The Lemon Fool

I just placed an order for a Linux compatible BrosTrend WiFi adapter on Amazon. I do my best to avoid Amazon because it is a real pain, but I did not have much choice on this occasion. Amazon is constantly trying to trick me. I believe that I have avoided Amazon Prime, but it is not easy. I selected free delivery to a local pick up point. Nonetheless, my order was showing £2.99 P&P. I seemed to fix that by clicking a button for free collection. I believe that was outside of the Amazon Prime box, but they went out of their way to make it as confusing as possible. When my order had been placed, there was a worrying box that said I had been selected for Prime. It contained a Try Prime button, so it looks as though I am in the clear. As always, after placing my order, I had to remove my credit card details. They really should not be allowed to retain credit card details by default.

I'm extremely annoyed with Amazon at the moment. I ordered an Ipad Pro 12.9" at a cost of £1,052.
The box arrived promptly but when I opened it, it contained 2 bars of soap and a book. Obviously a fraud in their warehouse, where the picker had substituted low value items to the same weight and stolen the Ipad.

Of course I rang Amazon immediately (not easy as they don't give a customer service phone nr). They assured me it would be refunded promptly and to return what I had received. I did this and the UPS tracking system shows they received it back on July 6th. Their website shows they claim to still be waiting for the return. More calls to Amazon just get more promises that are not met.

I'm now asking my credit card to cancel the transaction - it's an Amazon card!!

I ordered the same type of Ipad from John Lewis online and it came next day, no probs.

I find it so easy to use
Prime next day and sometimes same day delivery what's not to like
just me it would seem... I doubt it

pje16 wrote:I find it so easy to use
Prime next day and sometimes same day delivery what's not to like
just me it would seem... I doubt it

I too find Amazon wonderfully easy and convenient. I would spend WAY more that the £8 a month Primes costs on diesel to go to the shops instead, so I don't understand all the hate people express for Amazon in general and Prime in particular.

They sure do have a problem with security though. I'd say 75% of the Amazon packages that arrive here show signs of tampering to see what is inside.

Mike4 wrote:They sure do have a problem with security though. I'd say 75% of the Amazon packages that arrive here show signs of tampering to see what is inside.

A few times recently the address label has just been stuck on the product box
no-one else has done that, so hats off to them for efficient packaging

go on Snorvey treat yourself
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dogs-Bollocks- ... 092X53B1F/

pje16 wrote:go on Snorvey treat yourself
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dogs-Bollocks- ... 092X53B1F/

I buy only books from Amazon and even without the invariable free delivery they are much cheaper than buying from say Waterstones and of course I need to get to Waterstones myself.

Re Prime, I usually accept it free for the first month and make sure I cancel it before the month is up.

For some years now it has all worked a treat.

Dod

Mike4 wrote:

pje16 wrote:I find it so easy to use
Prime next day and sometimes same day delivery what's not to like
just me it would seem... I doubt it

I too find Amazon wonderfully easy and convenient. I would spend WAY more that the £8 a month Primes costs on diesel to go to the shops instead, so I don't understand all the hate people express for Amazon in general and Prime in particular.

I typically buy something from Amazon about once year. £96 would be a crazy delivery charge for just one item. I walk to Asda to get most of my shopping. Failing that, I can usually walk, use my bus pass, or stop off on another car journey that I had to do anyway. The buying experience at Argos and Screwfix (or just about any other site) is a thousand times better for me than at Amazon.

I use Amazon as little as possible... eBay is my default.

Recently Amazon sent me a fragile instrument from the US, which I couldn't find over here, in nothing more than the maker's display packaging and a not very padded bag. Then they used Hermes, the UK's crappiest courier, to deliver it here where the guy left the £200 parcel by our postbox in the lane because he couldn't be bothered to walk 30ft up the drive to our safe shed.

I opted in for Prime, so it arrived from the US in just four days, but I shall cancel Prime within the 60 day window, as that is hopefully the end of my Amazon purchases for 2022.

V8

88V8 wrote:Then they used Hermes, the UK's crappiest courier, to deliver it here where the guy left the £200 parcel by our postbox in the lane because he couldn't be bothered to walk 30ft up the drive to our safe shed.

There is heavy competition for that title. Royal Mail is fine for me. The depot is only about 3 miles away, so I can walk there. DPD is also good. I think Yodel has successfully delivered at least one item too. The rest have been rubbish in my experience. Par for the course is a tracking system that does not work, waiting in all day for a delivery that may be silent and may not arrive, and then be offered the option to drive to a depot in another city. Wouldn't it be great if all suppliers offered a choice of delivery options.

There is heavy competition for that title [crappiest etc]

Self penned, all my own work, based on a direct personal experience...

https://www.poetrysoup.com/poem/courier_life_1318379

Courier life.

We'll tell you we will deliver at 1000-1130.

We send a text at 1046 that you are the next customer
Our delivery tracking map shows our driver 12 minutes and a mile away.

By 1400 the parcel has not arrived
The tracking shows the driver still 12 minutes and a mile away.

At 1530 we send an email saying there is an issue but the parcel will definitely arrive today

At 2230 it has not arrived. The tracking app still shows it 12 minutes and a mile away.

The next day at 0820 we send an email saying the parcel will he delivered today.

The tracking app shows the parcel at the depot 30 miles away.

Another email says it will be with you between 1200-1330.

We text at 1300 saying you are next
The tracking app shows we are 8 minutes and 700 metres away.

No parcel arrives

At 1400 the tracking has no details on your parcel.

At 1500 the tracking now shows proof of delivery at 1310 with a photograph of somebody's blurred thumb holding a piece of paper.

There is no parcel.

You will now spend several days arguing over whether the parcel was delivered or not, to whom, where and when.

You contact the seller who points at the thumb and paper photo as proof of delivery.

You have argument with seller who eventually sends a replacement via another courier which somehow arrives.

18 months later your original parcel is delivered in a shocking state, by some random bloke from Belgium who is passing on holiday whose neighbour found the parcel in his waterbutt last year.

(C) ian Diddams 2021

GeoffF100 wrote:
I typically buy something from Amazon about once year. £96 would be a crazy delivery charge for just one item. I walk to Asda to get most of my shopping. Failing that, I can usually walk, use my bus pass, or stop off on another car journey that I had to do anyway. The buying experience at Argos and Screwfix (or just about any other site) is a thousand times better for me than at Amazon.

Experiences differ - out of curiosity I once looked at the number of orders I made in the year from March 14th 2020 - it was around 200, to a variety of addresses. I'm not aware of any packages being incorrect, and the vast majority were delivered to schedule (i.e. if they said it wouldn't be next day at order (so Christmas, Prime Day/Black Friday and a wee or two in late March/early April) I don't consider them not achieving next day as unsatisfactory). For ~£80, I'm not unhappy with that service.

scrumpyjack wrote:I'm extremely annoyed with Amazon at the moment. I ordered an Ipad Pro 12.9" at a cost of £1,052.
The box arrived promptly but when I opened it, it contained 2 bars of soap and a book. Obviously a fraud in their warehouse, where the picker had substituted low value items to the same weight and stolen the Ipad.

Of course I rang Amazon immediately (not easy as they don't give a customer service phone nr). They assured me it would be refunded promptly and to return what I had received. I did this and the UPS tracking system shows they received it back on July 6th. Their website shows they claim to still be waiting for the return. More calls to Amazon just get more promises that are not met.

I'm now asking my credit card to cancel the transaction - it's an Amazon card!!

I ordered the same type of Ipad from John Lewis online and it came next day, no probs.

Update on this - after half an hour on the phone with someone trying to be very helpful, but who I found it difficult to hear, partly due to the Asian accent but also my deafness, he said it would be refunded. Next day I had emailed confirmation and today the refund arrived in my credit card.
The credit card has also cancelled the original transaction but no doubt they will sort that out in a few days. What a palaver!

xeny wrote:

GeoffF100 wrote:
I typically buy something from Amazon about once year. £96 would be a crazy delivery charge for just one item. I walk to Asda to get most of my shopping. Failing that, I can usually walk, use my bus pass, or stop off on another car journey that I had to do anyway. The buying experience at Argos and Screwfix (or just about any other site) is a thousand times better for me than at Amazon.

Experiences differ - out of curiosity I once looked at the number of orders I made in the year from March 14th 2020 - it was around 200, to a variety of addresses. I'm not aware of any packages being incorrect, and the vast majority were delivered to schedule (i.e. if they said it wouldn't be next day at order (so Christmas, Prime Day/Black Friday and a wee or two in late March/early April) I don't consider them not achieving next day as unsatisfactory). For ~£80, I'm not unhappy with that service.

I was referring here to the ease of placing the order. With Amazon, I have to be very careful not to get tricked into Amazon Prime or next day delivery. Selecting click and collect could be easier too. I also have to Google how to delete my credit card details and delete them after every order. I do not get any of that hassle from most suppliers.

GeoffF100 wrote:I also have to Google how to delete my credit card details and delete them after every order. I do not get any of that hassle from most suppliers.

I have credit cards stored with Amazon... have done for years and it has never been an issue

Coming to the UK soon, if it's not already happening

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/articl ... ilway.html

Redmires wrote:Coming to the UK soon, if it's not already happening

Oh, I thought they shot looters in the US... especially if they don't recycle.

V8

Redmires wrote:Coming to the UK soon, if it's not already happening

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/articl ... ilway.html

Not quite the story it appears.

Union Pacific has a private police force to prevent theft from its trains, but in the inevitable drive for profits the number of police officers it employs has been slashed and there are now apparently six people covering from Arizona to LA.

Also the thieves have found the cargo wagons are now usually left unlocked, because if they are locked then you might as well put a big sign on the outside saying ‘valuable items in here’.

And then combined with the ‘plea deal’ US court system, if anyone is caught it is pleaded out as a misdemeanour because nobody got shot, the fine paid, and the criminal back to work that afternoon.

pje16 wrote:I have credit cards stored with Amazon... have done for years and it has never been an issue

It hasn't been an issue yet. There's always a first time. I always remove my credit card details because I'm sure that the one time I don't something will go wrong and I'll be kicking myself.

I think of it as a preventative measure, a bit like locking the door when I go out.

You're essentially comparing the risk of the retailer being compromised vs the risk of the machine you're entering the credit card info being compromised in some fashion. I know enough about web browser security that it terrifies me, so I've settled on having significant retailers store my card details.

If every card Amazon holds gets compromised, the outcry will be overwhelming. If my card details leak because there is a cross tab data leak in the browser I'm using, rather less so.