Amazon offers new perk for Prime

[piper28]

Originally Posted by Hitch

I think it's probably complaints, rather than cost. They switched up to using "Fedex Home," which is Fedex subcontracting out to the Post Office.

That's not FedEx Home, it's called something else, something like Smartpost or something like that. FedEx Home uses FedEx delivery vehicles (marked home, I think they're actually contractors, pretty common with fedex), to deliver to homes, not to the post office or mailboxes. It's also tuesday through saturday delivery, no delivery on modays.

[AnemicOak]

Right, FedEx Home at least around here used to be known as RPS. The one where they use the PO is SmartPost. The UPS version of SmartPost is called SurePost.

http://www.rushorder.com/a-shippers-...-ups-surepost/

[Bookworm_Girl]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

We have one of those community mailbox setups. But we also have a way to get packages if they are not too larger left in the mailbox. But the thing is, if I was to get a USPS slip saying I had to go to the post office (even though I could walk there), I would not be happy as I paid for shipping to my door and not to the post office.

I'm pretty sure for larger packages that the postman has just come to my door. I can't recall ever going to the post office for pickup except maybe once when no one was home. I'd be upset too! If Amazon did have an option to select UPS only, then how could you prevent them from transferring to USPS? That's what has been happening to me to delay my packages. They originate with UPS and then end up in the mailbox.

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by Catlady

It's not Amazon's fault if the package arrives at my local post office and the driver doesn't bother to deliver it or to even leave me a notice. It's the incompetent worker who's at fault, and the supervisor who defends him.

When Amazon chooses to use a less than reliable delivery method to save money after promising 2nd day free, then yes, it's their fault. The problems with the USPS are well known and have been going on for quite a while.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by pwalker8

When Amazon chooses to use a less than reliable delivery method to save money after promising 2nd day free, then yes, it's their fault. The problems with the USPS are well known and have been going on for quite a while.

Exactly, it's up to Amazon to ship in such a way that they keep their promised delivery time.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by pwalker8

When Amazon chooses to use a less than reliable delivery method to save money after promising 2nd day free, then yes, it's their fault. The problems with the USPS are well known and have been going on for quite a while.

I appreciate that argument and I agree in general, but practically, Prime is reliably delived to the vast majority of people. If an individual knows that they have unreliable delivery in their area, that person should not subscribe to Prime for the shipping benefit. To do so is no different that individual constantly choosing the two-day shipping upcharge from any online store and complaining to the store. If the store guaranteed it, they'll compensate you, but why keep doing it?

[jscarbo]

I've been a Prime member from the beginning in 2005 and it's been a real benefit for me in shipping. I don't bother with the lending library or Prime videos. However, over the past year, I've had a lot of problems with some of the shippers they use, particularly Lasership. They don't allow you to select shippers, only shipping speed, and Lasership has been so unreliable and has been used so frequently for my shipping that I'm considering discontinuing the service. There are thousands of complaints about Lasership in Amazon's Shipper Feedback Forum, but they've taken no action. For a "customer centic" business, Amazon has been surprisingly unresponsive to the problem.

Surprisingly, despite the cost increase, Amazon appears to still be adding new customers to Prime: http://www.fool.com/investing/genera...rice-bump.aspx .

Quoting the article, "Amazon won't say, but research from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners estimates the number at 27 million. The research company also found that the vast majority of Prime members -- more than 90% -- planned to renew their membership.

"If that 27 million is correct -- along with the RBC estimate of Prime users spending an added $218 a year compared to non-subscribers -- then Prime users bring Amazon an extra $5.8 billion in sales annually. That's a huge number even by Amazon's lofty standards."

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by ApK

I appreciate that argument and I agree in general, but practically, Prime is reliably delived to the vast majority of people. If an individual knows that they have unreliable delivery in their area, that person should not subscribe to Prime for the shipping benefit. To do so is no different that individual constantly choosing the two-day shipping upcharge from any online store and complaining to the store. If the store guaranteed it, they'll compensate you, but why keep doing it?

If Amazon cannot get the shipment to a prime customer in time, then Amazon has to figure out the best way to do that. Amazon offers prime and it's not the customer's fault Amazon is sometimes using crappy shipping services.

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Exactly, it's up to Amazon to ship in such a way that they keep their promised delivery time.

Well, the point is that Amazon gave me a $10 credit for my PO's screw-up. I don't blame Amazon and I didn't ask for or expect the credit. Amazon certainly took their delivery guarantee seriously.

[eschwartz]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

If Amazon cannot get the shipment to a prime customer in time, then Amazon has to figure out the best way to do that. Amazon offers prime and it's not the customer's fault Amazon is sometimes using crappy shipping services.

Please try to understand.

NOBODY IS DISAGREEING WITH YOU!!! (!!!!!)

Even Amazon agrees with you too, which is why they compensate you for their failure.

But if you (rhet.) know you live in an anomaly, why do you sign up? Do you enjoy the experience of not getting stuff and then having to complain about it to ACS? Does it make your day to have them apologize to you?

[John F]

Originally Posted by Catlady

Well, the point is that Amazon gave me a $10 credit for my PO's screw-up. I don't blame Amazon and I didn't ask for or expect the credit. Amazon certainly took their delivery guarantee seriously.

Amazon is hit or miss for me when there is a late delivery. My last shipment was late. The tracking said "customer requested delivery change date", which I didn't. I told Amazon that I didn't request a change. They had me change my password on my account. The driver pulled in my drive way on the second day, but couldn't find the package on the truck. I got my package a day late, and the UPS label said three day delivery. I think Amazon misshipped the package and gave me a canned response "golly gee, I don't know what happened".

[BenG]

Prime not only gets 2 day delivery from the shipping company but also moves you up in the processing queue at the warehouse to make sure it gets out the door that day.
Many places would receive the packages two days after shipping even with standard shipping.

Amazon's Prime continues to slide into the "no longer a value for me" category. I seriously doubt I will renew it in December, especially since they raised the price. I was only using it for the 2-day delivery at no charge, but in the past two months they have switched almost exclusively to using the USPS for my orders rather than UPS. UPS was always on time and they deliver to my door. The USPS is often a day or more late, and refuse to deliver to my door because I live in an apartment. That is, the USPS employees are too friggin lazy to walk the packages around to each door. When I lived in a house they wouldn't deliver to the door either. If the package fit into the mailbox they would put it there, which is okay. But if not they just left a note that I had to go to a PO a few miles away and wait in line for an hour to get it.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by eschwartz

Please try to understand.

NOBODY IS DISAGREEING WITH YOU!!! (!!!!!)

Even Amazon agrees with you too, which is why they compensate you for their failure.

But if you (rhet.) know you live in an anomaly, why do you sign up? Do you enjoy the experience of not getting stuff and then having to complain about it to ACS? Does it make your day to have them apologize to you?

@eschwartz:

Here's the problem: you don't have any way to know what shipping method that they are deploying until after the item has shipped. You don't get a notice saying "oh, boy, goodie, you bought the solar ice pick shovel, and we're going to ship it in 30 minutes via Lasership, click here to cancel"; you get a notice saying "oh, boy, it's SHIPPED via XXX, and you'll have it on date YYY."

So, for folks like me, who have been Prime customers since the very first day it was offered, and had years of GREAT service, to suddenly, in the last year, having crap service, and repeated misses...it's hard to reconcile. When I am buying SMALL items, it still works well. Large? I now have to shop elsewhere, even though Amazon now claims (after I sent them a lengthy letter saying "breaking up is hard to do, but...") that my account is set to "UPS only," because the problem is, I can't do anything about the problem until after it's a problem, if that makes sense. I don't find out that something has gone amiss until they claim it's "delivered" and I find the dreaded green notice in my post box. And even though I do watch some Prime video (not a ton, comparatively speaking, as I've seen most of the best stuff they have), it's hard for me to not buy a Prime item if it's offered at a competitive price, because after all, I'm bloody paying for it.

I know that all sounds muddled. It is muddled. And, Catlady, this is one of the rare times I disagree with you: it absolutely is Amazon's fault. It's obvious from this thread that I'm not the only person having issues ever since Amazon started contracting outside of using UPS as their primary for rapid delivery. They are the contract provider; they contract to Fedex, and Fedex contracts a substandard service (USPS) to NOT deliver my items. If Amazon can't make Fedex obey, then Amazon needs to NOT contract with them. Only Amazon has power in this--nobody else at the other end, e.g. the customers--does. Yelling at the USPS does me absolutely NO good, because that's their policy about community mailboxes--it fits, or you schlep. and has been, since the advent of community mailboxes in the 80's.

Amazon can hardly be ignorant of that fact. I find it impossible to accept that NOBODY but me has ever told Amazon this. This is like an insurance company and actuarial tables and lawsuit settlements--it's probably cheaper for Amazon to reship missed items, issue a small gift certificate, etc., than to use UPS or another reliable delivery method over the larger delivery population. So, until it's so widespread that it costs them more to solve the constant issues, they're not going to change it. From a purely money standpoint, that makes sense. From a customer-centric standpoint, it doesn't. I'm not completely sure how it could be solved--but a form on the customer's profile with a question: do you have a community mailbox?--would be a start.

Just saying. I don't see how it's the PO's fault, honestly, when they have it in black and white: their carriers aren't supposed to carry the package to your door, as part of their cost-cutting for the last 30 years. They're not being lazy--they're doing what they are ordered to do. I'm NO fan of the USPS, but I dealt with this aspect when we were building a luxury home subdivision in '86, and we couldn't get individual mailboxes, so I do know the PO policies about this type of mailbox.

So, all those things being true: whose fault is it? I'm paying Amazon for the service. They're paying Fedex, who's paying the USPS. I'd say it's Fedex's fault, realistically, but how to get to THEM to get it solved? They'll shrug and say, that's their contract with Amazon, and they're allowed to optimize it for profit, I'm sure. Therefore, the only player here that can be remotely accountable is Amazon. OR, those of us who are Prime customers can stop using Prime shipping (and, BTW; it's not just Prime. You can't find out easily what shipping service MOST Amazon sellers are using, before you buy, without emailing them first. That's not exactly ease-of-use optimized, either.)

Therefore, yeah...I'm a little irked about it. The Prime videos don't "pay" for the Prime membership. They aren't enough value for me, given I have various other streaming providers with mostly the same content. And it vexes me that I have to NOT use Prime shipping, because now it's on me to be wary of the fact that Amazon WON'T do what I've already paid them, in advance, to do: deliver an item TO MY DOOR.

FWIW.

Hitch

[stormcloude]

Originally Posted by Hitch

I think it's probably complaints, rather than cost. They switched up to using "Fedex Home," which is Fedex subcontracting out to the Post Office. Lots of customers--like yours truly--live in rural, or semi-rural areas, that use community mailbox setups. My mailbox, for example, is half-a-mile from my actual house. It's not in a Post office; it's a bunch of boxes. Like these: http://www.tucsonazrealestateblog.co...ailboxessm.jpg

Ergo, if I am supposed to receive a package that's too big for those "big" boxes you see at the bottom, I'm just OUTTA LUCK...

Hitch

We have those same type of mailboxes in the condo where I live, but get this: a mail carrier lost the keys to the bigger boxes. *facepalm* Our old letter carrier was good about leaving packages at our doors-- it's a security building-- but we got a new carrier a couple months ago and it took about two weeks of complaints to get him to leave the packages at our doors. So yeah, I blame the post office too.