What I do NOT like about shopping at Amazon

First,.Amazon sent me the wrong items.

Mmmm.....I cannot find a phone number anymore on the Amazon website.  Am I wrong?  Where is a customer service phone number?  There used to be one there.   

So, I search and search for a way to actually communicate with someone and all I find is a short form to fill in.  On that form there is a place where I can make a comment.  I make my complaint and then ask them to contact me.  Before I am done completing the form....it disappears and I am left to assume (no.... only hope)that they will contact me.  It has been an hour and nothing in my e-mail.  And yes, I checked the spam and trash.

Even if there is a phone number buried somewhere on their website it is not obvious.  In fact, if it exists anymore, it is in a location where it is not meant to be found.

So there is a posting here about why the person likes Amazon.  Wait till you have to contact them when you are not pleased with their service. 

On the other hand:

LL BEAN  If I want to reach LL Bean, on most calls, an actual human being will answer the phone within seconds. If not, I am told that there will be silence while I wait.  And the wait is ALWAYS very brief.  Yes, an actual human being answers the phone!    Think about it and try it. 

B and H PHOTO   I can always, always talk to a person and that person is always polite.  Many years ago you got the "bums rush" when you called any New York camera house.  I know.  Not now.  I could not rate B and H any higher than I do.  You deserve it B and H.  Thank you.

Robert King

If you 'Google" "Amazon Customer Service Phone Number", this comes up:

1(888)280-3321

https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=c ... e%20number

Joe

Took about 30 seconds to find Amazons help number: 1-888-280-4331. Keep in mind most of what is purchased from Amazon are not Amazon products. Amazon is simply the shipping agent as opposed to a the brick and mortar places you compared them to. Amazon should absolutely be able to be contacted quickly if there are shipping/delivery issues. I have never done that so I don't know if that is true or not. Hope the provided number helps.

There is no number on my order screen.   It does not exist.  The very nice ladies told me that the phone number is not available on my order anywhere.  Standard procedure is to e-mail them and they will call back.  But I suspect you already knew that.  But, using one of the numbers you provided, I did talk to them and resolved the problem. 


The best part
Nicole was the lady who assisted me.  She is very nice.  She looked at my website and then invited me to San Jose. 

No, not to her home.  The point is that the people in Central America (and the Islands too) are very nice.    



Thanks
Robert King

http://itsaboutnature.net/

I have always had great service from Amazon, Even when things were out of return date, I have also had some **** customer service from B+H, They are certainly not getting much of my business any more

Dave

I always use their live chat system and have ALWAYS left it COMPLETELY
satisfied. No waiting for an email to be sent, problem solved
right away....

Buckmaster wrote:I always use their live chat system and have ALWAYS left it COMPLETELY
satisfied. No waiting for an email to be sent, problem solved
right away....

Live Chat. This is what I use too and it works great 99.99 % of the time.  People who shop at Amazon do not realize this is the very best way to deal with just about everything purchase related at Amazon.com. They even send you a transcript of the chat via email if that is what you want.  This way you have a record of what was discussed and what was promised. What more can any customer want?

Only once in a blue moon do I need to call by phone. This is my last resort option and I have yet to be disappointed. Amazon customer service should be a standard that other online retailers can emulate. 

Dave Courtenay wrote:I have always had great service from Amazon, Even when things were out of return date, I have also had some **** customer service from B+H, They are certainly not getting much of my business any more

Dave

I used to be a big B&H customer.  Can't recall when was the last time I shopped there.  I think it coincided with the time I started shopping at Amazon a few years ago:   

mmm.....live chat?  I will have to try that next time I use Amazon.

This Memorial Day I was stepping out the back door for something and was surprised to see a young lady standing there dressed in United States Post Office uniform...."Robert King?"....she asked.

I said yes and she handed me a very lightweight package, but one that was probably 20" x 15"x 3".  

I said "You guys get holidays off don't you?"

She:  "Not with Amazon we don't !"  She was sweating and had her light blue USPS shirt outside her working shorts...probably to more easily shed body heat. 

She:  "We work 7 days a week now !"

Me:  "But you must make good money?" 

She:  "Straight time!"

then she said:  "Nobody likes working 7 days a week."

Me:  Is it mandatory?  She nodded in the affirmative.

I wondered if she would have to be the one who would come to my door on Sundays and holidays with something I ordered from Amazon.  She told me that there were lot's of others who have to work toady, so...."No, it could be anyone." 

She said that they had either 1100 or 11,000 packages to get out today.  She literally ran back to the USPS truck.

My point is so obvious that I am not going to spell it out for the readers here.

1.  This young lady has a family and would like time off to enjoy her life.  This work is mandatory.  Only in America I think!!!!


2.  I once had a girlfriend who I miss a lot now.  Diana was English through and through.  She once said:  "Bobby, over in England, they put a priority on time off rather than work."  I think she said that they get 5 weeks off to start with and so on.  I think she said that this was the case across Europe.

In regard to this, 'll take the European attitude.

They can take their mandatory attitude and do...well....you know the rest.  


3.  Personally, from now on, I am going to find a way to lessen the pressure on these slaves.  I will be talking to Amazon management about it too.  I will be complaining to them. 

There will be no weekend or Holiday deliveries for me anymore.   

And this is all undoubtedly authorized by Amazon CEO/founder Jeff Bezos....WHO IS WORTH $29.7 BILLION 



4.  Oh yuh...the package was nothing more than a 17" (L) x 3/8"(Diam) rod with quarter 20 ends.  So here is this tiny item surrounded by lots of bubble wrap and a relatively huge cardboard box.  Don't forget the gasoline for the truck. 


This small piece was part 3 or 4 pieces I ordered at the same time.  The others will not be here until Tuesday.  They all work as an integral unit in a particular photography project I have.  What a waste of energy and resources!!!!  Just so I can be satisfied to have this package just as soon as I can get my hands on it...

NO MORE!   You say I am whining about nothing.  No I am not.  Multiply by 1100 or 11,000!  What we need to realize is ultimately, this all takes resources. And all resources began as natural resources. 





Robert King

http://robertkingimages.smugmug.com/

I don't believe an individual is required to work 7 days a week. It is only that the USPS is active 7 days a week. An individual should only work 40 hours (or so) regular time each week though it might be any day rather than just weekdays. If they work part time hours each day, it is possible that they could actually work 7 days each week since they wouldn't be exceeding the 40 hour limitation due to limited hours each day.  Exceptions to this tend to be management jobs where there are no laws about work time and overtime hours. A deliver person shouldn't be management.

Holidays are generally received as paid days off and companies that need people working on those days simply allow them to take other days off with pay if they are assigned to work the holiday. So the total paid time off is usually the number of official US holidays that that organization honors and additional sick or personal days. The USPS is closed on more holidays than most though they obviously deliver on those now. That means that it is very likely that any USPS delivery person working on a holiday will get an additional day of pay that they will have the option of taking another day off or take the extra money since they never took a day off with pay.

By having that contract with Amazon, the USPS might not actually go out of business or cost taxpayers to cover their losses. The USPS has been losing money for years since the 1st class mail monopoly isn't making enough money to cover the costs anymore. After all, when was the last time you sent a card by mail to a person that than sending it by email or Facebook or some other social media!

Yes, you have made a few good points.  She probably is not full time yet.  Yes, I do believe the USPS needs this big contract.  No, I do not use the mail at all.  So they are evolving into a package delivery entity.  That is ok.  

My point regarding the resources...the waste...is valid.  We all need to carefully consider what is involved in satisfying these lusts we have to receive a product "instantly". My order was broken into multiple orders and for what reasons I am not clear.  I'll talk to Amazon for clarification.

While you are here Tony:  I have a question in the Equipment Digital forum asking for advice on what memory card to use in a Samsung S5.  Do you know?  I could use some advice from someone who knows on this.  I guess E.J. might be travelling.

Thanks ahead.

No need to get Jeff Bezos on the phone to avoid Sunday delivery. When you checkout, just select Free No Rush Shipping which will get you regular (slow) USPS delivery in 4-5 days.

When an order contains multiple items, there's usually a choice offered with a radio button option to keep things together or ship each item as soon as it's ready. I'm thinking you prefer fewest possible boxes.

Choose a shipping preference:
  Group into the fewest possible boxes
  Ship each item as soon as possible

 I once had a girlfriend who I miss a lot now.  Diana was English through and through.  She once said:  "Bobby, over in England, they put a priority on time off rather than work."  I think she said that they get 5 weeks off to start with and so on.  I think she said that this was the case across Europe.

Things have changed!!  Its all zero-hour contracts now, on call 24/7 on minimum wage.  If you refuse the call, you don't get any more work.

Never mind the slaves at USPS, google working conditions at Amazon for the poor sods who pick your order.

Stopped and politely talked to the full-time, permanent USPS carrier who came by this last regular workday.

The postal worker I spoke to on Memorial Day did not tell me the whole story.

According to the permanent employee, yes, she was not a permanent employee and if she did not want to do the job there were many lined up to take it.  He said that it is a very desirable job by current standards.  And yes, she does get overtime.  What was I thinking, here in Maine overtime past 40 is state law. 

He also said what you said.....the Amazon account was a blessing for USPS. 

Interesting article on line this morning:

http://globalnews.ca/news/2031026/sorry ... -hbc-says/

Like the last line in the article says:  "It's just too expensive to ship a football to somebody's house".