Amazon has a way of making itself look like a villain, even when it's just having a bad day. A customer ordered a pricey phone from the e-commerce giant for £544, only to be told that it "may be lost" after a tracking update revealed that their package had vanished into thin air.
The customer followed Amazon's instructions to request a refund and was directed to customer service, which insisted they wait a week before claiming. Sounds reasonable, right? Well, not quite. A week later, the customer was told they needed to file an incident report from the email address associated with their account – but using that address would trigger security protocols that deemed it "unsuitable".
This created a paradoxical situation where the customer couldn't use their own email address without risking having their request rejected. It's like Amazon is playing a game of cat and mouse, trying to avoid giving the customer what they're entitled to.
And what does Amazon do? They take two monthly instalments of £108 from the customer's account, leaving them phone-less and out of pocket for hundreds of pounds. The company's apparent reluctance to hand over the cash is, in this writer's opinion, shameless.
However, when exposed, Amazon did eventually issue a refund within four hours of the customer getting in touch – although they also threw in a £50 voucher as an "additional gesture of goodwill". This seems like a bit of tokenistic damage control, but it's better than nothing.
So what can customers do if they find themselves in this predicament? They can try making a chargeback claim from their debit card issuer or asking for reimbursement under section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act. It's not an ideal solution, but at least there's some hope that justice will be served eventually.
The customer followed Amazon's instructions to request a refund and was directed to customer service, which insisted they wait a week before claiming. Sounds reasonable, right? Well, not quite. A week later, the customer was told they needed to file an incident report from the email address associated with their account – but using that address would trigger security protocols that deemed it "unsuitable".
This created a paradoxical situation where the customer couldn't use their own email address without risking having their request rejected. It's like Amazon is playing a game of cat and mouse, trying to avoid giving the customer what they're entitled to.
And what does Amazon do? They take two monthly instalments of £108 from the customer's account, leaving them phone-less and out of pocket for hundreds of pounds. The company's apparent reluctance to hand over the cash is, in this writer's opinion, shameless.
However, when exposed, Amazon did eventually issue a refund within four hours of the customer getting in touch – although they also threw in a £50 voucher as an "additional gesture of goodwill". This seems like a bit of tokenistic damage control, but it's better than nothing.
So what can customers do if they find themselves in this predicament? They can try making a chargeback claim from their debit card issuer or asking for reimbursement under section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act. It's not an ideal solution, but at least there's some hope that justice will be served eventually.
! They're always trying to make themselves look like the bad guy when really they just have a bunch of behind-the-scenes issues. I mean, come on, a package goes missing and suddenly it's the customer's fault? And then they try to play this game of cat and mouse with them, making them wait a whole week before even considering a refund? That's just ridiculous.
. It's like they're trying to make the customer feel like they're doing something wrong by using their own email address. I mean, what's the worst that could happen if someone uses their own email address on Amazon? It's not like it's going to trigger some kind of robot uprising.
. I mean, who thought that was a good idea? "Hey, we messed up, but let's give you a little something to make up for it!" Give me a break.
. Just be prepared to do some legwork, though... 
. Amazon really needs to work on their customer service skills - it sounds like they're trying to screw the customer over rather than help them out. I mean, who asks a customer to use their own email address when you already have access to all that info? It's just common sense, right?
. They're just trying to wriggle out of giving a refund without it looking like they're doing the wrong thing 
. And those instalments they take? Total rip-off 
. But I've got to give 'em credit - once they saw the heat was on, they moved pretty fast 
. Still, all that drama for what? A little "gesture of goodwill" isn't gonna cut it for me 
, just do some digging and use the right channels 
.
, like they're trying to sweeten the deal with some lame gesture of goodwill 
... fingers crossed!
. But I'm glad the customer was able to get a refund eventually... even if it was after being told to wait a week & then having to jump through hoops 
. The £50 voucher is a nice touch, but let's be real, it's not like they were wronged that badly 
. If anyone else finds themselves in this situation, might wanna look into those chargeback claims or section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act... good luck with that!