I ordered a £450 TV from Amazon Marketplace that never arrived. When I complained, I was sent a photo of the package on my front doorstep. This was in spite of the fact that I had requested it be left out of sight at the back. Moreover, the app had given me a delivery date for the following week, so there was no one at home to sign for it. Amazon repeatedly told me that I was not eligible for a refund under the A-to-Z guarantee because I’d reported an “unusually high number” of missing orders. I’ve only ever made two other claims, both for low-value items, over the course of 13 years and hundreds of orders. Amazon’s customer services told me to submit an online appeal, which generated a message directing me to its help pages, which would tell me to contact customer service. I was told customer service had no way of contacting the appeals team.
JH, Castlewellan, County Down
There are undoubtedly customers who abuse the system, but Amazon’s claim that you’ve made an “unusually high number” of claims seems to be a common response when refusing a refund for pricier orders.
Other readers who declare an unblemished shopping record have been told the same thing and Amazon has apologised and refunded them when I have queried the claim.
Essentially, Amazon has a legal responsibility to ensure that you get what you paid for. If it suspects foul play, it needs evidence. I have previously highlighted how customers whose high-end goods disappear have been sent on a wild goose chase via the police, who have no remit over missing deliveries. And how Amazon ignores customers whose items vanish after its delivery verification system is abused or fails.
Amazon predictably told me that your refund claim should have been granted immediately. It said: “Customer satisfaction is our utmost priority, and we’re sorry that customer experience did not meet the high standards we expect. We have apologised and they’ve been refunded in full.”
Helpfully, it added that customers who had a problem with an order from a third-party seller should contact it about a refund under the A-to-Z guarantee. Which is exactly what you did!
PB of Leeds experienced a similar ordeal and emerged victorious and has this advice: “Amazon didn’t follow my instructions to leave my parcels with a neighbour – they were dumped on my doorstep and stolen. Amazon refused a refund, then changed its mind but failed to pay, then blocked my account. I took them to the small claims court, where they admitted liability and paid me back at last!”
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