Dodgy sellers..

On Amazon!!

Recently I read that a lot of the sellers on Amazon are selling diluted or poor quality goods.

I myself have had 3 events in the past 2 weeks to verify this.

One was a frying pan splatter guard which came in perfect packaging but when I undid it, the mesh was bent & the frame a little bit twisted. It didn't sit flat over the frying pan.

I complained & got a replacement.

My other faulty item was a metal filing cabinet. It had a small dent in the corner. I contacted the sellers suggesting they give me a small discount to save us all the hassle of returning it.

They refused at first but when I told them "If you want a good review on Amazon you'd better offer me a discount" They knocked me £10 off which isn't much really but better than nothing...

My point it: I believe they send faulty goods to internet customers in order to get rid of them. Some people wouldn't have bothered about a tiny dent but I did.

Just today on Amazon I went to order Pro -Kleen patio cleaner as I do every year - it's brilliant.
I was surprised to read some negative reviews - some said it wasn't as good as it used to be.

I am wondering if maybe the seller had diluted it?..

With this in mind I went to look for it elsewhere & finally ordered it from the Pro -Kleen website. At least now I should be getting the genuine thing.

Has anybody else had similar experiences with Amazon & do you still trust them?

Re: Dodgy sellers..

Hi

Yes, you have to be careful.

There are many fakes about and fake reviews.

There are also many bargains to be had.

Re: Dodgy sellers..

We are very careful what we buy, especially if it seems too good to be true. If it is too cheap one should be very suspicious.

Re: Dodgy sellers..

Good for you, Carol, in being assertive! many people would just not bother complaining but decide not to use that seller again. I normally go by reviews and stars....keeping in mind the fake reviews (you can tell them because they all sound the same "omg, this stuff is amazing, would buy again 5 stars!" etc...y'know, the really over the top ones. ) I don't buy much from Amazon, but I do try to leave an honest pro/con review. I'm like you - I would rather order direct from the sellers website, so its a straightforward thing between you and them. They at least store the items properly (in my mind), rather than Amazon's kitchen drawer mentality. (Pure speculation on my part - no offence to any Amazon workers on here!)

Re: Dodgy sellers..

We buy quite a lot of stuff from Amazon on our eldest girl's Prime account and have never had a problem. However, she checks it out first and will tell us if she is not happy for us to have the product.

Re: Dodgy sellers..

Another here that agrees you have to be careful.

I've had a few spats with Amazon over the past year for similar things to Carol, sometimes quickly resolved but once necessitating a complaint to higher-up in the Amazon chain before getting a satisfactory resolution.

Reviews are problematic and you have to use commonsense, but even consumer TV shows have pointed out the flaws with the Amazon review system.
Nobody's ever paid me to write reviews or given me free stuff for doing so, but I wouldn't mind the chance.


Amazon - despite complaints - still do not make it clear where your order will be shipped from in far too many cases too so you've got to be wary of (for example) Chinese sellers shipping either directly from China or to one of a few UK warehouses used purely for these Chinese companies imports; order via Amazon & it gets shipped from China to UK warehouse and then to you, the customer.
Which is not too bad when it works, but when things go wrong it can be a bit of a nightmare to resolve.

Waranties/guarantees can be problematic too.
If you've purchased direct from Amazon it's been my experience that they are pretty good, but with non-Amazon purchases it can be pot luck which is yet another reason to be wary.

I'll be honest; although I do use Amazon quite a bit it does tend to be for smaller purchases unless Amazon are the retailer.
All that said IMHO they are far better to use overall than eBay.

Re: Dodgy sellers..

I don’t use Amazon any more as it’s often possible to get it cheaper and quicker elsewhere.

Re: Dodgy sellers..

We are pleased with how quickly our Amazon goods arrive, often before they say they will. This afternoon our girl ordered something we buy on a regular basis, it is supposed to come between Wednesday and Friday this week.

Re: Dodgy sellers..

Caveat emptor.

But bear in mind that while Amazon do sell goods directly on their own account they also act as an agent for third parties for whom they act as a marketplace and provide protection for purchasers.

It's a brilliant business model for all parties but many folk don't understand it and that it's just some sort of mega online shop. It isn't.

Re: Dodgy sellers..

Items dispatched and sold by Amazon UK are good quality. Be careful buying from non Amazon sellers. I've only had problems with the latter, some being in China, but not always. There are just as many cowboy firms in the UK with fake shopfronts. If you click on the seller information it tells you their base. If there is no seller then you are dealing with Amazon directly.

I wouldn't buy items that are high value from Amazon unless someone sends me a link and recommends. Dunelm or Marks are much better for household items.