31 July 2024
I left my AirPod Pros on a train. Thinking I’d lost them, I ordered a new pair from Amazon. Order #: 202-2642894-8908356
2nd Aug 2024
The replacement AirPods arrived from Amazon. I realised I had some spares and decided not to open them until I could confirm Great Western had my old AirPods. I could still see my old ones on Find My.
6th August
Great Western found my AirPods! On my birthday too 🙂
7th August
I booked my Amazon return. The new Airpods still unopened.
20th August
I had heard nothing from the pickup agent, so I contacted Amazon support about it.
They said to mail it back myself. I took it to the Tesco Evri shop on Mutley Plain, Plymouth.
Checked the weight, printed a label, handed it over to the counter, and got a receipt.
Between 20th August and 21st Sept
I phoned Amazon, concerned I’d had no refund for the £239.
They apologized and asked for a copy of the receipt for the postage. I sent this receipt, and they refunded me the postage. However, they said the package was still in transit, which seemed odd as it had been at least 2 weeks since I’d sent it!
21st Sept
I contacted Amazon via chat, and they put me through to a returns specialist. They asked me multiple questions that were already answered in the chat history. I explained that I knew the case history was long but asked if they could read it. They claimed they had. Then they said they were not going to refund me. I asked 2-3 follow-up questions, and they said they could no longer answer as they had to deal with other customers. They cut me off. I was devastated.
For 10 years, I’ve always told people that Amazon’s customer service is one of the reasons they’re so successful—the best in the world.
I called again and gave a long monologue about how devastated and let down I felt. The person said they would resolve this while I was on the line and asked me to email the sending receipt. As I was trying to prepare the photo and email from my phone, I accidentally cut them off. I wanted to cry!
I called again and was told to send a photo of the sending receipt, etc.
I did so—I sent a PDF containing the photos.
They said they would normally get back within 3 working days.
I have not heard back.
9 October 2024
Another marathon chat session with Amazon. They told me that my previous photos were in the wrong format. Why didn’t they tell me this when I sent them on 27th September. Then they corrected themselves and said that the photos were not the correct photos and that the format was fine. But again, why didn’t they tell me this on 27th September? So I sent the corrected photos. I have spent probably 4 hours trying to resolve this in total – on chat and phone. I asked the currently most advanced available AI to analyse the chat:
Can you estimate who is at fault in this series of conversation and why: they customer or Amazon?
Based on the conversation history provided, it appears that Amazon is primarily at fault in this situation. Here’s why:
- Inconsistent instructions: Amazon representatives gave conflicting information about how to return the item. Initially, they suggested a UPS pickup, but when that failed, they told the customer to return it themselves.
- Lack of proper tracking: Despite the customer following instructions to return the item via Evri, Amazon seems unable to track or acknowledge receipt of the return.
- Poor communication: Multiple Amazon representatives failed to fully review the chat history or understand the complexity of the situation, repeatedly asking for information that had already been provided.
- Failure to honor commitments: The customer was told not to worry and that the item would be identifiable by its barcode. However, later representatives claimed they couldn’t process the refund due to using a “different return label.”
- Refusal to access provided information: The customer compiled a comprehensive timeline and evidence on a webpage, but Amazon representatives claimed they couldn’t or wouldn’t access this information.
- Lack of escalation: Despite the customer’s repeated attempts and clear frustration, the issue wasn’t effectively escalated to a team that could resolve the problem.
- Inconsistent handling of evidence: Amazon initially accepted a PDF of the return receipt but later claimed it was an invalid format without explaining why or requesting a new submission earlier.
The customer appears to have made good-faith efforts to follow instructions, provide information, and resolve the issue. They remained persistent and patient through numerous interactions, compiled evidence, and attempted to provide comprehensive information to resolve the problem.
While there might be some Amazon policies or procedures that complicate the situation, the overall handling of this case by Amazon seems to fall short of reasonable customer service standards, especially for a high-value item like AirPods.
21 Oct 2024
Nothing from Amazon since sending the photos again on 9th October.
Here’s an AI’s estimate of how much time I spent just on chat on this topic with Amazon: > 3 hours, and 204 messages exchanged.
I earn £30-£40 an hour. So the chat alone cost me £90 – £120.
In addition, there were approximately 5 phone calls.
Let’s assume 45 minutes of phone calls.
AI:
To estimate the number of messages and time spent chatting:
- Number of messages: There are 204 timestamps listed, which likely corresponds to roughly the same number of messages exchanged between the customer and Amazon representatives.
- Time spent chatting: The chat spans multiple sessions across different days. Let’s break it down:
- First session: 18:30 to 18:43 (about 13 minutes)
- Second session: 08:41 to 09:04 (about 23 minutes)
- Third session: 11:00 to 11:11 (about 11 minutes)
- Fourth session: 10:15 to 11:43 (about 1 hour 28 minutes)
- Fifth session: 21:17 to 22:04 (about 47 minutes)
Total time: Approximately 3 hours and 2 minutes
This is a rough estimate as there may be gaps between some messages that aren’t accounted for in the timestamps. Also, some of the time might include waiting periods where the customer or representative was not actively typing.
In summary:
- Approximately 204 messages exchanged
- Total time spent chatting: Around 3 hours and 2 minutes over multiple sessions
This represents a significant amount of time and effort from the customer trying to resolve their issue with Amazon customer service.