What Happened To The Amazon I Knew?

March 12, 2019, 10:30 AM

Anyone who has attempted to contact Amazon for problem resolution knows how nearly impossible that task is.

I'm currently on business travel and wanted to check Amazon for a product I needed. Detecting that I was not at my home location, Amazon wants to verify that it's really me. After entering my id (which is my email address) and password, Amazon says they will send a verification code to my email.

For the past three hours and over a dozen attempts, I have yet to receive a verification email. I'm getting plenty of email from other sources, so I know my email program is not at fault.

So, there's a link to contact customer service. I'm in the middle of teaching a class, so I can't call, but I can send an email back to them. Did so, and received notice that I would get a response in 12-24 hours. WTF???

And how are they going to respond? With an email? Talk about circular reasoning.

Plus, now it appears Amazon has locked me out or forced a reset on my account, because my credentials are no longer being accepted.

When a PT boat grows up to become a battleship, this is the kind of top-heavy, stullifying bureaucrat-ese that makes doing business with battleships a pain in the ass!

March 12, 2019, 10:36 AM

V-Tail

Send an email to Jeff@amazon.com

He won't read it, of course, but there are problem resolution people assigned to take care of emails sent to that address.

March 12, 2019, 11:26 AM

Georgeair

I've had excellent results with their online chat support, or their "call me" option if needed.

Can't really access the when you're locked out of account of course, but not sure that's a bug, maybe a feature?

March 12, 2019, 11:54 AM

SigSAC

Check your spam folder in your email - it may have ended up there.

I'm working to get rid of EarthLink email - they have consistent problems with spam. I checked my "Known Spam" folder the other day, and found their monthly BILLING notice in there!! They filtered their OWN email (one that even has the EarthLink logo!).

March 12, 2019, 12:04 PM

fpuhan

quote:
Originally posted by SigSAC:
Check your spam folder in your email - it may have ended up there.

Checked. I do that all the time, anyway.

March 12, 2019, 12:07 PM

fpuhan

quote:
Originally posted by V-Tail:
Send an email to Jeff@amazon.com

He won't read it, of course, but there are problem resolution people assigned to take care of emails sent to that address.

Seriously? This is actually funny. But it makes sense. I'm going to give it a try.

I'm not able to call, since I'm teaching a class, but I have a few minutes while the students are working exercises to dash off an email...

March 12, 2019, 12:40 PM

flesheatingvirus

I've also had very good luck with their online chat support with getting issues resolved. Of course, it was a BITCH to find out how to get to the chat option.

________________________________________

-- Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past me I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain. --

March 12, 2019, 01:01 PM

ensigmatic

I've got my "issues" with Amazon, but CS certainly isn't one of them.

This happened: Amazon's Definitely Going Downhill.

Then the batteries show up a week late, the packaging all torn up, with an apology from USPS.

I contact Amazon again, to volunteer to pay for the batteries--except the one that might have been damaged.

Turns out they'd already re-charged me. (Not certain what I think about that.) But, after hearing the condition in which the things arrived, not only re-refunded me, but added a $5 gift credit for my trouble.

So maybe Amazon shipping and CS has slid a bit, but it's still pretty good IMO.

(Nonetheless: We're still dropping Prime when the subscription is up.)

March 12, 2019, 01:45 PM

BurtonRW

Gotta say - I've always had exactly the opposite of a bad experience w/ Amazon CS. They even do things for me that I'm not asking for when there's a screw up (i.e., keep the extra product, here's some extra $$ credit for your trouble, let me upgrade the shipping for you, etc.).

I think they could probably do a little better job vetting their marketplace sellers, but they do respond to complaints about false or misleading product listings, so at least they're responsive to some of those unique issues as well.

Sorry you're having trouble.

-Rob

March 12, 2019, 02:23 PM

V-Tail

quote:
Originally posted by fpuhan:
quote:
Originally posted by V-Tail:
Send an email to Jeff@amazon.com

He won't read it, of course, but there are problem resolution people assigned to take care of emails sent to that address.
Seriously? This is actually funny. But it makes sense. I'm going to give it a try.

Yup. Seriously. It has worked well for me a couple of times. Response came from somebody in U.S. based support, who had the brains to understand the problem and the horsepower to get it solved.

March 12, 2019, 02:30 PM

quote:
Originally posted by fpuhan:
Anyone who has attempted to contact Amazon for problem resolution knows how nearly impossible that task is.

I'm currently on business travel and wanted to check Amazon for a product I needed. Detecting that I was not at my home location, Amazon wants to verify that it's really me. After entering my id (which is my email address) and password, Amazon says they will send a verification code to my email.

For the past three hours and over a dozen attempts, I have yet to receive a verification email. I'm getting plenty of email from other sources, so I know my email program is not at fault.

So, there's a link to contact customer service. I'm in the middle of teaching a class, so I can't call, but I can send an email back to them. Did so, and received notice that I would get a response in 12-24 hours. WTF???

And how are they going to respond? With an email? Talk about circular reasoning.

Plus, now it appears Amazon has locked me out or forced a reset on my account, because my credentials are no longer being accepted.

When a PT boat grows up to become a battleship, this is the kind of top-heavy, stullifying bureaucrat-ese that makes doing business with battleships a pain in the ass!

I get the frustration. This sort of verification process seems to be happening with many websites and it's horrible if they have an old email in their records. I'm not sure if it's the fault of the company or a necessary reaction to the fraud from thieves that hack into accounts at Amazon or other retailers.

Really makes it a hassle for honest people.

Hope it gets worked out quickly.

March 12, 2019, 05:28 PM

cas

quote:
Originally posted by Georgeair:
I've had excellent results with their online chat support

I did that last night and some Indian woman with a name I couldn't begin to pronounce was trying to help me. It was late, I was pissed, so I logged off before she started "chatting". When I got on this morning the messages were still there, with a resolution, asking me if this was acceptable.

(I actually need to go back and straighten it out. Saturday I ordered an auto part. There was only one option that could get here by Tuesday. Regular Prime was all Wednesday. That one option is a crappier brand/part ($10 whole bucks, but I needed it quick. Local stores want $84 with tax.

) So I buy the crappy one and pay another $8-9-$10 for one day shipping. Monday night I get an email saying it's shipped and will be here Wednesday! (Sat to wed= one day?)
I'm pissed about the wasted one day shipping, pissed about the Wed delivery. So I used the chat feature and they said they'd refund the shipping. And what happens? It shows up on Tuesday anyway. )

ETA: They hadn't refunded the one day shipping, so I told them it had arrived and there was no need. "Anirban" helped me this time. lol

March 13, 2019, 11:39 AM

92fstech

Monday I ordered 4 shocks for my suburban. A matched pair for the front, and a matched pair for the rear. All of them were Prime, and should have been here today. The mail truck pulled up just now and dropped off one shock. Not a pair. One.

Concerned that I'd somehow fouled up the order, I went and checked. It shows the other front shock arriving tomorrow by 8pm, and the two for the rear on Friday.

WTF Amazon? I could have had the job done today, but now it's going to have to wait until Saturday because I'm working the next two days. I specifically ordered from Amazon instead of RockAuto because I wanted the parts today, and Prime "guaranteed" they would be here. I should have just stuck with RockAuto...I'd probably have them all by now and would have saved a few bucks, too.