Amazon didn't deliver even though OTP was given - refusing refund

gbarkley

I ordered a Macbook from Amazon on the 10th of March, totalling £1550. The item was to be delivered on Tuesday 12th March using a OTP (one time password) which I would need to give to the driver to confirm delivery. I had multiple items coming this day. Laptop stand, docking hub, keyboard, cables, and the Macbook.

All items came in separate deliveries. When the keyboard got delivered, I got a notification to say the Macbook had also been delivered and I handed over the OTP to the driver. Confused, as I did not do this and the Macbook had not been delivered. The time they claim it was delivered is captured on my doorbell camera and the driver 
1. did not hand over a box big enough to be a Macbook
2. did not ask for a OTP

I chased this with Amazon live chat right away and they told me I need to wait 5 more days as it'll likely show up and I should check with neighbours. This concerned me as the neighbours couldn't possibly have it as they didn't have the OTP. Also how could the driver input the OTP and have the item show up 5 days later. It doesn't make sense.

Each day I continued to chase but nothing was resolved. Every phone call would result in "you must wait until X before you can escalate this".

When I was finally able to escalate, I would only get told "our system shows you gave the OTP and this is proof of delivery" and they would hang up on me. This happened at least 10 times. Infuriating. 

I asked for photograph proof as they always seem to do, but for this item they didn't take a photo as the OTP is the "proof". I've told them I can send my doorbell camera footage and they aren't interested.

I reached out to Citizens Advice and they suggested I send Amazon a letter. I sent them a letter 10 days ago, signed for, but still no response.

I don't know what else I can do. I feel like I can't get through to a real person at Amazon and I only hit call centre employees that don't care. 

I can't afford to donate £1550 to Amazon. It feels like I'm fighting a losing battle. 

Must I chalk this up as a learning experience and to use a credit card in future? 

gbarkley

Edit:
I have also reached out to Monzo and they have said I don't have enough evidence to get my money back. 

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Which address did you send the letter to OP?

some have reported by writing to their head office on London a better response is gained.

Is your Monzo card a credit or debit card?

If debit then yes a chargeback would fail, if credit they are jointly liable.

Ultimately it's small claims, if your ring door bell clearly supports your position then this should be sufficient evidence. 

gbarkley

I sent the letter here:

Amazon UK
1 Principal Pl,
Worship St,
London
EC2A 2FA

Sadly it was Monzo Debit. 

I can't believe how difficult it is to talk to someone at Amazon. Seeing how easy it is for Amazon to tell you they delivered your item when they didn't and keep your money and leave you with 0 options is scary.

Vitor

> I handed over the OTP to the driver. Confused, as I did not do this<

It's not clear if you read out the OTP to the driver or not.

gbarkley

Vitor said:

> I handed over the OTP to the driver. Confused, as I did not do this<

It's not clear if you read out the OTP to the driver or not.

Sorry, I'm saying their system said I gave the OTP to the delivery driver to confirm delivery. However I did not do this.

GadgetGuru

I didn't think the delivery driver knows the OTPO tag in the first instance - they need to enter the OTP and the system then tells them if its correct, and hence to hand the parcel across. The delivery driver doesn't actually know it until its given to then and input into their handheld system.....

DullGreyGuy

GadgetGuru said:

I didn't think the delivery driver knows the OTPO tag in the first instance - they need to enter the OTP and the system then tells them if its correct, and hence to hand the parcel across. The delivery driver doesn't actually know it until its given to then and input into their handheld system.....

It seems there are other options... according to https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=GXHYX22CS752PLE3 if you aren't going to be in you can give the OTP or the last 2 digits of your phone number to someone else to receive it. Certainly on some parcels your phone number is printed. Can amazon tell the difference between OTP and digits of phone number?

gbarkley

This must be what happened. I've googled the issue and found quite a few instances of this happening. These people seemed to give up or never updated that they received the refund. There is definitely a flaw in the system. I understand some parcels won't be delivered but the difficulty to get through to Amazon is baffling. 

That being said, I did manage to get my refund today after emailing [Removed by Forum Team]
Strange because they didn't really ask me for details and said they're happy to issue the refund. Which makes me believe they know it wasn't delivered somehow on their end but wouldn't give the refund until the user did everything to get in touch with them.

RFW

gbarkley said:
That being said, I did manage to get my refund today after emailing [Removed by Forum Team]
Strange because they didn't really ask me for details and said they're happy to issue the refund. Which makes me believe they know it wasn't delivered somehow on their end but wouldn't give the refund until the user did everything to get in touch with them.

I'm glad you got your money back. The CAB advice to write is probably good advice for most companies, it's likely a waste of time with Amazon. The best route is to try customer services, preferably via Live Chat, when that fails, try it again and ask to escalate to someone senior, then email the managing director. Another way is to try Twitter.
For anyone else you need to keep badgering. Whilst small claims court will ultimately be likely to get the refund it's a long way round. With Amazon, the key is finding a human who can help. A lot of the time you're talking to a computer, albeit a sophisticated one. Sadly, as we're seeing on here, it's getting worse with them.