Is Amazon misleading customers against sellers while settling returns?

On IOS, we have published a range of articles on fulfillment practices that covered all the pros and cons of each method. In fact, marketplace fulfillment VS self-fulfillment is one of the biggest debates concerning online selling.

Most of the Indian online sellers prefer self-fulfillment to marketplace-fulfillment (like Fulfilled by Amazon, Flipkart Advantage, and Snapdeal Plus). The reasoning is simple – to keep business’s control and power in their hands. And the control lever that is most dear to sellers is the Returns & Refunds lever. A seller who handles order fulfillment from start-to-end has the freedom to draft his/her return policy.

But non-FBA sellers on Amazon have come to realize that the buyer-centric marketplace interferes in the returns process for their orders too, which is jeopardizing their business.

Amazon A-to-Z Claim

The product catalogue on the marketplace is divided into two – Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA) and Non-FBA. The returns process for FBA orders is handled by the etailer whereas for non-FBA returns, seller’s individual policy comes into play.

But ALL orders are protected by A-to-Z Guarantee on Amazon irrespective of the fulfillment method. A buyer can file an A-to-Z claim, if condition of the product purchased and delivery time doesn’t match the description provided while placing the order.

It’s under this A-to-Z claim that vendors come face-to-face with Amazon’s heavily consumer-focused approach, in spite of being non-FBA sellers. From approving returns that clash with sellers’ return policy to coaxing buyers to raise A-to-Z claim, Amazon is guilty of misleading customers against sellers.

Misinforming Buyers about Sellers’ return policy

Got-Bonsai, an Amazon.com seller wrote down his case on Seller Central explaining how the etailer misled a buyer that resulted in an A-to-Z claim.

Here’s the gist: A buyer bought a table as Christmas present for his/her mother. Since someone gifted a similar product, the buyer asked if the product could be returned. Seller accepted the request but stated that the buyer will be liable to pay return shipping. Buyer then contacted Amazon, which in turn informed seller, “Please arrange return or ensure that you will issue refund for postage if customer pays.”

“This was a change of mind return. Why did amazon tell the customer that we would pay for the return? We explained that this was a mistake and offered to arrange the return for £3.98 rather than the £12.98 they later chose to pay. This has now resulted in an A-Z claim with the customer stating that amazon had promised them that we would pay for the return. Not sure where we stand here, we have represented our case to amazon and sent them the proof that this is a change of mind return. We were clear from start to finish that the customer was responsible for the return postage costs,” wrote Got-Bonsai.

As explained, the purpose of A-to-Z claim is to settle issues when an item is not as described, damaged or of poor quality. But in Got-Bonsai’s case, the buyer no longer needed the product, which falls under ‘buyer remorse’ category. Amazon clearly states that a claim can be denied if, ‘The claim was filed due to buyer remorse rather than an actual issue with the item.’

Then why did Amazon instruct the seller to refund reverse shipping cost?

Another seller wrote on Amazon.in Seller Central forum that how the marketplace’s support team asked the customer to raise an A-to-Z claim because the easy ship team (Amazon’s logistics service for sellers) has not picked up return from the customer.

The marketplace is at fault for late pick-up but Amazon’s support team is persuading the buyer to raise claim and penalize the seller.

Amazon’s OTT buyer-friendly policies

The American ecommerce firm’s global image is of a consumer-centric company. But are they over-doing it now?

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For instance, in seller Got-Bonsai’s case (mentioned above), the marketplace made false promises even when buyer didn’t really asked for it. The seller said that after receiving ‘ensure that you will issue refund’ message from Amazon, he replied saying, “…we would refund in full including the original shipping charge, but that we couldn’t pay the return costs in this situation… Didn’t hear back until the A-Z claim today. However the customer is responsive and now claims they don’t understand why amazon is viewing it as a “not matching description” issue and we have forwarded their message to amazon so hopefully sense will prevail.”

It’s obvious that both, buyer and seller are clueless as to why the etailer is treating ‘buyer remorse’ claim as ‘not matching description’ claim.

Scammers are also pocketing expensive gadgets like Apple iPhones by misuing Amazon A-to-Z Guarantee.

The recent FBA return policy change is another example of Amazon’s OTT buyer-friendly policies. An online shopper Chinmay S says, “Amazon asking seller to pay the price difference is a little too much to be honest.”

Sellers, fight for it

The chances of Amazon rejecting a buyer’s claim are very low. But there have been cases where if the seller is not at fault, Amazon either funds the refund amount or reimburses the seller.

After reading through several cases, it seems that there is severe disconnect between Amazon’s customer support team and seller support team when it comes to interpreting company policies. The customer service representatives have a label ‘Customers First’ on their system, which is why they approve A-to-Z claims without verifying it or reading seller’s return policy.

Track your shipment, maintain visual record of orders dispatched and save emails, messages, and call transcripts for future reference. Challenge the decision by appealing to Amazon’s internal team by clicking on the Appeal button next to the claim from the 100% buyer protection guarantee page.

List down all the expenses you incurred like transportation, packing charges and Amazon fees while filing appeal. We are sure Amazon will review your appeal and reimburse the amount you paid while settling false/misguided A-to-Z claims.