Disappointed in Amazon.com on this one.

[Death Metal Moe]

I had an old iPod Nano generation 1 laying around that I never used. So after I charged it up and made sure the battery was half way usable at least, I put some music on it and gave it to my friend to use while at work. He has an active outdoor job so I figured I'd also get him one of those armband carrying cases. I posted how hard it is to find iPod Nano Gen1 cases in local stores so I went to Amazon.com, a site I've used successfully for years now. If some of you remember me talking about that Nano recently, it was in THIS (http://www.ronfez.net/forums/showthread.php?t=80045) thread.

I found quite a few different cases on Amazon and ordered what looked like a nice, decently priced Belkin one. Clicked "Order" like I always do, approved the payment method and that was that.

Fast forward about 5 business days which included a weekend so we're talking about a full week. I get a shipment notice from Amazon but I also get a strange 2nd E-mail from some assholes named The Price Pros that they had accidentally posted an item on Amazon they didn't have in stock and would be refunding my money. That's odd, I didn't order anything from them, I just clicked the normal buttons I always do to order directly from Amazon. Well, here's the important part:

On some orders on items that Amazon no longer stocks, they push you off onto their 3rd party vendors, even if you just click the "Order" button like you always do. They do this without too much warning (I say too much because if the warned me it was very small printing somewhere, not a seperate screen or anything) and even if there's multiple vendors for the item, THEY choose the one you get it from. The Price Pros had a 68% lifetime satisfaction rating, I would have NEVER bought from them! Especially when once I went to go look at what had happened, there were 2 other vendors selling the same item with over 90% satisfaction.

What a load of fucking shit!

So after a few angry E-mails to Amazon about this they got my refund approved that night instead of the 4-6 business days it usually takes and I re-ordered. Got another case from another vendor in like 4 days total.

I'm just annoyed that Amazon shoves you off on 3rd party vendors with little to no warning and won't even let you pick which of the vendors you might want. I am well aware of the different new and used listings for different items on Amazon, I use them quite often for books and CDs. This was different. It was as if I ordered from Amazon themselves but instead they gave me to a 3rd party.

Just a warning to anyone getting different things from Amazon.

[topless_mike]

sucks.
when i use amazon, i make sure its only from amazon.com. i dont like that marketplace bullshit.

amazon, few years back, was the place to get everything and anything on the cheap.
over the past few years, i've noticed a change in amazon that i really dont like.

[Death Metal Moe]

sucks.
when i use amazon, i make sure its only from amazon.com. i dont like that marketplace bullshit.

amazon, few years back, was the place to get everything and anything on the cheap.
over the past few years, i've noticed a change in amazon that i really dont like.

Yea, I don't go there as much but I still find Amazon a decent place to look for things. They haven't degraded NEARLY as much as Ebay has for example.

My problem is just that I ordered just as I always did, from Amazon and got shoved to this 3rd party. When I use one of their 3rd party vendors I always know I am before hand. I click their "New and Used" tabs to see other deals they let vendors post on there.

This time I tried to order from Amazon. They didn't make any distinction between the 2, that is where my problem lies.

[boosterp]

Amazon is good about listening to complaints.

I ordered a clutch plate once and it was through a 3rd party vendor that had above 90% ratings. Well, I waited... and waited, no clutch so I emailed Amazon who referred me to the vendor. The vendor just told me it was on it's way, a week later no clutch. I email Amazon bitching loudly, they refunded me and that vendor is no longer selling through Amazon. I guess they had a few more serious complaints with or after mine.

[Death Metal Moe]

You would think a vendor with a 68% approval would have been dumped by now don't you? After the fact I went back to look at what got them there and there was a laundry list of complaints. Of course they went on damage control and came up with their excuses to respond to each low score, but how long does a vendor get to do this? Especially since you're saying someone with over 90% was suddenly discontinued as a vendor.

[boosterp]

You would think a vendor with a 68% approval would have been dumped by now don't you? After the fact I went back to look at what got them there and there was a laundry list of complaints. Of course they went on damage control and came up with their excuses to respond to each low score, but how long does a vendor get to do this? Especially since you're saying someone with over 90% was suddenly discontinued as a vendor.

In my case there were likely a lot of complaints at once. But there is no way Amazon should keep any vendor with under 87% rating. I feel your frustration man.

[Death Metal Moe]

On a side note, after I sent them a "Thanks for keeping my money in limbo and wasting my time" E-mail they wanted to give me some fucking $30 credit or something. I'm sure it was $30 off THEIR merchandise, not Amazon's. I ignored it.

Then once I was able to leave feedback on the order for the vendor, I left them a lowest approval I could, succinctly explained what they did and submitted it.

HEY! Wouldn't ya know, now they want to ship me the thing FREE OF CHARGE to "make things right." What that probably means is "you're another complaint on top of our huge mountain of them and Amazon wants us to make it all better with you."

I ignored 2 more E-mails until I finally had to send them this:

I don't want anything from you. All I wanted was what I paid for and you couldn't give me that. All you could do is tie my money up for most of a week before you even checked your stock to fill my order. I got the item elsewhere. It was ordered, paid for, shipped and received in a shorter amount of time than it took for you to figure out you didn't even have what you were selling to me.

Keep your money and your merchandise, I don't want either. Stop E-mailing me. My feedback said all I had to really say.

"Mr. Handsome"

Fucking pieces of shit, I don't want your charity! All I ever wanted was to pay for something you offered and then receive it and use it. I swear if this fucking Armband case shows up to my house I'm going to find their offices and smear my feces all over every door knob of their building and under each car door latch of their automobiles. Because THAT would mean they wasted my time AND my money because I wouldn't have had to re-order with someone else.

[topless_mike]

"Mr Handsome" ?
:huh:

Modquote this, please.

[Death Metal Moe]

But make it a 2nd Mod Quote, I'm rather fond of the one I have now, I said that and am proud to have it by my name.

[drjoek]

On a side note, after I sent them a "Thanks for keeping my money in limbo and wasting my time" E-mail they wanted to give me some fucking $30 credit or something. I'm sure it was $30 off THEIR merchandise, not Amazon's. I ignored it.

Then once I was able to leave feedback on the order for the vendor, I left them a lowest approval I could, succinctly explained what they did and submitted it.

HEY! Wouldn't ya know, now they want to ship me the thing FREE OF CHARGE to "make things right." What that probably means is "you're another complaint on top of our huge mountain of them and Amazon wants us to make it all better with you."

I ignored 2 more E-mails until I finally had to send them this:



Fucking pieces of shit, I don't want your charity! All I ever wanted was to pay for something you offered and then receive it and use it. I swear if this fucking Armband case shows up to my house I'm going to find their offices and smear my feces all over every door knob of their building and under each car door latch of their automobiles. Because THAT would mean they wasted my time AND my money because I wouldn't have had to re-order with someone else.



You got screwed over on the first order on an out of circulation item based on your own assumptions and not looking that carefully. Then when you were dissatisfied the company TRIED to make you whole or get you some satisfaction. I can't imagine this armband is a giant ticket item for you or them. Objectively sounds like you are over reacting a bit. Just my opinion

[FezsAssistant]

I blame Obama...and Earl...

[Death Metal Moe]

You got screwed over on the first order on an out of circulation item based on your own assumptions and not looking that carefully. Then when you were dissatisfied the company TRIED to make you whole or get you some satisfaction. I can't imagine this armband is a giant ticket item for you or them. Objectively sounds like you are over reacting a bit. Just my opinion

Wrong. I looked as carefully as I always do. There is a button to "order from Amazon" and there are other areas set aside for their 3rd party vendors.

When they decided to shove me to one of their 3rd party vendors they did not make it clear they were doing so and didn't even give me the option of picking which of the 3 vendors were offering the item on their website.

Accidents can happen but I felt the amount of time this company took, after instant payment, to check if they even had my item was unsatisfactory.

I also find it fucking funny as hell they just wanted to refund my money and be done with me at 1st but MAGICALLY they were able to find the fucking armband and "send it to me free of charge" after I submitted a bad feedback. If you were that dedicated to customer service you would have found me the armband wherever you did, shipped it to me and at that point you could have kept my money.

Lastly, the only reason they tried to "satisfy" me wholly is because of the feedback I left and some shit I hope Amazon gave them for sucking yet again. So don't be too quick to cry them a river.

[SatCam]

Wrong. I looked as carefully as I always do. There is a button to "order from Amazon" and there are other areas set aside for their 3rd party vendors.

When they decided to shove me to one of their 3rd party vendors they did not make it clear they were doing so and didn't even give me the option of picking which of the 3 vendors were offering the item on their website.

Accidents can happen but I felt the amount of time this company took, after instant payment, to check if they even had my item was unsatisfactory.

I also find it fucking funny as hell they just wanted to refund my money and be done with me at 1st but MAGICALLY they were able to find the fucking armband and "send it to me free of charge" after I submitted a bad feedback. If you were that dedicated to customer service you would have found me the armband wherever you did, shipped it to me and at that point you could have kept my money.

Lastly, the only reason they tried to "satisfy" me wholly is because of the feedback I left and some shit I hope Amazon gave them for sucking yet again. So don't be too quick to cry them a river.

I am on DrJoe's side on this one. What was their crime? They had an item listed that was out of stock. I dont think they would do that on purpose even if they were as shitty as you say. Sounds like an honest mistake.

Yes they did screw you over for a week. That sucks and they tried to make good. Money was refunded immediately and it sounded like everyone tried to satisfy you.

The one to blame here I think is Amazon. They basically hand your money over without your say to a 3rd party vendor when you think you're getting it from the Amazon warehouse.

But the other guys went out of their way to give you a $30 credit and offer to ship you the armband for free. I work in a store and we put a lot of things on sale each week. We run out sometimes and I always try to make the customer happy - I tell them I'll substitute a similar item equal or greater in size for the same price. Most customers are grateful that we actually care about their business. I think that's what this company was going for.

[Death Metal Moe]

I was mad at Amazon, I'm mad at both of them. Amazon was just going to let my refund go at the normal pace until I complained and got it done that night after 3 E-mails.

The 3rd paty company just sucks and I didn't feel like dealing with them. I also felt their response wasn't adequate. Their crime was one of not keeping stock of what they had and really only trying to satisfy me after they got bad feedback. If they had miraculously found the case before I complalined like they said they did after I complained, they could have just shipped me the fucking thing, kept the money and at least broken even. It was only after my negative feed back and what I suspect was some shit Amazon gave them, that they actually found the item and offered to ship it free of charge after the refund. Now for some reason they want to be out money to satisfy some random guy?

I don't buy it.

Only reason they wrote back was because of the complaint and shit Amazon gave them. I don't value a business that only does the right thing after they're told.

[Melk]

You got screwed over on the first order on an out of circulation item based on your own assumptions and not looking that carefully. Then when you were dissatisfied the company TRIED to make you whole or get you some satisfaction. I can't imagine this armband is a giant ticket item for you or them. Objectively sounds like you are over reacting a bit. Just my opinion
I agree and I would like to add that it is unfortunate that you had to resort to condescending, mean-spirited emails over $30.

For some reason, corporations only respond to ill-tempered, threatening, rude customers. People who handle their complaints in a polite, measured, fair manner get fucked.

I think that this method of discourse has progressively bleeding out into every other avenue of public discourse to the point where, even though America is socially better than it has ever been, corporate media cannot wait to point their cameras and microphones at angry, irrational, unlikable, screaming people because they write condescending, mean letters to their offices.

[Death Metal Moe]

I agree and I would like to add that it is unfortunate that you had to resort to condescending, mean-spirited emails over $30.

For some reason, corporations only respond to ill-tempered, threatening, rude customers. People who handle their complaints in a polite, measured, fair manner get fucked.

I think that this method of discourse has progressively bleeding out into every other avenue of public discourse to the point where, even though America is socially better than it has ever been, corporate media cannot wait to point their cameras and microphones at angry, irrational, unlikable, screaming people because they write condescending, mean letters to their offices.

Wow, you'll win the Oscar with a dramatic performance like that.

They're incompetent, they proved that when they couldn't keep track of their own stock and many, many other people feel the same way since they had a 68% satisfaction rating.

I never cursed at them, I let them know what they did and then didn't want to deal with them again. They only wanted to send me the thing I tried to pay for after the complaint anyway.

What would you have done? Just trusted some poorly reviewed company off the internet. Yea, good luck with that.

[Melk]

What would you have done? Just trusted some poorly reviewed company off the internet. Yea, good luck with that.
I would have tried to figure out how to get the transaction undone or reversed. However, I am saying that it sucks that it is difficult to get a good result in these situations by being civil. Drama, rudeness and condescension rule in retail.

You must threaten. You must be mean.

Being polite in these situations is ineffective. The opposite should be the case. You should be able to send a calm email and get a positive result, but corporations respond to threats and not calm, reasonable customers.

Wow, you'll win the Oscar with a dramatic performance like that.
Thanks. But what I really want is a Beanie Cup. :bye:

[Death Metal Moe]

Thanks. But what I really want is a Beanie Cup. :bye:

Well don't we all?