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Amazon overwhelmed with shipping?
- Thread starter LIVEFRMNYC
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Has anyone here ever ordered food items? I've never simply because it's a bit strange for me to order food from Amazon. The only food items I've ever ordered online were direct from Bob's Red Mill or well known handmade candy companies, specifically one that bombards you with a bloody catalog every 3 weeks.
I've ordered spices and Red Mill items before, as well as coffee a couple of times. They arrive speedy like everything else, and nothing was damaged or anything like that. At the times I ordered them (things ordered at various times over a couple years), Amazon had the cheapest price at the time. Like all shopping, though, you still have to shop around because sometimes you can get better deals elsewhere. Amazon isn't the cheapest all the time.
Quite true. Office supplies used to be cheap through Amazon in terms of B2C, but then Staples began slashing their prices. If you're a member (free), you get free home shipping, even with a $5 pen or a store pickup boxed and ready to go. Staples is great for B2B. At times, we've gotten dozens of cases of Xerox paper for free just because. Red Mill is cheap through their site for certain items, but also cheap with other items in store. Whole Foods has a unique method of getting it off their shelves. If you purchase a "case" of the items, which is six, you get anywhere from $1-2 off your purchase, which puts it in line with their site. Useful if you're buying something like oatmeal, popcorn or coconut powder. Not so much if you're buying specialty flours you use once a year. I did buy the 25 lb bag of tapioca pearls, mostly because I love tapioca pudding. Plus, I'll grind the pearls up and cook them in fruit juice and consume warm if I have a sore throat. I've found that it soothes an irritated throat quite well.
I'm a little spoiled living in SoCal. We've got Costcos, Whole Foods, Henry's and other organic stores. But we also have many restaurant supply stores that don't require anything but a free membership. Amazon, to me, is useful for certain things that can't be found in stores easily. Or if you have to travel quite a bit to find a store that does carry it. I can imagine Amazon being more important for folks living in the midwest where there isn't an abundance of stores of this nature.
Which would be? Apart from contracting UPS, FedEx and USPS for last mile, they also rely on OnTrac and LaserShip.
I'd personally like it if Amazon focused on improving their Prime Video UI.
Amazon Logistics, their own privately run system, which shows up in your order tracking as AMZL_US or AMZN_US. Separate from OnTrac/Lasership, but the premise is similar. https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=201821690
Many threads in Amazon's forum of Prime members complaining about it. Packages show up late, get wrongly marked as delivered when they're not, etc.- all things Amazon will make right in live chat, but they shouldn't be so unreliable to begin with.
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Figures...
When a company tries to make things better by same day shipping, why do companies think everyone will use it responsibly ?
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It's not about money, but more about logistics. I had a quaint discussion with a manager at Amazon a few years back. They have several types of trucks. They're all the same, but they'll load items onto a truck depending on the shipping speed. Super Saver trucks must be full to the brim before they're let out. That said, SS shipments got to me in 2-3 days before we went Prime, because there's a lot of warehouses in California, Nevada and Arizona. I'd imagine with Prime customers picking the fasted speed or paying a few bucks more for overnight, they end up not having enough trucks for other package classes.
Amazon also keeps a log of all customer issues. Too many special notes on a customer's file would probably flag that account for manual review to see if there's anything funny going on. They can keep expanding their infrastructure but I fear it simply isn't enough to meet the demand.
Amazon also keeps a log of all customer issues. Too many special notes on a customer's file would probably flag that account for manual review to see if there's anything funny going on. They can keep expanding their infrastructure but I fear it simply isn't enough to meet the demand.
I had a few shipments show up late between 6 months and a year ago. But recently it's back to normal perfection. And the late ones got me an extra month of Prime each.
My Amazon Prime delivery experiences have been superb.
I order several times each month, consistent, fast and on time every time. I'm also in a same day delivery area, and these orders just amaze me. It's been flawless.
Thanks Amazon!
Yeah, I've also noticed that if something I need isn't available with Prime, it can take up to a week before it even ships, at which point I don't expect next day delivery.
Did those items show as being in stock and available to be shipped right away? Prime applies to the shipping itself (as in 2 business days once something has bene shipped), not really the product availability which can be different for different products.
Living in Hawai'i means that the best Prime can do is "free" however-long-it-takes" shipping, which is usually 8-10 days but can be faster. What Mainland Prime members get for free costs extra here, but it's still less expensive than almost any other online retailer. Example: last week I needed a new Pelican headlamp, which Amazon didn't have in stock but a 3rd party affiliate did. Price was OK but shipping? $50. Yep. It's not rare to see crap like that, which is why for all Amazon's faults, I'll always try to order from them.
Occasionally I'll put something in my cart and when I check out with "free," I'll get a message that Amazon doesn't know when it will be able to ship that item, and that they'll let me know. If I change to the next level up, magically the item is immediately available for shipment. This is Prime, not 3rd party shipping.
I've also noticed that packaging isn't what it used to be. I ordered a pair of 6 TB disks, retail packaging, and they came loose in a box. They appeared to be fine, so I kept them. Recently I had two boxes (delivered by USPS) that weren't even taped shut. There were large gaps at both ends. Everything was in there, but it wouldn't have taken much for something to have slipped out.
Then there are items that they refuse to ship, for no good reason. I'm not talking about big TVs and things like that. I ordered a Kohler shower drain (Amazon showed shipping weight 1 lb and dimensions something like 7" x 7" x 2") and they refused to ship it to Hawai'i. I had a long chat with two or three reps who could not tell me what was unshippable about a small, light package. I've ordered plenty of Kohler items from Amazon, so I don't think it was a territorial issue.
A couple of years ago I tried to order a pair of Audioengine A2 speakers -- no, could not ship because of "hazardous materials." I couldn't get anybody to tell me what the hazardous materials were. Crutchfield shipped them, no problem.
Occasionally I'll put something in my cart and when I check out with "free," I'll get a message that Amazon doesn't know when it will be able to ship that item, and that they'll let me know. If I change to the next level up, magically the item is immediately available for shipment. This is Prime, not 3rd party shipping.
I've also noticed that packaging isn't what it used to be. I ordered a pair of 6 TB disks, retail packaging, and they came loose in a box. They appeared to be fine, so I kept them. Recently I had two boxes (delivered by USPS) that weren't even taped shut. There were large gaps at both ends. Everything was in there, but it wouldn't have taken much for something to have slipped out.
Then there are items that they refuse to ship, for no good reason. I'm not talking about big TVs and things like that. I ordered a Kohler shower drain (Amazon showed shipping weight 1 lb and dimensions something like 7" x 7" x 2") and they refused to ship it to Hawai'i. I had a long chat with two or three reps who could not tell me what was unshippable about a small, light package. I've ordered plenty of Kohler items from Amazon, so I don't think it was a territorial issue.
A couple of years ago I tried to order a pair of Audioengine A2 speakers -- no, could not ship because of "hazardous materials." I couldn't get anybody to tell me what the hazardous materials were. Crutchfield shipped them, no problem.
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Lead, perhaps? I would take pictures and detailed information under such circumstances of bad packaging and send it to Amazon. They won't leave a note on your account if the issue/problem is genuine. On the issue of prime, I'd speak to a CSA because it being there for days.
I can't speak for Amazon, but as a California resident, I can't order some stuff online because there's a shipping embargo to the state or the state simply doesn't allow it. Seeds or live plants are a huge issue. I can get flower bulbs for cheap online compared to special ordering it from a nursery and whatnot.
Though for some tech purchases, I'm inclined to buy it from BH or Adorama as there's no sales tax fee, even though as a resident I'm required to report such a purchase in good faith. Yeah...
I can't speak for Amazon, but as a California resident, I can't order some stuff online because there's a shipping embargo to the state or the state simply doesn't allow it. Seeds or live plants are a huge issue. I can get flower bulbs for cheap online compared to special ordering it from a nursery and whatnot.
Though for some tech purchases, I'm inclined to buy it from BH or Adorama as there's no sales tax fee, even though as a resident I'm required to report such a purchase in good faith. Yeah...
I did photograph both packages and used order feedback. I didn't expect to hear anything, and I didn't.
I buy from B&H sometimes, but their shipping rates to HI are high. I had a long and futile series of emails with a B&H rep. They advertise "free shipping" but only to the continental US. I argued that because the free shipping certainly wasn't free to them, they should figure out the rate to get the item here, then subtract what they actually would have paid for the free shipping, and charge me the balance. No luck.
I've found that sometimes a vendor will adjust the shipping to something reasonable, if I ask. Mostly this is because they don't realize that 2-day UPS or FedEx are not the only options for HI. USPS does a good job bringing Priority Mail here.
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Oh good god no. The feedback isn't really monitored ever unless it's tied to a ticket the customer started through their contact page. Next time email it to Bezos' public email. His assistants will fire it off to the correct department, and you'll get a reply from their chief within 48 hours.
I have not experienced any issues with Amazon. I am a Prime member, which may be why, as they give faster shipping. I ordered a book that should be arriving this afternoon. I just want Amazon Fresh in my area now.
I didn't start a ticket, but the shipping feedback link I used was tied to a particular order. I'll try the Bezos thing next time, if there is a next time. I've really had only a handful of bad packaging issues.
I do not want to derail this thread, but HEB now delivers in my area (not sure about others), and it is great. They have people that go into the store and hand select your items. I plan to keep using this until Amazon Fresh is near me.