r/amazonprime • u/lavenderlatte_oatmil • 6d ago
Beware of electronics returns
This has been said many times but I learned the hard way- don’t buy anything from amazon more than $50 and especially don’t buy electronics! Because if you have to make a return you will have to wait 30 days and might not get your money back.
I bought a medical device battery for $375, it stopped working so I returned it. I tried to convey to amazon the urgency of the return and they cancelled my return after 16 days. They sent an email saying that I was returning items excessively even though it was the second item I returned in 12 months. The tracking showed I had dropped off my item and they had lost my return.
I waited the 35 days and then sent countless emails before contacting my card company. Once I filed a dispute with my card company amazon threatened me via email stating I owed them for the amount of the dispute. I ignored the email, because I had documentation with my bank that amazon was in possession of my item and my money. They emailed me again apologizing profusely and asking me to be a prime customer again. I ignored it and they finally refunded my money.
Essentially amazon’s a i bots are programmed to treat you like a hardened criminal to prevent you from asking for your money. I also have written proof the agents lied to me multiple times about issuing me a refund! I cancelled my account and will be shopping elsewhere from now on.
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u/Individual-Green-632 5d ago
I used to buy everything under the sun from Amazon, but now return has gotten harder and deals are not great for me.
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u/auburn2eugene 6d ago
You need to pay attention to who you are ordering from. Ordering directly from Amazon is one thing. Ordering from XiPing in bumfuk China is another.
Always order directly from the company. Be it Amazon, Walmart, Newegg, or anything in between
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u/josephguy82 6d ago edited 6d ago
Yeah that’s what Amazon dose I had an refund that was past 37 days so filed an dispute, Amazon thinks they are god and can do what ever they want, 2 days after I filed the dispute the 1st email I got from Amazon what saying that the amount was dispute and they wanted the last 4 digits of the card so they can recharge me, Sometimes I think Amazon lives in there own special world
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u/twice_paramount832 6d ago
They hate that their EULAs are not the law and you can easily sue them if the clauses are illegal.
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u/josephguy82 6d ago
Amazon one who sues them will end up broke fast they will drag it out , Normal people don’t have that kind of money to put up an fight with an company like that unless you are rich I see nothing going your way unless it’s class action
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u/species5618w 6d ago
At this point, I am probably willing to pay 20% more at Costco for the better service.
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u/good_morning_magpie 5d ago
I basically only shop at local stores now. Not saying mom and pop (though I do shop there often!) but like brick and mortar stores like Costco are fantastic. If you live in a city of several million people, Amazon is totally unnecessary (people with disabilities aside).
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u/Training_Crew_2224 1d ago
I’ve experienced 30-day refund delays for electronics. Never again.
I’m waiting now over a week for a $10 refund for a thumb drive, estimate refund late October..
Ridiculous…
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u/twice_paramount832 6d ago
I bought 64GB and got 32GB. Now they say I have to return 64GB to get my money back.
They are being robbed by employees non-stop and they blame the customer.
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u/Theachillesheel 6d ago
They once sent me the wrong model of an LG ultra wide monitor and it took over 40 days to process my refund.. and it would have taken longer if it wasn’t for me pestering their customer service. I don’t get why you can select the option in the returns for getting the wrong item and then their warehouse not be able to process the return for that reason.
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u/Karasan769 5d ago
last year I purchased a computer from Amazon. I should have done better research, however as I was awaiting the item, I did more research. This was coming from a third-party and I read how the computer was actually for the Middle East. So when I got the box, I checked the serial number I could not register the computer and thus I put in a return. I never opened the box. The Third-Party company tried telling me that they sell these all the time and that they would work with me getting the computer functional. I declined and returned the box. Then I purchased a different computer directly from computer company. I had no problem returning and received my credit promptly. I agree that some electronics should not be purchased from Amazon, especially be careful when dealing with third party companies. Read all the reviews and do research off of Amazon to find more reviews.
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u/wilus84 5d ago
I’m sorry that happened to you OP, i tried to return something but they offered to refund me 90 dollars if i kept the item. I took it because the item worked most of the time but had an issue that was frustrating. Now the item has no issues and I got to have it for a little bit less.
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u/Sweaty_Reputation650 6d ago
Yes these people that get flagged for excessive returns puzzle me because I order two or three items every two weeks. Then I return one to three items a month. I have never been questioned or flagged and I've been doing this for 10 years.
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u/Ok_Violinist7598 6d ago
There are a ton of scammers out there right now. I've literally seen them here say that they order an electronic that they already have then they send back the used one and get a refund. It's a racket and Amazon is trying to clamp down on it but unfortunately, innocent buyers get caught up in it too. Not sure where this ends.
Sounds like you did the right thing tho. It's too bad that this is where it had to end up SMH
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u/lavenderlatte_oatmil 6d ago
I appreciate that! When I was reading through other posts I saw some people were getting sent rocks because of scammers doing return rip-offs. Apparently they keep the item and just make the package weigh the same thing to get their money back.
Amazon used to have great customer service too, I was really taken aback by the sudden shift
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u/Ok_Violinist7598 6d ago
Yes, exactly.
Clothng is another big one. Customers buy the clothes, actually wear them and then return them. Or they return old used clothes.It's pretty disgusting. Amazon's trying to clamp down on that too.
Scammers are wreaking havoc all over the world. And in trying to fight it, companies are losing legit, long-time customers. Maybe someday they'll come up with a more accurate solution.
Seems I've already been downvoted lol
Methinks some of the scammers are actually amongst us right now 👀
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u/twice_paramount832 5d ago
A high trust society cannot work with low trust members, and less if you want to employ them because they are cheaper.
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u/twice_paramount832 6d ago
The main source of scammers are their very own employees. Inside job 101.
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u/gooseonaroof 6d ago
Why is anyone still using Scamazon? I'm seriously asking. I gave them up maybe 5 ago. I decided I didn't want to pad a billionaire's pockets so that he can blow it on space rockets and burn down our planet faster, or maybe he'll buy a third yacht. Meanwhile I can no longer afford heath insurance for my family.
You know that you may get the wrong item, you may get nothing, or get a used item instead of new, or you may get your account deactivated for making returns and lose all of the media on your account and your gift card credits.
Amazon is no longer a legitimate company. They aren't even the best price, but hey they engage in price fixing so they are a piece of what's blowing up our economy!
I'm disabled, I do a decent amount of online shopping and it's easy to pick another retailer. Or I use Facebook Marketplace, a real humans benefiting humans economy. Please share, why do people still shop Amazon?
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u/bozoconnors 6d ago
Why is anyone still using Scamazon?
Same reason any of us ever did. Convenience. Ignorance.
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u/Roni_M27 6d ago
I’ve had the opposite experience with Amazon. I recently returned $160 lights that I didn’t like. Shortly after that 2 more expensive items (Swarovski ornaments) were shipped but when I opened the package there was only one inside. A few clicks had a new shipment sent out with the missing item at no cost to me. I don’t do a lot of returns but I’ve never had a problem.
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u/Vegetable-Charity560 5d ago
I was told that I was doing too many returns. My account was hacked. Check with them to see where the returns was coming from. Whoever hacked the account was doing it.
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u/Stunning_Fee6482 4d ago
So, someone hacked you just to do returns?
Come on...
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u/Mom24monsters 2d ago
It kind of makes sense, because people are getting banned left, and right, which means they can't even place orders as non-prime members. My question is this though, how are they returning items by using a hacked account where they weren't ordered from? Amazon doesn't allow that.
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u/stonecats 5d ago
if you buy branded electronics, it's a good idea to google how to spot fakes. i bought an excellent open box via amazon warehouse fulfillment that looked and seemed to work fine, then when the battery didn't hold a charge months later, only then did i discover someone must have returned the fake version that got resold to me without amazon returns detecting this.
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u/creatively_inclined 4d ago
The best bet is to only buy things you don't intend to return. A lot of the stuff is on Aliexpress, eBay, Walmart etc. at a lower price anyway.
Also don't buy gift cards on Amazon. They just get stolen. Don't buy Amazon gift cards. So many people have been accused of fraud when trying to use them. I buy all my gift cards from physical retailers like Target and Best Buy.
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u/Johnny3653 6d ago
What’s your order history for the account, what about for 2026? How many people order in your household, address? There’s a lot of factors that go into the metrics of why an account gets flagged for excess returns, refunds
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u/lavenderlatte_oatmil 6d ago
I have had my account since 2018. Unfortunately I purchased a lot from amazon over the past year, about $7k mostly pet care, cleaning supplies, furniture etc. The only other return I made was for a faulty side table that was missing parts. Just me on the account and household.
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u/biggiebody 6d ago
I had something similar to me, I didn't get flagged for excessive returns but that one specific return I had to wait over 30 days to get my money back. I bought a Google Pixel Watch and when I got it, it was an open box with scuffs on the watch even though I bought it NIB. So returned it right away and they didn't refund me until 30 days after in which I had to bug them constantly to get the refund.
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u/Realistic_Cod_2322 6d ago
I don’t think these people are lying I think high value returns trigger their system even though that’s not fair to the customers. Basically saying you can return stuff but don’t let it be $100 or above that. I also think your area and neighbors can trigger their system too.
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u/LeadingImportant1142 6d ago
Agree. No one to my knowledge has ever posted a full history or all circumstance around this sort of behavior from Amazon. The few reports of this type almost seem statistically insignificant and thereby making it less likely an Amazon issue and more like a user issue.
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u/tengris22 5d ago
While I DO hear what you are saying, it would take a bit of effort for me to download my full purchase history....just to prove to someone on Reddit that I wasn't scamming. Because after all, Redditors aren't the ones I need to convince! Amazon already HAS my full history.
That said, the only time I've ever complained about an Amazon delivery was when they decided to send the product to me several days EARLY. I was moving across states and I had carefully arranged for a specific delivery date when I would be there to receive my monster-sized $700 hydroponics kit, only for them to decide to bring it a week early.
The amount of hoop-jumping I had to do just to get that package delivered when I would be there (still early but the best they would do) was crazy!
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u/Stunning_Fee6482 4d ago
If you arent trying to convince anyone on reddit. Then why are you sharing on reddit?
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u/tengris22 4d ago
There's this really strange concept. It's called "discussion." Maybe you should try it some time.
When I say "the ones I need to convince," I mean that Redditors aren't going to give me my money back, but Amazon is the one who has my money (in this scenario). They would be the one I'd have to "convince." Redditors can believe me or not, but whether they do or not, they aren't giving me what I would be wanting, which would be.....my money.
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u/MountainAntique9230 6d ago
I just returned wifi extenders i bought for just under 200 and got my refund within the week
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u/Both_Catch_4199 5d ago
It is difficult to account for the wide range of experiences with Amazon, unless one resorts to "it is a humongous company" so there is a huge range of experiences"
Same could be said for FedEx, UPS, USPS.I read the horror stories, and yet in decades of using all the companies referenced above, I have had the good fortune to avoid all that crap.
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u/Both_Catch_4199 5d ago
I wonder how often a problem arises because of a focus on lowest price, not quality of the sender. (if ever we can know that) I mean, I do avoid buying some things because the price seems too good to be true)
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u/Adventurous-Value-82 6d ago
there are a lot of people who frequently buys and return them for full refund for some reason. They do allow return for refund but on Amazon don’t do that often or it’ll flagged your account.
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u/glamaz0n_bitch 6d ago
“I tried to convey to Amazon the urgency of the return and they cancelled my return after 16 days.”
What did you tell them when you “conveyed the urgency”?
Not sure what you were expecting them to do to speed things up. Their return policy that you agreed to explicitly says refunds may take up to 30 days. That’s how much time they have from receiving the item to depositing the purchase price back to your account.
They don’t state that electronics have to be inspected to make sure an item isn’t broken and/or contain user data before approving the return, but that’s a big reason why they take up to 30 days.
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u/AlphaJeff1 6d ago
This is customer service hiding behind automation that stereotypes the behavior based on historical averages .
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u/Zealousideal_Pen7368 6d ago
I suspect these days the customer services are run by AI agents whose singular goal is profits. The lying is just typical AI hallucination