# My New Problem With Amazon



## haydnguy (Oct 13, 2008)

In all the years I have bought from Amazon I've only had one problem. That was when the package was delivered to the house next door which happened to be vacant. That was at a time before GPS and was really the delivery man's fault.

A few days ago I ordered a CD and today I got a notice on my door that a signature was required for the package and I would have to call to have them re-delivered. In all these years I've never had this happen. A signature needed for a $10 CD?

What I think happened was this. Amazon has recently gotten into the shipping business and FedEx made the decision to stop delivering Amazon packages because they now view Amazon as a competitor. I don't know if this is the case but I returned the CD. I tried to work it out with Amazon customer service but with no joy. I will no longer be ordering from Amazon. I just ordered another CD and this time from Presto Classical.


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## Krummhorn (Feb 18, 2007)

I looked into this issue a little ... discovered that there is no specific _Amazon_ policy that requires a signature for delivered goods. Although Amazon may encourage _sellers_ to use signatures for _high cost_ items, it is not a requirement.

So it all boils down to the seller. It is the *seller's* choice to ask for a signature upon delivery, not Amazon's.

We get regular orders shipped by Amazon - delivered by one of their gray trucks - none have ever required a signature. The value of our orders varies in price from $25 to $250.

It may be particular seller's prefer to know that a parcel was actually delivered/received to/by the recipient in case there are any claims for non-delivery or damage during shipment.

Kh


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## DaveM (Jun 29, 2015)

There has been a major uptick in (the very distinctive) Amazon packages being stolen from doorsteps, at least in the U.S. If that is occurring or starting to occur in a given neighborhood, my understanding is that the delivery services are going to start asking for signatures. Also, if, say, UPS is the one making the frequent deliveries and someone complains that they didn’t receive their package, a signature is likely going to be required in the future.


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## Judith (Nov 11, 2015)

I collect mine from the local post office, therefore gives me flexibility. (Also husband doesn't know have ordered another CD lol)


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## Johnnie Burgess (Aug 30, 2015)

Taking someone else mail in Texas might get you a felony charge starting in September.


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## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

...unless the USPS delivers it, it isn't mail...

Anyway, Amazon offers options of delivery inside your front door or in your garage. Both require installation of equipment and a fair amount of expense.

They will also deliver to a "safe" place, hopefully near your home. This might be a store or some such. Of course, you have to go and pick up.​


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## joen_cph (Jan 17, 2010)

I tend not to order Amazon's own products for sale, only their other, presented dealers, due to the comparatively poor working conditions they are giving their own employees.


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## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

joen_cph said:


> I tend not to order Amazon's own products for sale, only their other, presented dealers, due to the comparatively poor working conditions they are giving their own employees.


I read that Prime members, if they visit any of Amazon's distribution centers, are given the opportunity to whip employees to make them move faster. I read that on The Onion, which I think is pretty reliable.


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## haydnguy (Oct 13, 2008)

I have never had a problem before. My wife orders big boxes. They either leave it at the front door or they leave it in the mailbox. This is the first time I've ever had this problem. I don't even know where the UPS place is.


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## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

Open Amazon.com and sign in. Click "Orders" up top. Find your lost order and click "Return or replace items" and follow the directions. This is the same routine for Amazon-sold and 3rd-party seller items, and regardless of who delivered it.


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## joen_cph (Jan 17, 2010)

KenOC said:


> I read that Prime members, if they visit any of Amazon's distribution centers, are given the opportunity to whip employees to make them move faster. I read that on The Onion, which I think is pretty reliable.


Though it may be tempting for some, no, I won't be going to China to whip some local school teenagers working out there during the late night and 60 hours a week besides their educational hours, to mention one of the more recent real reports, besides the European criticism.


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## DaveM (Jun 29, 2015)

KenOC said:


> I read that Prime members, if they visit any of Amazon's distribution centers, are given the opportunity to whip employees to make them move faster. I read that on The Onion, which I think is pretty reliable.


Also, according to reliable sources, if you want to speed delivery of your own order, you can visit your closest distribution center and help the employees move the packages along.


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## Oldhoosierdude (May 29, 2016)

I was making a delivery to a patients home yesterday and the house next door to them had two small Amazon pkgs in the middle of the front yard! I remarked that it is odd the Amazon driver would deliver pkgs that way. Apparently they were drone delivered. So drones dump them where anyone walking down the street can grab them and where they are subject to the weather. Great idea Amazon.


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

I had a CD ordered and the shipper required signature, so I was home but the postman put a note on the door that the mail box was obstructed and they would try again tomorrow. I could not figure how they could put a note on the door and the mail box is right next to the door and say it was obstructed. What it turned out to be is this particular postman must have had a bad experience with a dog once, so when they heard our dog inside the house, they would not even knock on the door to get a signature for fear the dog might get out. I got the package the next day because I happened to be out front (without the dog) when the postman came by. He had the dog spray in his hot little fist the whole time I signed off on the package.


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## senza sordino (Oct 20, 2013)

Oldhoosierdude said:


> I was making a delivery to a patients home yesterday and the house next door to them had two small Amazon pkgs in the middle of the front yard! I remarked that it is odd the Amazon driver would deliver pkgs that way. Apparently they were drone delivered. So drones dump them where anyone walking down the street can grab them and where they are subject to the weather. Great idea Amazon.


Yes, doesn't seem a precise enough delivery. I wonder if the package could be dropped into the backyard if there is one?

When I use Amazon, I have them deliver to my place of work. The front desk is always open through the day, so there is always someone there to receive my package. Unlike at home, delivery to an apartment when I'm not home is problematic.


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## elgar's ghost (Aug 8, 2010)

I can't recall the last time I had to sign for anything as small as a CD - whether from Amazon themselves or a third party seller they always get put through the letterbox irrespective of whether they are delivered by courier or Royal Mail. I arranged it with Amazon that if I'm not at home then packages too big for the letterbox are to be left behind the tall recycle bin near my front door - any put there are totally hidden from sight. If the package is too bulky for that arrangement then the nearest Amazon pickup point is a branch of the Post Office just ten minutes walk away.


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## haydnguy (Oct 13, 2008)

elgars ghost said:


> I can't recall the last time I had to sign for anything as small as a CD - whether from Amazon themselves or a third party seller they always get put through the letterbox irrespective of whether they are delivered by courier or Royal Mail. I arranged it with Amazon that if I'm not at home then packages too big for the letterbox are to be left behind the tall recycle bin near my front door - any put there are totally hidden from sight. If the package is too bulky for that arrangement then the nearest Amazon pickup point is a branch of the Post Office just ten minutes walk away.


I don't know what's going to happen to this particular order. According to what I can see at Amazon it's sitting in the local UPS facility. I have told Amazon I want to return it. I have a feeling it will eventually go back to Amazon when UPS doesn't get a signature. Meanwhile I've bought my last two CD's at Presto Classical.


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## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

joen_cph said:


> Though it may be tempting for some, no, I won't be going to China to whip some local school teenagers working out there during the late night and 60 hours a week besides their educational hours, to mention one of the more recent real reports, besides the European criticism.


This seems to be accurate, based on a report from a Foxconn factory in South China. There, students from 16 to 18 years old work as "interns" with school sponsorship. Their school receives money for each hour worked. Teachers are the well-paid overseers and can be hard taskmasters. If a student wants out of all this, they can leave, but they may not be allowed to graduate!

BTW Foxconn is a Taiwanese business, not a mainland Chinese one. It is also the major supplier to Apple for its phones and to a host of other top-tier electronics businesses as well. It is huge - one manufacturing complex in Shenzhen employs more than a quarter of a million people. In 2012, Foxconn was estimated to have manufactured 40% of all consumer products sold worldwide. It has an extensive and informative Wiki entry.

Here's a *detailed story* on the abuses of interns.


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## Jacck (Dec 24, 2017)

^^^ such slavery is the reality of many Ph.D. programs and postdocs all over the world including the U.S. 
How Academia Resembles a Drug Gang
What do astrophysics and the world's oldest profession have in common?


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