Amazon.co.uk General Thread

[movie fan2021]

Originally Posted by chrismansell

I appreciate it's probably less wasteful, but this packaging seems far from ideal.

what packaging?

[movie fan2021]

Originally Posted by DTSBOY

That's bad even by Amazons standards.

Surprised there are any corners left intact.

Corners where most certainly cut there

[McCrutchy]

Amazon continues to screw around with international customers. Here are their stated delivery rates to the USA, which are available right here:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=GX2FNXL3AFRDGFU9#GUID-4753503B-6ABE-451C-9880-82486178AA29__SECTION_DBD4B2049E3244308C39B0336652 EBEF

[Show spoiler]

Last night, I wanted to buy a book and get it shipped Amazon GlobalPriority, since that goes DHL Express and should result in the (paperback) being relatively undamaged. This book came out earlier this month from Penguin and isn't available in the US, except from third-party sellers.

Based on those shipping rates, I would expect the book (which weighs 870 g according to Penguin and 1.32 lbs according to Amazon.com, so definitely not over 1 kg) to cost £12.98 to ship, perhaps with some tax on top. Imagine my shock late last night when I saw this:

[Show spoiler]

And just to prove that it isn't down to tax, I went back to the checkout screen and got this:

[Show spoiler]

Now, last night, I decided to look into this with customer service. An hour of chatting with a rep and a supervisor, followed by a phone call, basically confirmed to me that even though they acknowledge the large disparity between what they say they charge for shipping and what they actually charge for shipping, they can no longer refund or credit the difference, as in, their system, apparently, will not actually allow them to do that anymore. The reps were sympathetic and I was very polite, but I'm still flabbergasted that Amazon can blatantly advertise incorrect shipping rates and then not even correct them immediately when a customer calls in. Before and possibly during the pandemic, I know I've had this done.

Needless to say, Amazon lost this sale and I ordered from the Book Depository for less than half of the total amount that Amazon wanted. I now have to hope the book arrives undamaged, but I saved over $20 versus what Amazon tried to get from me.

[The Hornets]

You do know Book Depository are owned by Amazon and hence use same packaging.

If anyone here wants British books shipped overseas then in most cases you should be using Book Depository as IIRC no international shipping charge but less discount off the actual book.

Only downside is they are run as separate companies and Book Depository unlike Amazon U.K. don’t stock hold. When they get an order they go to the book wholesalers who get direct from the publishers. Means they can have different stock availability and may be slightly slower to ship vs buying an in stock book at Amazon.

[Eibon]

Originally Posted by McCrutchy

Amazon continues to screw around with international customers. Here are their stated delivery rates to the USA, which are available right here:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=GX2FNXL3AFRDGFU9#GUID-4753503B-6ABE-451C-9880-82486178AA29__SECTION_DBD4B2049E3244308C39B0336652 EBEF

[Show spoiler]

Last night, I wanted to buy a book and get it shipped Amazon GlobalPriority, since that goes DHL Express and should result in the (paperback) being relatively undamaged. This book came out earlier this month from Penguin and isn't available in the US, except from third-party sellers.

Based on those shipping rates, I would expect the book (which weighs 870 g according to Penguin and 1.32 lbs according to Amazon.com, so definitely not over 1 kg) to cost £12.98 to ship, perhaps with some tax on top. Imagine my shock late last night when I saw this:

[Show spoiler]

And just to prove that it isn't down to tax, I went back to the checkout screen and got this:

[Show spoiler]

Now, last night, I decided to look into this with customer service. An hour of chatting with a rep and a supervisor, followed by a phone call, basically confirmed to me that even though they acknowledge the large disparity between what they say they charge for shipping and what they actually charge for shipping, they can no longer refund or credit the difference, as in, their system, apparently, will not actually allow them to do that anymore. The reps were sympathetic and I was very polite, but I'm still flabbergasted that Amazon can blatantly advertise incorrect shipping rates and then not even correct them immediately when a customer calls in. Before and possibly during the pandemic, I know I've had this done.

Needless to say, Amazon lost this sale and I ordered from the Book Depository for less than half of the total amount that Amazon wanted. I now have to hope the book arrives undamaged, but I saved over $20 versus what Amazon tried to get from me.

I'm not clear on your question but for customs purposes shipping costs are part of taxes and duties due. This might explain discrepancy.

[Sky_Captain]

So, I pre-ordered Robin Hood Prince of Thieves on UHD, the day it went up for pre-order.

It was in August.

Still not dispatched.

Yet if I order it today, I'll have it on Wednesday?

Absolute clowns.

[The Hornets]

Originally Posted by Sky_Captain

So, I pre-ordered Robin Hood Prince of Thieves on UHD, the day it went up for pre-order.

It was in August.

Still not dispatched.

Yet if I order it today, I'll have it on Wednesday?

Absolute clowns.

Sadly typical behaviour by Amazon these days, just read back in this thread.
Unless you believe an item will sell out or go up in price vs the pre-order deal no point pre-ordering. Order on release day and you get faster.

[grahams76]

This is worldwide too, not just Amazon UK. Same thing happens in the US.

[Steedeel]

Originally Posted by Sky_Captain

So, I pre-ordered Robin Hood Prince of Thieves on UHD, the day it went up for pre-order.

It was in August.

Still not dispatched.

Yet if I order it today, I'll have it on Wednesday?

Absolute clowns.

I contacted them and apparently it’s because they receive the items in ‘blocks’. Because the discs haven’t been released when pre ordered, they are reserved but somehow end up in a later batch while everyone who doesn’t pre order gets it earlier generally.

I voiced my disapproval and it was the usual ‘I will pass your comments on’.

It’s stupidity imo. Waiting a full week when I could have just ordered it on the day and got it next day.

If folk are unhappy then need to keep contacting Amazon. We are paying for Prime and getting our discs later than people who don’t pay for it. That’s a serious flaw and it needs addressing.

[Andrew Woo]

Originally Posted by Sky_Captain

So, I pre-ordered Robin Hood Prince of Thieves on UHD, the day it went up for pre-order.

It was in August.

Still not dispatched.

Yet if I order it today, I'll have it on Wednesday?

Absolute clowns.

Same here. There's no use in preordering since they don't ship out orders even on the streetdate.

[McCrutchy]

Originally Posted by The Hornets

You do know Book Depository are owned by Amazon and hence use same packaging.

If anyone here wants British books shipped overseas then in most cases you should be using Book Depository as IIRC no international shipping charge but less discount off the actual book.

Only downside is they are run as separate companies and Book Depository unlike Amazon U.K. don’t stock hold. When they get an order they go to the book wholesalers who get direct from the publishers. Means they can have different stock availability and may be slightly slower to ship vs buying an in stock book at Amazon.

No, I had no idea that Book Depository was part of Amazon. I was limited in my options to buy the book, as the other UK bookstores that ship internationally, like Waterstones, had a higher item price that somewhat offset the cheaper shipping, and then, I have never used them, so I don't know what their service and packing is like. So, when I saw that Book Depository was selling the book for less than $24 with free shipping and no tax, and that they had sent me a 10% off coupon, that was too good of a deal to pass up.

Originally Posted by Eibon

I'm not clear on your question but for customs purposes shipping costs are part of taxes and duties due. This might explain discrepancy.

I didn't have a question. I was pointing out that Amazon have misleading information on their own site about shipping to the USA, and that their customer service apparently literally can't do anything about it.

Tax on the shipping is included in the order, although this can only be seen in the order invoice once the item(s) are dispatched, which include the cost of the shipping before tax. Sales tax for the state of delivery is also collected on the order at the time of purchase, so the "Tax" amount listed covers both sales tax on the item and tax on the shipping fee. Otherwise, there should not be any fees for a person importing an item like a book or other media (or indeed most goods) into the US. I understand that we do have a threshold where import fees could be charged, but that it is very high. In practice, I have never been hit with a customs or duty charge over here, so if that is what Amazon are collecting inside the inflated shipping costs, that should be made clear.

My suspicion is that Amazon simply can't be bothered to update the shipping information to the USA to reflect that rates are higher and have been since the pandemic. I suppose they assume most people won't notice or care, especially since imports are only a small fraction of their business.

A similar thing happened earlier in the year when they were offering AmazonGlobal Priority on pre-orders again (only AmazonGlobal Stamdard is available on pre-orders, at the moment). Only this time, when they shipped the orders (as the titles were released, by their choice) they would send almost every parcel with much slower GEODIS or APG (Australia Post Global) Express, which took up to 10 or more business days on occasion, rather than the stated 2-4 days. I think I managed to get a refund or credit once or twice, but they kept doing it.

Thankfully, things have changed and now if I wait until all the items show as "In stock" as opposed to pre-ordering, I have thus far been able to get the proper Priority shipping with DHL Express, which is why I have a cart with 12 titles in it ready to go for Sunday night my time, and hopefully everything will arrive in perfect condition within the week, though at an eye-watering cost. I did discover that adding the book to this future order greatly increased the shipping cost, which is how this all started.

[Ste7en]

Originally Posted by movie fan2021

what packaging?

I had a gaming headset delivered like this (Astro A40 with mix amp). The box was so smashed up I returned it without even opening it.

They said I opted for 'fuss-free packaging' or something like that, I didn't. No way should they have sent a 250 quid headset through the post with an address label slapped on it. Clowns.

[Razorhead]

Received an Amz global store Criterion digipak in a jiffy bag and surprise surprise it came completely crushed with the plastic disc holders shattered and even some disc damage to boot. Don't think even a scanavo would have survived the trip in one piece - safe to say I declined the replacement and ordered elsewhere, lesson learnt!

[movie fan2021]

Originally Posted by Ste7en

I had a gaming headset delivered like this (Astro A40 with mix amp). The box was so smashed up I returned it without even opening it.

They said I opted for 'fuss-free packaging' or something like that, I didn't. No way should they have sent a 250 quid headset through the post with an address label slapped on it. Clowns.

hardly fuss free packaging, plenty of fuss I'd say

[movie fan2021]

Originally Posted by Razorhead

Received an Amz global store Criterion digipak in a jiffy bag and surprise surprise it came completely crushed with the plastic disc holders shattered and even some disc damage to boot. Don't think even a scanavo would have survived the trip in one piece - safe to say I declined the replacement and ordered elsewhere, lesson learnt!

sadly what they do, every order is packed or not the same way no matter what the customer pays for shipping

[Markgway]

Ordered a microwave from Amazon UK.

Supposed to arrive on the 27th.

It didn't.

Then the 28th.

It didn't, still.

Order cancelled on the 29th (today) because - I kid you not - it was "lost in transit".

How the f**k do you lose a microwave?!

They refunded me. No offer of a replacement.

A quick check on the product page confirms why...

It's gone up by £13.

Absolute ass clowns!

[movie fan2021]

Originally Posted by Markgway

Ordered a microwave from Amazon UK.

Supposed to arrive on the 27th.

It didn't.

Then the 28th.

It didn't, still.

Order cancelled on the 29th (today) because - I kid you not - it was "lost in transit".

How the f**k do you lose a microwave?!

They refunded me. No offer of a replacement.

A quick check on the product page confirms why...

It's gone up by £13.

Absolute ass clowns!

You agreed the price at the time, not your problem microwave should be delivered with a smile

[Tam Mullen]

Originally Posted by Markgway

Ordered a microwave from Amazon UK.

Supposed to arrive on the 27th.

It didn't.

Then the 28th.

It didn't, still.

Order cancelled on the 29th (today) because - I kid you not - it was "lost in transit".

How the f**k do you lose a microwave?!

They refunded me. No offer of a replacement.

A quick check on the product page confirms why...

It's gone up by £13.

Absolute ass clowns!

Did your order come through the Glasgow depot?

Same thing happened with my Harry Potter 4k order although I got mine today.

Someone’s most likely crashed a van.

[drush9999]

We had a pair of Levis from Amazon just get sent in a clear plastic bag with a shipping label attached. Apparently that's how they send clothes now, but what if you get a mankini

[JoePo]

Originally Posted by drush9999

We had a pair of Levis from Amazon just get sent in a clear plastic bag with a shipping label attached. Apparently that's how they send clothes now, but what if you get a mankini

If you're prepared to wear a mankini it would be odd to be coy about it being delivered