Amazon Prime Now: 1hr delivery of books and sundries

[shalym]

Originally Posted by Jon_Doh

How are they going to deliver in 60 minutes when they can't deliver their regular Prime merchandise on time? It's been over two weeks since I placed a Prime order and I'm still waiting on it. It was in stock and supposed to be to me in two days. I order a lot from Amazon, or until now did, and not a single item I've ordered in the last 45 days has been delivered on time. So, I'm just wondering about this new service....

Have you contacted Amazon about it?

Shari

[basschick]

Originally Posted by Jon_Doh

How are they going to deliver in 60 minutes when they can't deliver their regular Prime merchandise on time? It's been over two weeks since I placed a Prime order and I'm still waiting on it. It was in stock and supposed to be to me in two days. I order a lot from Amazon, or until now did, and not a single item I've ordered in the last 45 days has been delivered on time. So, I'm just wondering about this new service....

when i recently had something go wrong, i contacted amazon customer service, who immediately re-sent the item to me via overnight so i'd have it.

btw, was that item sent via UPS smartpost or whatever it's called? i see a lot of complaints, as the USPS seemed to have problems with those UPS to USPS deliveries.

[Catlady]

I would expect to tip the delivery person, just as I'd tip for any "free" food or grocery delivery. If there's a delivery charge, I'd be disinclined to tip for a routine delivery.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by Catlady

I would expect to tip the delivery person, just as I'd tip for any "free" food or grocery delivery. If there's a delivery charge, I'd be disinclined to tip for a routine delivery.

But there is a delivery charge. It's $99 per year for expedited delivery.

[fjtorres]

Lots of procrastinators out there:

http://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet...oliday-n275176

Apparently, a few of Amazon shoppers were procrastinators. The last Prime one-day shipping order on Amazon.com delivered in time for Christmas was placed on Dec. 23 at 2:55 p.m. EST and shipped to Philadelphia. The order: a 24-ounce spray of Nature's Miracle No More Marking and a men's Champion Evo Fleece Full Zip Hoodie.

As for Amazon's new Prime Now service, which recently debuted in parts of Manhattan, someone who lives in the one-hour delivery area ordered three 12-packs of Bai5 antioxidant drinks at 10:24 p.m. on Christmas Eve and received it at 11:06 p.m. No word yet on whether that was a gift or for personal use.

Verryyy interestink buys...

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

But there is a delivery charge. It's $99 per year for expedited delivery.

An annual fee for a package of services is not at all the same thing as a delivery charge.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by Catlady

An annual fee for a package of services is not at all the same thing as a delivery charge.

I'm paying a yearly subscription fee for expedited delivery. As such, no tipping no matter who delivers it. I don't tip the mailman, I don't tip the UPS driver, and I won't tip a messenger.

[pidgeon92]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

I'm paying a yearly subscription fee for expedited delivery. As such, no tipping no matter who delivers it. I don't tip the mailman, I don't tip the UPS driver, and I won't tip a messenger.

I've given the mailman a Christmas gift in the past.... not this year, as we've gone through many.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

I'm paying a yearly subscription fee for expedited delivery. As such, no tipping no matter who delivers it. I don't tip the mailman, I don't tip the UPS driver, and I won't tip a messenger.

Yeah, sorry...as much as I generally believe in tipping, I feel that this is one step too far, on Amazon's part. Either they (and we) are already paying for the delivery, or we're not. I realize that this mayn't be a rational reaction--after all, I've tipped the pizza boy for years, when I still lived someplace that could get pizza (or anything) delivered, but to me, Amazon is not the pizza place. It's supposed to be hiring professional couriers or delivery services--which don't get tipped. And we ARE paying for it.

My attitude about this is rather colored by the fact that ever since Amazon effectively nuked UPS in favor of "FedEx Home" and the USPS, ALL my bigger-than-a-breadbox deliveries go awry. They go directly to my Post Office--which means a 30+ mile trip for me. For which, mind you, I've PAID "prime" fees. That pisses me off no end. I've basically given up on buying anything from Amazon that's bigger than a loaf of bread--so now they are reduced to Radio Shack status for me. And you can't call and order--and find out what carrier they're going to use--so Amazon is now useless for me as a retailer, for all intents and purposes.

Combine that with the fact that the movie/tv Prime is pretty dreadful (unless you didn't have HBO, and thus couldn't watch their series) is increasingly pushing me to cancel my Prime membership. One "free" book a month to borrow isn't worth the annual Prime fee, and the TV certainly isn't, if the shipping is useless--as it's now become.

Hitch

[shalym]

Originally Posted by Hitch

Yeah, sorry...as much as I generally believe in tipping, I feel that this is one step too far, on Amazon's part. Either they (and we) are already paying for the delivery, or we're not. I realize that this mayn't be a rational reaction--after all, I've tipped the pizza boy for years, when I still lived someplace that could get pizza (or anything) delivered, but to me, Amazon is not the pizza place. It's supposed to be hiring professional couriers or delivery services--which don't get tipped. And we ARE paying for it.

My attitude about this is rather colored by the fact that ever since Amazon effectively nuked UPS in favor of "FedEx Home" and the USPS, ALL my bigger-than-a-breadbox deliveries go awry. They go directly to my Post Office--which means a 30+ mile trip for me. For which, mind you, I've PAID "prime" fees. That pisses me off no end. I've basically given up on buying anything from Amazon that's bigger than a loaf of bread--so now they are reduced to Radio Shack status for me. And you can't call and order--and find out what carrier they're going to use--so Amazon is now useless for me as a retailer, for all intents and purposes.

Combine that with the fact that the movie/tv Prime is pretty dreadful (unless you didn't have HBO, and thus couldn't watch their series) is increasingly pushing me to cancel my Prime membership. One "free" book a month to borrow isn't worth the annual Prime fee, and the TV certainly isn't, if the shipping is useless--as it's now become.

Hitch

Sorry Hitch, but my experience is completely different. 99% of everything I buy from Amazon using Prime is delivered by UPS, and the few things that aren't are split about 50-50 between Fedex and USPS. I don't really use the Prime Lending Library much, although I have a few times. I've used Kindle First a couple of times, and I use Prime Instant Video every day. I've also started using the Prime music more since I got my Echo.

I don't understand why anyone would pay for a service that they were so unhappy with. If the delivery service were that bad for me, I would be calling Amazon EVERY DAY until it was either fixed, or they refunded me for the service. If I'm paying for 2 day shipping, I expect to get it, and if I don't, I expect a refund.

Shari

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

I'm paying a yearly subscription fee for expedited delivery. As such, no tipping no matter who delivers it. I don't tip the mailman, I don't tip the UPS driver, and I won't tip a messenger.

You're not paying a yearly fee to UPS or USPS. And the yearly fee you pay Amazon includes a variety of perks, not just expedited delivery.

In any case, the tip is recommended, not mandatory--so if you want to stiff the delivery person, fine. I wouldn't.

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by shalym

Sorry Hitch, but my experience is completely different. 99% of everything I buy from Amazon using Prime is delivered by UPS, and the few things that aren't are split about 50-50 between Fedex and USPS. I don't really use the Prime Lending Library much, although I have a few times. I've used Kindle First a couple of times, and I use Prime Instant Video every day. I've also started using the Prime music more since I got my Echo.

I don't understand why anyone would pay for a service that they were so unhappy with. If the delivery service were that bad for me, I would be calling Amazon EVERY DAY until it was either fixed, or they refunded me for the service. If I'm paying for 2 day shipping, I expect to get it, and if I don't, I expect a refund.

Shari

Ditto.

Just the other day I had a package intended for a Christmas gift go awry at my post office--it was showing as delivered, but I couldn't locate it and assumed it had ended up at a wrong address. Since I needed it before Christmas, I contacted Amazon, and they immediately sent out a replacement in time, with instructions to return the original shipment if it showed up (it did). I thought that was excellent service.

[pidgeon92]

No problems here with Prime, either. Likely because I am in a large metro area.

I don't want to tip the driver, either, so I just won't use the expedited shipping if it comes to my area. I can wait a couple of days.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by Catlady

Ditto.

Just the other day I had a package intended for a Christmas gift go awry at my post office--it was showing as delivered, but I couldn't locate it and assumed it had ended up at a wrong address. Since I needed it before Christmas, I contacted Amazon, and they immediately sent out a replacement in time, with instructions to return the original shipment if it showed up (it did). I thought that was excellent service.

Catlady:

Until 2 years ago, I would have agreed, 100%, with you and shalym. My service with Amazon was stellar, absolutely brilliant. BUT: I now live in a rural area, and since Amazon has switched to using "Fedex Home" and USPS, what they seem to have not taken into account is that not every P.O. has workers that will bring stuff to your door. In my case, we have those community mailboxes--mine are 1/2-mile from my house. (see image).

http://www.mailboxes.com/assets/depa...USPS_Image.jpg

I don't have a mailbox AT my house. Our PO people will not--absolutely not--deliver to the door. If an item doesn't fit into the "package" box at the community boxes, it goes back in the little truck, and thence some 15+ miles to "my" Post Office.

In the past two years, I've had not less than 15 deliveries go back to the P.O.. Yes, I can call Amazon and bitch, and yes, they then send out a replacement via overnight. I've tried EVERYTHING. I've called, I've written to them, (telling them I was done with them, in frustration). I've tried paying EXTRA to have "overnight," but even some of those come P.O., and then the cycle repeats. I've simply stopped buying from them. That's why "only" 15-some-odd astray deliveries. If it won't fit in a mailbox, I no longer buy it there, period.

There is no way to select the shipping BEFORE you click purchase. You can't choose the carrier. It doesn't matter if you use 1- or 2-day (tried that--got USPS overnight, and, yes: back to the P.O.). You can't call and order, and have THEM choose the carrier--they seemingly can only do that when you have an order go astray.

When I lived in the burbs, the carrier was only too happy to walk about 20 steps and drop something at my door. Now, they won't. I'm not saying it's not understandable, but the situation is moderately simple to me: I'm paying Amazon a fee for delivery TO MY DOOR, not a 30-mile RT away. (Or further--I know it's at least 10 to the freeway, then however many miles a few exits down the freeway, around a bunch of corners, and let's not forget the 30-minute wait at the PO itself, EVERY.DAMN.TIME.)

Amazon no longer gives me a way to get those packages reliably, and without aggravation and MAJOR inconvenience to me. My alternative is to have items shipped to my (business) paid-box, which is ONLY a 20-mile RT for me. Again: major inconvenience. (Not only "inconvenience." I used them to deliver heavy packages to me when my shoulder(s) were giving me major problems. Guess how happy I was to go schelp 40-50lb. packages from the P.O. 30 miles away?)

Oh, and--it's always someone else's fault. Amazon says, "well, we're paying Fedex for HOME delivery, and they said that they delivered it." Fedex has simply creamed off a percentage, and are paying USPS their lesser fees for "delivery." And hey, from their perspective, the package says "delivered," which means, in English "it's at the P.O. waiting for YOU to go pick it UP." The USPS doesn't give two s**ts if you're happy or not, as whatcha gonna do, fire 'em? There isn't a single entity in the chain that now takes ownership of the issue, not even Amazon.

For a company that's made its name in Customer Service, it's absolutely gobsmacking and breathtakingly cavalier. From their standpoint, hey, if you live in a non-urban area, and don't have your own mailbox, you're SCREWED. (Which means all houses built in larger subdivisions, rural areas, etc., since about 1985, as that is when the P.O. regs changed to requiring community mailboxes.)

So, while I'm glad that you have ongoing good experiences with them, ever since the two factors--a move to a far more rural area, and Amazon's switchover to USPS--my service has gone straight to s**t. And yes, they're always helpful when I'm on the phone, they always send a replacement, etc., but it's a major hassle I should NOT have to go through, not when I'm paying NOT to go through it. Moreover, I've seen increasing numbers of posts from OTHER people like me--people who have moved from the city, or never did live there--who are having the same issues, over and over.

That's my perspective.

Hitch

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by Hitch

:

Until 2 years ago, I would have agreed, 100%, with you and shalym. My service with Amazon was stellar, absolutely brilliant. BUT: I now live in a rural area, and since Amazon has switched to using "Fedex Home" and USPS, what they seem to have not taken into account is that not every P.O. has workers that will bring stuff to your door.

If delivery became an issue two years ago, you must have renewed Prime at least once with the subpar service--why in the world would you do that?