Amazon, you keep disappointing

[mommylamb]

:angry-smiley-005:

So, I bit the bullet and got Amazon Prime a couple weeks ago, and I've had several issues since then. A book I ordered never showed up. Ok, fine, called Amazon and they sent me out another one. No big deal.

But now, I ordered a costume for DS1 that was on Prime. Yes, they didn't charge me shipping, but when I looked at the email that was sent saying the order was received today (several days after I ordered it, because I was wondering where it is), it said the expected arrival date is November 5-19. Um... not ok for a Halloween costume. I called them and they said that's because it's a 3rd party vendor. Than why is it Prime? Isn't everything that's Prime 2 day shipping?

Also, I ordered some diapers with S&S to get the 15% off (and because I actually do need them regularly), and the first set supposedly won't be delivered until November 14. I made the order on October 6. When I've done S&S in the past, they send the first shipment out immediately and then you just get them every month (or whatever you set it up for) thereafter. The customer service person tried to tell me that if you do S&S you never get your item until the next delivery date (so if I set it up for every 6 months, the first shipment would come 6 months from now).

Needless to say, I need to make a trip to Party City tonight because DS1 is jonesing for his costume and threw a fit last night because I had told him it would probably come yesterday and it didn't. And, I need to go to Costco this weekend because I need diapers.

Amazon, you suck! I wish I weren't so addicted to Prime. I might cancel it after the holidays.

[mikala]

The customer service person tried to tell me that if you do S&S you never get your item until the next delivery date (so if I set it up for every 6 months, the first shipment would come 6 months from now).
.

:6: That's just nutty.

I ran into something similar with diapers the other day. DS2 is ready for a new size so I put in a new order and it isn't set to arrive until my scheduled "day" next month. Why in the world would I want to wait a full month for diapers? I can get them at the same non S&S price at a regular store now.

[Karenn]

Yeah, I've had the same issues with 3rd party vendors & prime. I won't use them anymore if I want it quick. I'll only order it if it ships from Amazon. Pretty annoying.

[echoesofspring]

I had the same issue with diapers S&S just this week! My only thought was they got savvy to folks who signed up for S&S, got their initial delivery and then canceled the subscription...um, I might have done that once or twice before ;)

[vonfirmath]

I had the same issue with diapers S&S just this week! My only thought was they got savvy to folks who signed up for S&S, got their initial delivery and then canceled the subscription...um, I might have done that once or twice before ;)

Yes. They have changed how S&S works.

[khalloc]

I *think* the 2-day shipping just applies to them shipping it to you and it will be there in 2 days. It doesnt necessarily mean that they are shipping it out so that it gets to you in 2 days (from the order date). Amazon ships quick. Not all 3rd party vendors do. That sucks!

[AnnieW625]

......Amazon, you suck! I wish I weren't so addicted to Prime. I might cancel it after the holidays.

be sure to post here if you do. I paid the $79 in July and I feel like I have gotten my money's worth of it and will still use it for the holidays, but seriously if they don't get their act in gear I'll probably cancel mine as well. Do you get a refund on the remaining months? If that is the case I might do it right now, and just suck up the $15 cost it might cost me to mail stuff to my brother and his GF in Oregon, or just send him a Costco gift card again like I did last year.

[arivecchi]

That's really odd. I pretty much always get my Prime stuff the day after or within 2 days. I think Prime only applies to items sold by amazon.com or fulfilled by amazon correct? I've never seen Prime with a third party vendor. I do think that all the S&S changes are due to people gaming the system.

I could not live without prime but I get why you are irritated. Maybe write them an email complaining. They might give you a credit.

[mommylamb]

I think of Prime as only applying to items sold by amazon too. But the costume I purchased said it was Prime. I always check off the little box that allows you to only look at Prime eligible items. They didn't charge me for shipping, even though it was a 3rd party, probably because according to Amazon, it was actually Prime. Confusing.

[hopeful_mama]

Fulfilled By Amazon items are items that are sold by 3rd party vendors, but Amazon holds them in their own warehouses and handles shipping. They are therefore available for Prime or Free Super Saver Shipping.

One thought...if you check the little box that allows you to only look at Prime eligible items, then click on an item, if it comes up as 3rd party seller the first one you see is not necessarily Prime, it just means that one of the 3rd party sellers (or Amazon itself) ships via Prime. So it's possible you ended up with a 3rd party seller who offered free shipping (thus the no shipping charge for you) but not actually Fulfilled By Amazon, so not Prime 2-day shipping.

[elbenn]

I *think* the 2-day shipping just applies to them shipping it to you and it will be there in 2 days. It doesnt necessarily mean that they are shipping it out so that it gets to you in 2 days (from the order date). Amazon ships quick. Not all 3rd party vendors do. That sucks!

I think this might be right. With Amazon, sometimes they say it is not in stock and will take a few days to process--presumably they have to get them from their vendor or something. However, if it's noted as being in stock, then it should be shipped out quickly--that's the point of Prime!

[mom2khj]

Everything Prime will come 2-day shipping, but that doesn't guarantee that the item is available to ship in the first place. I've found the estimated arrival date to be pretty spot on, so if an item isn't available to ship right away the arrival date takes that into account.

The S&S changes aggravate me so much that I've canceled all my S&S orders except DD1's probiotic because I haven't found it anywhere else anyhow. Wipes/Pull-Ups ended up being cheaper through Sams Club.

I have also seen where an item is Prime, but when I click on it it loads the item from a third party vendor that has the item for a cheaper price, but without Prime. Kind of annoying.

[SnuggleBuggles]

I always forget to look at the "this item ships in X days" bit. I almost ordered lip gloss recently to round out an order for FSS (no Prime membership) and it wasn't going to ship for 7 weeks, and none of the other stuff would ship till then either. Unpleasant surprise but we caught it in time. Was that what migt have happened with the costume?

[hellokitty]

It does suck. I put on a s&s for pull ups and they won't be delivered until Nov. my amazon mon trial ends soon, so I guess that means I won't be getting it??? I guess that in the back of my mind that I knew that sooner or later my love for amazon would die off. I had a really bad cs issue last yr too and since then, I have found myself ordering much less from amazon.

[KrisM]

Fulfilled By Amazon items are items that are sold by 3rd party vendors, but Amazon holds them in their own warehouses and handles shipping. They are therefore available for Prime or Free Super Saver Shipping.

One thought...if you check the little box that allows you to only look at Prime eligible items, then click on an item, if it comes up as 3rd party seller the first one you see is not necessarily Prime, it just means that one of the 3rd party sellers (or Amazon itself) ships via Prime. So it's possible you ended up with a 3rd party seller who offered free shipping (thus the no shipping charge for you) but not actually Fulfilled By Amazon, so not Prime 2-day shipping.

That's my thought, too. The item was available on Prime, but the first vendor wasn't Prime, yet had free shipping.

[mommylamb]

I have also seen where an item is Prime, but when I click on it it loads the item from a third party vendor that has the item for a cheaper price, but without Prime. Kind of annoying.

I think this is what must have happened to me, and I just didn't notice it when they made the change.

Well, we went out to Party Depot yesterday and got a costume at the B&M store. I so rarely shop at B&M stores these days. Of course, this way, DS1 suckered me into buying other stuff. But, that's ok. It's good to be a sucker for your kids sometimes :p.

[wellyes]

I gave up on subscribe and save. Costco it is. Luckily (or not!) I spend enough there to get back the cost of my membership via the "Executive " program.

[theriviera]

That's really odd. I pretty much always get my Prime stuff the day after or within 2 days. I think Prime only applies to items sold by amazon.com or fulfilled by amazon correct? I've never seen Prime with a third party vendor. I do think that all the S&S changes are due to people gaming the system.

I could not live without prime but I get why you are irritated. Maybe write them an email complaining. They might give you a credit.

Our business sells as a 3rd party through Amazon.com. We are part of prime but that is because Amazon fulfills the order. We ship the product to Amazon in large quantities and they pick, pack, and ship.

[kellyd]

At the top of the subscribe and save page that lists your s&s items there's a place to change the date. you can choose any day you want as long as it's 7 days from the day you change it. It will change the date on ALL S&S items though.

[citymama]

That's insane. I've had lots of problems with amazon in the last couple of months as well, including a S&S order placed around Sept 1 that I was charged for that never got delivered. I called to follow up on it 2 weeks later and they said it couldn't be fulfilled till Oct 15, a month later. Then when I went to start a new S&S sub to bypass the date, the price jumped several dollars on me, and amazon wouldn't honor the price on the shipment they lost! Grr. Our free Prime expired this past weekend without my realizing it, and I don't plan to pay for it. Now that we're paying tax on amazon in CA, I'm much more inclined to shop locally unless amazon prices are that much better.

I think the worst part is that they were doing so well in the past couple of years, in terms of customer service and reliability/speed of shipping. The decline is all the more painful for those of us who got used to the more efficient amazon, and who ended up spending a small fortune there over the last two years. Shape up, amazon!