The long anticipated (and heavily advertised) annual
Amazon Prime Day. A chance for us consumers to save big on thousands of items from Amazon.com. I had a few purchases I needed to make this year and decided I'd wait until July 12th, 2016 (Prime Day) to place the orders and see if any discounts applied. The most expensive item was a new Nexus 6P phone. Lucky me, on Prime Day this phone was marked down from its normal price of $509.99 to a discounted price of $403.75. So I went ahead and place my order. Later in the day I decided I'd better verify that the discount had been applied. When I looked at my recent orders on Amazon, it showed that they had charged me full price for this phone--no discount applied. My first thought was to cancel the order and try again, but when I attempted to do that I got an error message on Amazon's site and I could not cancel my order. So I tried to find a person I could contact which ultimately led to a live chat session:
You are now connected to Sidney Cecilia from Amazon.com
Me: I placed an order for the Nexus 6P but got charged the full price, not the Prime Day price.
Sidney Cecilia: Hello, my name is Sidney. I am sorry that you got fully charge.
Can you please confirm the order number please?
Me: Order #
XXX-XXXXXXX-XXXXXXX
I'm also getting an error when I try to cancel the order.
Sidney Cecilia: Okay Michael so I am afraid that I am not able to help you but I can transfer this information to the correct department and they will contact you as soon as they can to help you solve this problem.
Me: Ah, ok. Are they going to contact me today?
Sidney Cecilia: They can take 1 day to contact you.
Me: Then I'm concerned that it'll no longer be Prime Day and they won't give me the discounted price.
Sidney Cecilia: Bu if your item qualifies for the discount they must give you the discount.
Me: Yeah well maybe it's the wrong color or something. I don't know why the discount wasn't applied.
Sidney Cecilia: Can you tell me what item is it?
Me: Huawei Nexus 6P unlocked smartphone, 64GB Silver (US Warranty)
Shows up as Prime Day deal.
But I got charged over $500.
$509.99 to be exact.
Sidney Cecilia: Yes, well I just check it out and you are right. I don't see why it did not apply however marketing and promotions team are the only ones capable of giving you that refund back.
Me: OK pass this over to them then.
Sidney Cecilia: Okay Michale I just submitted the correct information and they will contact you as soon as they can.
Me: OK, thanks.
Sidney Cecilia: Is there anything else I can do for you today?
Me: That's it.
Sidney Cecilia: Okay Michael thank you for being a prime member and also for contacting Amazon. Please click on the "End Chat" to close this window. Have a great day!
As you can see, I was pawned off to their "marketing and promotions" team but wouldn't hear anything from them for another day. When I did finally get an e-mail response from them it said this:
Hello Michael,
I'm
sorry you weren't able to take advantage of a the Deal for Nexus 6p
before the promotional discount's timed checkout expired. Lightning Deal
promotional discounts are only valid during the displayed time period
and expire when the displayed time period ends.
We cannot honor a
Lightning Deal promotional discount after it expires or if the item
sells out before you complete your order. Quantities of some items may
be limited, and adding an item to your Shopping Cart does not reserve
that item for you.
You can learn more about Lightning Deals on our Help pages:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200417170
I hope you'll be able to take advantage of another Lightning Deal in the future.
We hope to see you again soon.
Wait a second, this was a "Prime Day" deal not a "Lightning Deal". My understanding of Prime Day is that discounts are valid for the entire day (someone correct me if I'm wrong about this) and not some short window of time. When I responded to the e-mail stating this, I got the following response:
Hello,
We
work hard to find the best prices out there and match them for all
customers every day. Our prices do change over time. With the exception
of TVs, Amazon.com doesn't offer post-purchase adjustments.
However,
you can let us know about a lower price by clicking the "tell us about a
lower price" link in the Product Details section of some product pages.
To read more about our pricing, go to our Help pages:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=468502
We
consistently offer competitive prices on everything we carry; however,
the prices on our website are subject to change. While the Amazon.com
website has accurate pricing information, we don't honor prices or
savings posted without our permission on other websites.
To read more about our pricing, please visit our Help pages:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=468502
To contact us, visit https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/contact-us and follow the prompts.
If you can't access this page, our customer service phone numbers are as follows:
- Calling from within the U.S. or Canada: 1-866-216-1072
- International: 1-206-266-2992
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We'd appreciate your feedback. Please use the links below to tell us about your experience today. |
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Now I was starting to get frustrated. Not only was this a Prime Day deal, but when I had checked the price again later that same day after placing my order it was still listed at the discounted price of $403.75, as verified in the screenshot I had taken below:
 |
| Prime Day Screenshot |
Notice the top left where it shows I had placed an order for the phone on Prime Day and also the top right where it states that this is a "Deal of the Day". Clearly, the discount price hadn't changed and they weren't out of stock, so why wasn't the discount price applied to my order? Thoroughly frustrated, it was time for another chat session:
You are now connected to Teresa from Amazon.com
Me: I ordered the Nexus 6P as a "Deal of the Day" and the discount was not applied to my invoice.
Teresa: Hello, my name is Teresa. I'm here to help you today.
can you verify the email address on the account
Me: xxx@gmail.com
Teresa: Thank you for being a Prime member.
one moment while I review the order
what was the price on prime day
Me: $403.75
Teresa: one moment let me transfer you to the pricing
Me: ok
Hello?
Teresa: I am here sorry slight issue
A Customer Service Associate will be with you in a moment.
You are now connected to Shailaja Abhilash from Amazon.com
Shailaja Abhilash: Hello, my name is Shailaja. I'll be happy to help you.
We would like to appreciate your valuable association as proud prime member
Me: Well I'd like to know it's appreciated.
Shailaja Abhilash: :)
Me: Are you aware of the issue?
Shailaja Abhilash: May i know if you are referring to this item, Huawei Nexus 6P unlocked smartphone, 64GB Silver (US Warranty) ?
Yes Iam , thank you :)
Me: Yes that's it.
Shailaja Abhilash: Could you help me with the link of the discount that you are referring to ?
Me: It was a Prime Day deal and showed up as a Deal of the Day for Prime members. I have a screenshot.
Shailaja Abhilash: Thank you for confirming
Me: Or just search Google and see all the sites that talk about said deal for this phone on Prime Day.
Shailaja Abhilash: And how much was the discount please ?
Me: It was marked down to $403.75.
Shailaja Abhilash: Am sorry I couldn't help you much , however
Me: ?
Shailaja Abhilash: Please allow me a couple of minutes in here while I check that for you
Am sorry , wrong window
Am sorry for that
Me: ok
Shailaja Abhilash: Thank you
Thank you for waiting and I appreciate your patience
I have now forwarded this issue to the promotions team as we do not have the option to match the price with the deal , the promotions team will check the details and get back to you with in 24 hrs to help wiotj the same
Me: I've already heard from the promotion team. They insist this was a "lightning deal" and claim that I don't qualify for the promotion. I guess I'm to understand that Amazon does not honor their Prime Day deals?
Shailaja Abhilash: We would certainly honour the deals if the orders meet all the criteria
However , am sorry we do not have the option to help you with the price match
Me: Are you not able to confirm that the price for this phone was $403.75 on Prime Day?
Shailaja Abhilash: I understand that the item might have been in the deal , however once the deal is completed we would not be able to match the original price with the deal price
Me: At this point it sounds like it'd be in my best interest to just return this phone and buy it elsewhere. I'm getting nowhere with Amazon Help. I feel I was given the bait & switch.
Not what I'd expect after being a Prime member for many years.
And buying tens of thousands of dollars worth of products.
I can't even get help.
Shailaja Abhilash: I understand how frustrating this can be , as much as i wish to help you am afraid i do not have an option as this is just a policy that we are trying to adhere to
Me: So, nobody wants to help. You can't because of policy and the other team just tells me I'm wrong. How can I escalate this?
Shailaja Abhilash: Sure, I will be glad to transfer this chat to the supervisor, however, am afraid they would inform the same , may I know if you still want me to transfer the chat
Me: Transfer me to a supervisor who can do something. What's the point of Amazon Help if you can't help??
Shailaja Abhilash: Please allow me a min in here while i transfer this chat
A Customer Service Associate will be with you in a moment.
You are now connected to Feroz from Amazon.com
Feroz: Hello, my name is Feroz. I'm a member of the leadership team here at Amazon.com. I'll be happy to help you today.
Please allow me 2 minutes while I view the above conversation.
Me: ok
Feroz: Thank you so much for staying connected, Michael. I appreciate your time and patience. I'm sorry you weren't able to take advantage of the deal and I will not be able to match the price with the deal price.
I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
Me: Why wasn't I able to take advantage of the deal?
Please explain how that's possible.
Feroz: If you qualified for the deal, you would have got the item for the deal price.
Me: What was the deal?
Feroz: As you said above, it might have been for the deal price of $403.75, however we will not be able to honor that price for this order because with the exception of TVs, Amazon.com doesn't offer post-purchase adjustments.
Me: Wow. So I qualified for the deal but somehow Amazon didn't apply it and now you claim you can't correct it. Isn't that false advertising?
Feroz: I am sorry for any misunderstanding in this case, Michael. You did not qualify for the deal and hence the deal was not applied. You might have placed the order when the deal expired.
Me: HOW DID I NOT QUALIFY FOR THE DEAL? I want specifics, not generalities!
It was a PRIME DAY deal, a "DEAL OF THE DAY" and I purchased it ON THAT DAY. Again, explain how I do not qualify?
Feroz: Please allow me few minutes here. Meanwhile I request you to help me with more details about the deal such as the Terms and Conditions of the deal and the screenshot showing that the deal was for $403.75
Me: Give me an e-mail address and I'll send the screen shot. I can't believe Amazon doesn't know what deals they were offering on Prime Day.
Or just do a Google search and you'll see it was advertised for $403.75 on Prime Day. The evidence is everywhere.
Or maybe you're just trying to find a way to back out and claim it's my shortcoming. You know what the deals was, you know what the terms & conditions were. I shouldn't have to provide that!
Still waiting on your e-mail address...
Feroz: Please post it on: https://postimage.org/
And help me with the Terms and Conditions page of the deal.
Me: You don't know what the terms & conditions were for Prime Day deals? Amazon just mysteriously lost a copy of that?
Feroz: The Today's Deals page offers three different deals:
- Deal of the Day: A single item or set of related items discounted for one day only.
- Our Best Deals: A selection of discounted items and ongoing promotions from across Amazon.com.
- Lightning Deals: A single item paired with a limited quantity of extra savings offers, available for the time period stated or until all the offers are used.
Keep the following in mind:
- Quantities are limited, and some items may sell out quickly.
- Most Today's Deals prices are valid only on the day they are displayed in Today's Deals; simply placing an item in your Shopping Cart doesn't reserve the price of that item. Please place the order as soon as possible after adding the item to your Shopping Cart to take advantage of the discounted price.
- Items in Today's Deals may be sold by Amazon.com or by registered third-party sellers. If the item is being offered by another seller, they will ship your item and the seller's return procedures will apply.
For a more personalized shopping experience, we recommend that you log into your Amazon.com account before visiting Today's Deals to ensure that you see all available offers.
You can find additional information about available deals on our Help pages:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/...(See full link)
It looks like you placed the order when the deal was expired. And I am sorry, I will not be able to match then price with the deal price.
Me: What day was the deal?
Feroz: Deal of the day would be on the day when you saw the deal.
You can access the Today's Deals page by visiting http://www.amazon.com/gp/goldbox or by clicking "Today's Deals" at the top of any Amazon.com page.
Me: No no, let's be more specific. What day was Prime Day?
Feroz: July 12, 2016
Me: Correct. What day did I buy this phone?
Feroz: On Tuesday, July 12, 2016, however that being said "Quantities are limited, and some items may sell out quickly."
Me: I got the phone, so obviously quantity was not that limited. Why would that affect the advertised price?
Feroz: The quantity of the item which was in deal might have been sold out.
I am very sorry, but I will not be able to honor that price.
In addition to our large selection, one of the benefits we try very hard to offer our customers is convenience. I'm very sorry for the inconvenience you experienced in this case.
Me: You're just making excuses now. It was a PRIME DAY DEAL and I purchased it on that day. No message about not enough quantity, no message about price changes. You keep changing your story.
And to think I own stock in this company. This is shady at best. A bait & switch tactic that happens to be ILLEGAL.
Shall I report this to the BBB along with applicable screen shots? Maybe the Attorney General's office? It's certainly going on social media.
Feroz: I am sorry, you feel that I am trying to make excuses. You haven't provided me the screenshot yet. Please provide me the screenshot by posting it on the link I provided above.
Me: Hang on.
Here's your screenshot
Feroz: Thank you. I see that you are a valuable Customer of Amazon for a longtime, in this case I will make a ONE TIME EXCEPTION and issue a refund for the difference amount of $106.24. Please keep in mind that this is a ONE TIME EXCEPTION only.
Please allow me 2 minutes while I help you with the refund of $106.24.
Me: You mean you're honoring your advertised Prime Day price that I qualified for?
Feroz: Thank you for waiting, Michael. I have made a One Time Exception and requested a refund for the difference amount of $106.24 to your Original Payment Method.
You'll see the refund on your credit card statement in the next 3-5 business days.
Me: I'd say thanks but why should I thank you for something I should never have gone through in the first place?
Feroz: My apologies again for this, Michael. It was a pleasure assisting you today! May I please know would there be anything else apart from this I could help you with today?
Me: Sure. How about ALWAYS honoring your advertised prices AND providing PROPER customer service instead of telling the customer they're wrong and stonewalling them.
(Maybe that's too much to expect from multi-billion dollar companies these days?)
Feroz: I'm sorry for the inconvenience you've experienced in this case. It was a pleasure assisting you today. If there is anything else I can help you with your orders, please let me know. I would be more than happy to help you. Otherwise, you can click the *End Chat* button. Thank you for contacting Amazon.com. We hope to see you again soon. Have a great day.
Send
Feroz from Amazon.com is online Secure Connection.
As you can see, after this final irritating chat session with one of Amazon's supervisor's, I finally got a refund reflecting their discounted Prime Day price. But there was no admission of error on Amazon's part, and no clear explanation as to why I got charged full price in the first place. Worse, I had to fight with them to get the price they had advertised. If it hadn't been for the screenshot I had wisely taken I probably wouldn't have succeeded. It's as if they knew nothing about Prime Day at all!
Is this not a classic bait & switch?
