PLEASE Advise me (I'm in product-return hell)

[GanChan]

I made the mistake of ordering a 42" TV from electronics101deals.com, a third party seller on Amazon. The product arrived DOA, and the box had apparently been opened before shipping (product was supposed to be new). I want to return this thing and get a refund. Amazon prods the seller into emailing me a FedEx return label.

I try to schedule the return using this label, only to be told (both by the online system and by a FedEx phone rep) that the tracking number doesn't correspond to anything they have on record.

I call seller, who acts confused. "It's the same label we send out to everybody. I can send it again, but it'll be the exact same label." I ask him to send it again anyway. So far, he hasn't.

What do I do now? Call Amazon and get them to do...I dunno...whatever the A to Z protection plan empowers them to do? I mean, if the seller insists that they're sending me a valid return label, and FedEx insists that they're not, what am I supposed to do?

I guess I could go to the nearest FedEx facility and hang around while they call the seller directly on the phone....

 

[MICHAELSD]

Contact your credit card company and report the issue.

 

[jeremysteele]

Contact your credit card company and report the issue.

Exactly this. You've followed Amazon policy it sounds like. Maybe hit them up one more time - tell them the seller is giving you an invalid label - and if they (Amazon) don't want to force the refund through (which they can), then the next step is a chargeback, assuming you paid through a credit card.

Best thing you can do is gather evidence (emails, screenshots of fedex saying its an invalid number, etc) and submit it all to your CC when they ask.

 

[ucfgrad93]

Contact your credit card company and report the issue.

Agreed, contest this immediately. Good luck.

 

[GanChan]

Thanks. On further investigation, it looks like the best sequence of events is to file an Amazon A to Z claim against the seller. This should result in Amazon forcing a refund and and covering any return shipping charges (I'd be returning the item to them, not the seller), without my having to deal with the seller ever again. Which sounds good. If for any reason the claim gets denied, I can then (a) appeal, or (b) request a credit card chargeback. If I request the chargeback before filing the claim, the claim will probably get denied automatically.

 

[Carlanga]

If it is the same label then of course it wouldn't work more than once in the tracking number…
"It's the same label we send out to everybody. I can send it again, but it'll be the exact same label."


Just do the A-Z and get it fixed by amz.

 

[D.T.]

One thing I always try to do is buy where Amazon is both the seller and shipper, it simplifies returns quite a bit vs. having to deal with a 3rd party.

Good luck, sounds like you’re pursuing all the right mechanisms to get this resolved.

 

[Southern Dad]

One thing I always try to do is buy where Amazon is both the seller and shipper, it simplifies returns quite a bit vs. having to deal with a 3rd party.

Good luck, sounds like you’re pursuing all the right mechanisms to get this resolved.

I learned this the hard way. My DD11 bought something on the internet only to have the shipper mail a piece of a brick instead. The fact that your box actually contained a television may mean that it was in fact a problem that happened after it left despite the opened box.

 

[gochi]

always buy with CREDIT!

that way you're protected