone in India. She claimed that in order to receive the 2-day shipping I would have had to place the order by 5 pm EST, but I didn't place the order until 6:30 pm. Like huh? "But the Amazon screen said 'Select 2-day shipping and receive item by Thursday' and that's what I selected," I protested. Makes no difference, she argued, and it doesn't matter what the Amazon screen said, I needed to place the order by 5pm EST to make the cut-off for 2-day shipping. We argued about this for quite a bit, and finally I hung up. :confused
Amazon sends you an immediate email confirming each order. The email lists the delivery date. That date should settle any issue.
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kjvmartin
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by kjvmartin »

Quark wrote:
Mrs.Feeley wrote:About two months ago I ordered an item with 2-day Prime shipping. I really did need the item in two days. The Amazon screen said something like "Select 2-day shipping and receive item by Thursday." Thursday came and the item hadn't even shipped. I called Amazon customer service. I got someone in India. She claimed that in order to receive the 2-day shipping I would have had to place the order by 5 pm EST, but I didn't place the order until 6:30 pm. Like huh? "But the Amazon screen said 'Select 2-day shipping and receive item by Thursday' and that's what I selected," I protested. Makes no difference, she argued, and it doesn't matter what the Amazon screen said, I needed to place the order by 5pm EST to make the cut-off for 2-day shipping. We argued about this for quite a bit, and finally I hung up. :confused
Amazon sends you an immediate email confirming each order. The email lists the delivery date. That date should settle any issue.
OP Here -

I ordered a Prime 2 day on 11/28, at check out the delivery was to be 11/30. The e-mail then said it would arrive 12/2. I didn't care, this was good enough for me. It finally came 12/5 after numerous chats and complaints. I received a full refund ($15) in the form of an Amazon.com credit.

I want to reiterate, after delaying my shipment, they paid for literally the cheapest available UPS service rated at 2 to 9 business days for my Prime item. They have since made it right, and I'm satisfied with the resolution. They owned the issue, but it took direct e-mails to the CEO.
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noraz123
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by noraz123 »

kjvmartin wrote:Anyone else experiencing some trouble from Amazon?

I'm used to the occasional late package, but I'm also used to a quick chat with a rep who gives me a free month of Amazon Prime benefits for my trouble....
Is this an isolated incident or have others noticed similar situations? I'm considering dropping Prime altogether.

kjvm
I have had the same issue this past week. I've been a fan of Amazon and their customer service, but I had a package delayed, and it took over an hour and talking to a manager/supervisor to get the same offer of $5 credit. It used to be an apology, a month of prime membership, and a "customer is king" attitude. This past experience made Amazon feel like Comcast.
biturbo
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by biturbo »

I pay Amazon $99/year for 2-day shipping on all of my orders, and I don't get to unilaterally change my end of the bargain, so yeah, I get frustrated when they do not deliver on that promise.

I recently ordered something that ended up coming a few days late - it was a little cheaper somewhere else, but I was in a bit of a hurry and ordered it on Amazon solely due to the 2-day delivery, so it was extra frustrating to have it come late. Fedex was incredibly responsive - I got a quick response with documentation showing that the item was delivered late because Amazon did not get it to them on time. All I got from Amazon were canned responses telling me to look around my house - despite the tracking showing the item hadn't been delivered yet. Rarely have I been more frustrated, and yeah, I feel like I'm entitled to some form of compensation when they don't live up to their end of our agreement.

Their prices have been getting less and less competitive lately, and the remaining saving grace - their customer service which has been historically quite good - is pretty bad lately. I don't see myself continuing to pay for Prime after this.
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F150HD
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by F150HD »

jane1 wrote:I ordered somethings from Amazon on 26th (1 week ago) that has not yet been shipped (says preparing for shipment for several days now). It is supposed to arrive Dec 1-6. I am not a Prime member. At this stage I am not confident if it will arrive by 6th.
I also ordered from multiple other stores even after the 26th. They shipped/arrived soon after. Target orders arrived much ahead of schedule!
unless you are ordering specifically a Prime item, the shipping isnt 2 day. so not sure what your comment means.
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SixAlpha
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by SixAlpha »

killjoy2012 wrote:Not sure about stingy, but their package delivery on-time metrics are falling off in my book. I'm a Prime member and I paid an extra $20 on top of Prime for 1 day delivery of an auto part I needed. Since it was not delivered on the day promised, a Friday, I lost the entire weekend to use that item (car repair). I could not source the item locally. I called and they credited me for the 1 day shipping charges plus extended my Prime membership a month, and while that's appreciated, it doesn't make up for my schedule inconveniences... and I'm starting to no longer trust their promises and follow thru.
denovo wrote:I think this may be regional/local depending on the capacity of the delivery networks and what warehouses are nearby.
Funny, I just had a meeting yesterday with an upper-level management guy at FedEx. From what he told us, because of the UPS Christmas meltdown two or three years ago, FedEx and UPS have begun capping how many packages they're accepting from Amazon (and a few other large shippers) every day. The cap is lower than what Amazon can comply with. As a result, Amazon is having to get creative with other third-party shippers. He says he's seen entire pallet loads of Amazon boxes sitting untouched for days on end until someone can get around to processing them. Also worth nothing that most Priority Mail packages are transported by FedEx and UPS between post offices, subjecting them to the same bottlenecks.
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Mrs.Feeley
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by Mrs.Feeley »

SixAlpha wrote:
killjoy2012 wrote:Not sure about stingy, but their package delivery on-time metrics are falling off in my book. I'm a Prime member and I paid an extra $20 on top of Prime for 1 day delivery of an auto part I needed. Since it was not delivered on the day promised, a Friday, I lost the entire weekend to use that item (car repair). I could not source the item locally. I called and they credited me for the 1 day shipping charges plus extended my Prime membership a month, and while that's appreciated, it doesn't make up for my schedule inconveniences... and I'm starting to no longer trust their promises and follow thru.
denovo wrote:I think this may be regional/local depending on the capacity of the delivery networks and what warehouses are nearby.
Funny, I just had a meeting yesterday with an upper-level management guy at FedEx. From what he told us, because of the UPS Christmas meltdown two or three years ago, FedEx and UPS have begun capping how many packages they're accepting from Amazon (and a few other large shippers) every day. The cap is lower than what Amazon can comply with. As a result, Amazon is having to get creative with other third-party shippers. He says he's seen entire pallet loads of Amazon boxes sitting untouched for days on end until someone can get around to processing them. Also worth nothing that most Priority Mail packages are transported by FedEx and UPS between post offices, subjecting them to the same bottlenecks.
What you said makes a lot of sense, especially in light of other complaints about shipping delays I've read. A couple weeks ago I ordered a book from Amazon. I didn't select 2-day shipping, but Amazon reported it would be here in 4 days. They shipped it out immediately. Then it sat at a UPS warehouse out in Baltimore for 5 days. After that it sat at another UPS warehouse about a mile from our house for another 4 days before UPS finally dropped it in the mail to be delivered by USPS.
stoptothink
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by stoptothink »

Ordered something Prime last Thursday. According to USPS, there was an attempted delivery at 7:26am on Tuesday. Regardless of the fact that it was already late, there was obviously no delivery attempt. If I track the package, it says the delivery attempt was 6min after the package reached the post office (so, logistically impossible), also there was no note left on the door. The tracking says our mailbox was full (its an olympic barbell, so yeah, it isn't fitting in my mailbox) and also that it's been classified as a "letter". Also, I happened to work from home on Tuesday, so along with the other evidence, I know for a fact there was no attempted delivery. I called the post office Tuesday afternoon and had a delivery rescheduled for yesterday; of course, there was no delivery attempted. The item will not fit in my car, so picking it up from the post office is not an option. If it doesn't come today I am calling Amazon. We have the worst USPS, I understand that my issues with Prime are almost solely due to them, but Amazon is still the ones selling a service guaranteeing the delivery.
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SmileyFace
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by SmileyFace »

The good news is - if you notice a late delivery and have 10 minutes - you can call Amazon and they will give you a free month. We've gotten 3 free months and probably would have gotten more if we had the time/willingness to call more often. We discussed calling late deliveries at least once a month on a late delivery so we won't ever have to pay again.

I started a thread on delivery problems about a year ago - since then - things have gotten a little bit better. In my case - if shipment goes out from Amazon via UPS or Amazon-Logistics I "typically" get shipments in 2 days. If they ship via USPS I have a much better chance of something arriving late (or in a couple of cases - damaged).
zeusrock1
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by zeusrock1 »

We had 2 amazon orders lost that were made around black Friday - anyone not getting their prime orders in 2 days should request an extra month of prime membership... it's included in their delivery guarantee! We just got 2 extra months, but something weird is going on lately as we rarely have problems.

If you received free shipping through Amazon Prime, you may be eligible for a free one-month extension when the promised delivery date isn't met. Prime Extensions are limited to one per free trial and 12 for an annual membership.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer ... =201117450
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by linenfort »

I don't expect anyone to read this, because it's probably one of those threads in which people post to vent without reading much, BUT I don't think Amazon lockers have been mentioned yet. They're pretty great. I've been getting one-day shipping on them even though I currently don't have Prime and have been selecting free (slow) shipping. I just wish they had bigger lockers so I could receive everything there.

I think Amazon has spoiled us all. 2-day shipping rarely makes it to my house in 2 days, but like many here, I blame that on an understaffed post office. For the volume of business they have, Amazon is still amazing.

Amazon customer since the 90s. / Occasional Prime subscriber.
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by linenfort »

P.S. After typing the above, I got a message that "your package was damaged in transit and will not be delivered." Oh well. :) It wasn't Xmas gifts.
stoptothink
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by stoptothink »

linenfort wrote:I don't expect anyone to read this, because it's probably one of those threads in which people post to vent without reading much, BUT I don't think Amazon lockers have been mentioned yet. They're pretty great. I've been getting one-day shipping on them even though I currently don't have Prime and have been selecting free (slow) shipping. I just wish they had bigger lockers so I could receive everything there.

I think Amazon has spoiled us all. 2-day shipping rarely makes it to my house in 2 days, but like many here, I blame that on an understaffed post office. For the volume of business they have, Amazon is still amazing.

Amazon customer since the 90s. / Occasional Prime subscriber.
Had never heard of Amazon lockers. Considering how much we use Amazon, it would definitely be something we'd look into. Unfortunately there aren't any in Utah and we often order things which won't fit in our car, which kind of negates the benefit.
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ivyhedge
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by ivyhedge »

Something many folks miss is that there is a shipping/delivery Prime countdown timer on their order page (not sure about non-Prime accounts). It is clearly visible, and tells you if you are near the cutoff (hours when there is plenty of time; minutes and seconds inside of an hour).

Also: the times adjust, likely due to where/how orders are fulfilled. For example, ordering last week saw three items in my cart. Two were "order by 2pm" for 2 day; one was order by 5pm. Ordering all three by 2pm resulted in 2 day delivery. However (and I tried something similar with another order this week to test it), had I waited to order the three at 2:30, the order would have been 2 day *in the next 24-hr cycle*: or, effectively, 3 day.

I have availed friends/family to the countdown timer: not one had noticed it. Once you pay it attention, you might refine your delivery expectations (and, as another poster noted, the email confirmation should help, as well).

So, while we generally know when to expect our orders, it should mean that we get them, right? Sometimes not. We are in Cambridge, MA, and routinely see AMZN vans. Sometimes the drivers get confused, ultimately leaving no packages at our condo buildings. (I suspect those folks are contracted like those who shuffle around the city from Comcast/Xfinity.)

And Amazon Sunday delivery has been botched a number of times by the USPS, sometimes delivering on Saturday and not reporting it until Sunday, delivering on Sunday and reporting delivery on Saturday, or reporting it lost (twice) on Sunday and delivering on Monday. I fear volume is the issue. We've partaken of Amazon's test programs in the past, most notably for Fresh, Weekend Late, Sunday AM, etc. The Saturday and Sunday USPS options we see now are a far cry from their early, undersubscribed days. But then again, few of us are ordering Adds-On items for $2.28 hoping for One Day. Or are we?
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casualflower
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by casualflower »

I think some of the complaints are people not reading the fine print when they order. Some items that have the "Prime" label are sold by Amazon, others sold by 3rd parties. Some of those 3rd parties will honor the "2 day shipping" thing, but *not ship the item for several days*. If that 3rd party doesn't have the item in stock or they just have issues with their pipeline, they usually post when it will ship as you buy it. So, it could be "Prime eligible", but it won't actually ship for a week!
rene
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by rene »

Prime has been amazing.

I received a $120 jackhammer within 24 hours on my doormat using Prime. I love Prime. I like their benefits and the $99 fee for whatever it is has been one of the best investments for my family. The fact alone that I don't have to go to a Target or other store and deal with buying some shirts or toys is worth lots of money to me.

No complaints at all.

LOVE IT
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by LadyGeek »

I just purchased a few Christmas gifts. Since it's a little over 2 weeks from now :shock:, I took the "No-rush" 5 day free shipping option for a $5 Prime Pantry food credit. Ordered on Monday, the gifts shipped in 2 days and I've got my $5 credit.
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Doom&Gloom
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by Doom&Gloom »

I have ordered 5 items since Black Friday--4 from Amazon and one from elsewhere. The four from Amazon arrived when promised without issue. On the other item, I received no tracking number, it arrived a few days later than the Amazon items, and the item was not what I ordered.

Amazon is far more reliable than all but a few other online merchants in my experience. I'm not the world's biggest shopper, so my experience is somewhat limited.
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MikeWillRetire
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by MikeWillRetire »

I remember what it was like ordering things through the mail many years ago, so I can't complain about Amazon. I'm amazed how fast some things get delivered.
stoptothink
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by stoptothink »

stoptothink wrote:Ordered something Prime last Thursday. According to USPS, there was an attempted delivery at 7:26am on Tuesday. Regardless of the fact that it was already late, there was obviously no delivery attempt. If I track the package, it says the delivery attempt was 6min after the package reached the post office (so, logistically impossible), also there was no note left on the door. The tracking says our mailbox was full (its an olympic barbell, so yeah, it isn't fitting in my mailbox) and also that it's been classified as a "letter". Also, I happened to work from home on Tuesday, so along with the other evidence, I know for a fact there was no attempted delivery. I called the post office Tuesday afternoon and had a delivery rescheduled for yesterday; of course, there was no delivery attempted. The item will not fit in my car, so picking it up from the post office is not an option. If it doesn't come today I am calling Amazon. We have the worst USPS, I understand that my issues with Prime are almost solely due to them, but Amazon is still the ones selling a service guaranteeing the delivery.
Finally called Amazon this morning as this Prime product still has not been delivered, 8 days and 3 scheduled deliveries after being ordered. USPS "mistakenly" (that was the words of their rep) said there was a delivery attempt when there was not, and two rescheduled deliveries and nobody has shown up. I explained again that the item will not fit in my car, so I can not pick it up. All USPS rep could do was reschedule delivery, for a 4th time. She was very polite, but had no response when I asked if there was any recourse for marking items as delivered or attempted delivered when it had not happened. Amazon did give me a $10 promotional credit.

Problem, at least with us, has nothing to do with Amazon, anything done here through the USPS will not be done correctly or at least in the promised time frame. Our local office is an absolute mess and there is no way that Amazon can promise that final delivery of my packages will be done through another carrier.
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Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by Broken Man 1999 »

I placed an order yesterday and was offered same-day delivery (free)

Order was placed at 11:30AM, package was delivered 8:05PM.

Unlike most of my orders, the delivery was made by a carrier unknown to me, Dynamex.

Not too shabby.

Still, I won't be ordering any Christmas gifts after Monday of next week. No reason to risk late deliveries when I know what I am going to order already.

Today I received an email from Amazon checking to see if I had received a recent order that is typically shipped from a vendor. Apparently this particular vendor did not furnish Amazon with shipping and delivery information, so Amazon was checking with me to see if there was a problem. Fortunately I had received the product, so their help wasn't needed.

Overall, Amazon is a pretty well-oiled machine from my experiences.

Broken Man 1999
“If I cannot drink Bourbon and smoke cigars in Heaven then I shall not go." - Mark Twain
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catdude
Posts: 1960
Joined: Mon Jul 16, 2007 8:11 pm
Location: Oregon

Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by catdude »

stoptothink wrote:
stoptothink wrote:Ordered something Prime last Thursday. According to USPS, there was an attempted delivery at 7:26am on Tuesday. Regardless of the fact that it was already late, there was obviously no delivery attempt. If I track the package, it says the delivery attempt was 6min after the package reached the post office (so, logistically impossible), also there was no note left on the door. The tracking says our mailbox was full (its an olympic barbell, so yeah, it isn't fitting in my mailbox) and also that it's been classified as a "letter". Also, I happened to work from home on Tuesday, so along with the other evidence, I know for a fact there was no attempted delivery. I called the post office Tuesday afternoon and had a delivery rescheduled for yesterday; of course, there was no delivery attempted. The item will not fit in my car, so picking it up from the post office is not an option. If it doesn't come today I am calling Amazon. We have the worst USPS, I understand that my issues with Prime are almost solely due to them, but Amazon is still the ones selling a service guaranteeing the delivery.
Finally called Amazon this morning as this Prime product still has not been delivered, 8 days and 3 scheduled deliveries after being ordered. USPS "mistakenly" (that was the words of their rep) said there was a delivery attempt when there was not, and two rescheduled deliveries and nobody has shown up. I explained again that the item will not fit in my car, so I can not pick it up. All USPS rep could do was reschedule delivery, for a 4th time. She was very polite, but had no response when I asked if there was any recourse for marking items as delivered or attempted delivered when it had not happened. Amazon did give me a $10 promotional credit.

Problem, at least with us, has nothing to do with Amazon, anything done here through the USPS will not be done correctly or at least in the promised time frame. Our local office is an absolute mess and there is no way that Amazon can promise that final delivery of my packages will be done through another carrier.
This reminds me that my daddy (God rest his soul) always referred to the US Postal Service as the "US Storage Service"...
catdude | | All generalizations are false, including this one.
tampaite
Posts: 585
Joined: Wed Feb 18, 2015 8:29 pm

Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by tampaite »

Deleting my messages on this forum
Last edited by tampaite on Mon Jun 03, 2019 9:27 am, edited 1 time in total.
Topic Author
kjvmartin
Posts: 1482
Joined: Wed Jan 21, 2015 7:57 am

Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by kjvmartin »

OP Update -

They did eventually get this item to me and after a concerted effort, I got a refund.

The next item I've ordered is a $4.99 Blu-Ray 12/18/16 via Prime. This is to be a secret Santa Christmas gift and the guaranteed delivery was scheduled for 12/20/16.

I've just received a notice that my package has been delayed due to weather or natural disaster. They have no ETA. There's no weather or natural disasters listed at the tracking location or at any tracking location between me and the package. In fact, the forecast is and has been clear. I think maybe they're just checking that box because they're overwhelmed due to Christmas? I can't say for sure, but it seems like a bit of a cop out. If they said "we just can't do it on time" that would open them up to liability?
DSInvestor
Posts: 11647
Joined: Sat Oct 04, 2008 11:42 am

Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by DSInvestor »

tampaite wrote:Lately, I noticed that if item price is lower than from when the order was placed and item hasn't shipped, Amazon will still not refund the difference. Wasn't like that few months ago.

I couldn't cancel and re-order since I was using one-time promotional codes but I've also upped the game.

Now, most of my orders get cancelled as soon as I see a lower price. no more waiting for Amazon customer service to credit me the difference.

I have more "cancelled orders" in my account history than "orders". Not sure if that's a good thing or bad.
If you have a citibank card, you can use their CITI price rewind service to get the price difference back. Print your amazon receipt to PDF and upload to citipricerewind.com to register the purchase. The service will look for lower prices on that item for 60 days.
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jrbdmb
Posts: 776
Joined: Tue Oct 06, 2015 4:27 pm

Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by jrbdmb »

siamond wrote:They operate on really thin margins. Which is all the better for our pockets. It's a bit like the Vanguard Web site, can't expect it to be super-glitzy while expecting their ERs to be as low as possible. So I would never expect a free month offer or something like that. I wouldn't want them to even think about it.

We have been an Amazon Prime customer for years. We order multiple items every month. I can't even remember the last time we had a glitch. There has to be extraordinary feats of logistics to make it work that well. Personally, I find it very impressive.
I don't expect the Vanguard website to be "glitzy" but I do expect them to process my orders correctly. If they were unable to do that I would be upset with them, low ERs or not. (FYI, never an issue with Vanguard so far. :happy)

Likewise, I am paying $99 a year for Amazon Prime, so I have no qualms asking for compensation if their delivery service does not match up with their 2-day guarantee for the service.

I haven't ordered from Amazon in a bit, but of my wife's last three orders, two were for a glass plate that in each case arrived very poorly packed and broken, and the third order did not arrive in the guaranteed time (still waiting for it). I definitely think Amazon shipping is going downhill, but seems to be a regional issue as shown by the varied responses here.
Casper
Posts: 311
Joined: Tue Oct 15, 2013 8:32 pm

Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by Casper »

DSInvestor wrote:
tampaite wrote:Lately, I noticed that if item price is lower than from when the order was placed and item hasn't shipped, Amazon will still not refund the difference. Wasn't like that few months ago.

I couldn't cancel and re-order since I was using one-time promotional codes but I've also upped the game.

Now, most of my orders get cancelled as soon as I see a lower price. no more waiting for Amazon customer service to credit me the difference.

I have more "cancelled orders" in my account history than "orders". Not sure if that's a good thing or bad.
If you have a citibank card, you can use their CITI price rewind service to get the price difference back. Print your amazon receipt to PDF and upload to citipricerewind.com to register the purchase. The service will look for lower prices on that item for 60 days.
Just wanted to confirm that this works really well with my Citi Double Cash card. For example, I'm getting at least $29 back for my iPad Mini purchase (from B&H), as Citi found a lower price at Best Buy in the weeks after I purchased it. There's still a few weeks left in the 60-day window so it could be even more than $29.
fareastwarriors
Posts: 1405
Joined: Tue Feb 14, 2012 11:31 am

Re: Amazon Prime Getting Stingy?

Post by fareastwarriors »

Casper wrote:
DSInvestor wrote:
tampaite wrote:Lately, I noticed that if item price is lower than from when the order was placed and item hasn't shipped, Amazon will still not refund the difference. Wasn't like that few months ago.

I couldn't cancel and re-order since I was using one-time promotional codes but I've also upped the game.

Now, most of my orders get cancelled as soon as I see a lower price. no more waiting for Amazon customer service to credit me the difference.

I have more "cancelled orders" in my account history than "orders". Not sure if that's a good thing or bad.
If you have a citibank card, you can use their CITI price rewind service to get the price difference back. Print your amazon receipt to PDF and upload to citipricerewind.com to register the purchase. The service will look for lower prices on that item for 60 days.
Just wanted to confirm that this works really well with my Citi Double Cash card. For example, I'm getting at least $29 back for my iPad Mini purchase (from B&H), as Citi found a lower price at Best Buy in the weeks after I purchased it. There's still a few weeks left in the 60-day window so it could be even more than $29.
I should take advantage of this more often.
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