Amazon: Post-Order Price Guarantee Ending 8/31/08

[quote name='PenguinoMF']Yeah what happens when the NY government finally catches up to the websites that are not charging tax to NYers? Those companies will owe the money and its going to come out of their pockets.

I don't blame Amazon for charging tax. Its the law. Of course it sucks but oh well.[/quote]

sigh... not true and you know it... as for taxes from e-tailers, yes, it's a matter of time, but until then, if there are no B&M stores or headquarters in the given state, purchases should not be taxed! If so, how and why? It's like not living and working in NY and yet paying NY taxes...

Obviously you didn't take the time to understand the NY taxes through Amazon... The NY state was able to pull this crap on Amazon (and others, but Amazon in particular) b/c they argue that there are "agents" located in NY pulling sales for Amazon. Thus, Amazon must collect taxes and pay the state. Of course, Amazon's biggest argument is that it doesn't know such "agents" and it can't possibly know! In the mean time, NY is getting fat from the taxes collected by Amazon, they got nothing to lose... Newegg was able to fend off the allegation (i got the e-mail, but only read the part says "we're not collecting NY taxes anymore").
 
For all of you still think the price adjustment is not a big deal, again, think of this way...

You went to Wal-mart and buy a game then two weeks later you discovered that the same game is now $10 cheaper. As a CAG, you either get $10 through price adjustment or return/rebuy strategy. If it's opened or some crappy manager stopped you, you buy the cheaper priced one and return it with the original price receipt. In other words, price adjustment within the reciept date (range from one week to three months or more) is always available!

So, how big is Amazon? It's return/exchange policy is no different from that of Wal-marts and what nots. So, what's up with the termination of the 30 days price adjustment policy? This is very different from getting rid of free shipping from the earlier days...
 
Recently, I ordered an item from Buy.com. They lowered their price $5 within hours after I placed my order. I asked for an adjustment, but they refused. So Amazon's post-order price guarantee was a key reason why I did much more business with Amazon than Buy.com. Apparently that's gone now. And Buy.com's free "7-9 business day" shipping is often shipped FedEx and gets here in 2 days.

I wonder if Amazon at least considered compromising and just reducing the period to 7 or 14 days?
 
[quote name='jdubbleu']Many who buy at Amazon have been enjoying Amazon's Post-Order Price Guarantee (POPG). POPG allows the user to get their money back on the difference of any Amazon price drop within 30 days of buying an item from Amazon.

More than any actual rebates (which were minimal), users like me enjoyed the peace of mind that came with knowing they could buy today and get the lowest Amazon price, especially in this economy where my dollar doesn't go as far as it used to. At least on Amazon, life was pretty good.

No more.

With no public notice, Amazon has quietly e-mailed people who have recently collected rebates, informing them that any items ordered after September 1 will no longer be eligible for POPG. This is an outrage.

Here is the thread that is discussing the issue: http://www.amazon.com/gp/forum/cd/d...orum=Fx20DX5GEB7TUX8&cdThread=Tx2EHRRIIKOKVDH

Amazon is making a huge mistake. Please join me and sign the petition. If enough people step up, we may be able to shame Amazon into keeping the policy, just as Apple had to buckle under the public embarrassment over the iPhone price drop.

Sign now and forward to your friends!

:twoguns:http://www.petitiononline.com/popg1/petition.html

P.S. Petitiononline.com is a very reputable website. Please check out their privacy policy and Google them for news.[/quote]

signed
 
[quote name='Serpentor']For all of you still think the price adjustment is not a big deal, again, think of this way...

You went to Wal-mart and buy a game then two weeks later you discovered that the same game is now $10 cheaper. As a CAG, you either get $10 through price adjustment or return/rebuy strategy. If it's opened or some crappy manager stopped you, you buy the cheaper priced one and return it with the original price receipt. In other words, price adjustment within the reciept date (range from one week to three months or more) is always available!

So, how big is Amazon? It's return/exchange policy is no different from that of Wal-marts and what nots. So, what's up with the termination of the 30 days price adjustment policy? This is very different from getting rid of free shipping from the earlier days...[/quote]Unfortunately, I think we're wasting our breath with that lot. They think we're whiny babies. To me alot of them seem like ostriches with their heads stuck in the sand, unwilling to entertain other perspectives and ready to simply ignore those who don't agree with them. We'll all just have to agree to disagree and use this thread to try and organize what little resistance we can offer.
 
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You know if Amazon wasn't changing the price on an item about 50 times a day... then we wouldn't be so freakin paranoid about if we are getting the best deal. Dumb decision on Amazon's part on this. Do they not realize that we have plenty of other choices that still do offer price matching? I guess they must feel that their name now is what will drive business - nevermind that an name alone does not always guarantee business.
 
This will definately slow my spending on Amazon, particularly pre-orders because it seems a good number of stores offer price protection.
 
From a business perspective, it seems really stupid.
Either the POPG isn't used that often, so keeping it, even shrunk to 7-14 days, wouldn't be a big deal, and would only affect savvy shoppers anyway (the ones who may get the best prices, but also might spend a lot of money).
Or it is used a lot, and it's a feature used by many savvy and J6P consumers and would be missed.
Or they're big enough that they're saying, Yeah, we only want angel customers, devils, piss off, we can deal without you.
Or they're actually losing money on it.
Of those, only the fourth makes any sense, the others are either anti-consumer or seem like shooting themselves in the foot.
My ordering will definitely be curtailed drastically.
 
This is extremely disappointing. I shop on Amazon regularly and have used the price guarantee a ton of times. Even if it's only a few bucks, every little bit helps. One of the best things about Amazon was having the confidence to make a purchase right away, knowing that I would be covered if the price dropped later. Now I'll hesitate to pull the trigger if I think that a price may drop in the near future. That's bad news for them because I may well end up purchasing that item somewhere else or not at all. I'm definitely going to email and let them know that.
 
I've only used Amazon's price adjustment two or three times, but it was certainly nice to know it was there. Especially after adding tax for NY orders, this feels like a bit of an F-You from Amazon. Newegg was able to get rid of the sales tax, Amazon is going to have to do the same if they want to get my back to ordering in full force after removing their POPG.
 
[quote name='Ryuukishi']This is extremely disappointing. I shop on Amazon regularly and have used the price guarantee a ton of times. Even if it's only a few bucks, every little bit helps. One of the best things about Amazon was having the confidence to make a purchase right away, knowing that I would be covered if the price dropped later. Now I'll hesitate to pull the trigger if I think that a price may drop in the near future. That's bad news for them because I may well end up purchasing that item somewhere else or not at all. I'm definitely going to email and let them know that.[/QUOTE]

I did and got a canned response -- who even knows if they read the emails.

THis should be a CAG Bag question for Cheapy.
 
its weird to me that The Consumerist hasn't picked this up yet

I emailed it to their tips line and instead they've had such articles talking about how Lipitor doesn't have a fake doctor in their ads anymore and something about Sarah Palin and polar bears (wtf does the latter even have to do with anything?)
 
[quote name='buckythekat']its weird to me that The Consumerist hasn't picked this up yet

I emailed it to their tips line and instead they've had such articles talking about how Lipitor doesn't have a fake doctor in their ads anymore and something about Sarah Palin and polar bears (wtf does the latter even have to do with anything?)[/quote]I agree! They even had an article about how wasteful one Amazon shipment was with excess cardboard?! I sent a "tip" to them. They said they'd "look into it".:bomb:
 
I've purchased 1000's of dollars worth at Amazon, in electronics, Blu-Rays, HD DVD's and many many more items. I've saved $100's over the last year. I am severely disappointed, as even the crumbiest B&M's have price protection policies. I work for a distributor that dropships orders for Amazon for all of us, have Masters in Business and am familiar with their logistics chain. The fact that they secretely removed the policy was poor on their part, and this will cause a ripple for people that purchase preorders,and then are interested in the price adjustments. Amazon had a competitive edge doing this, and if you purchase a substantial amount of high-priced, or low priced items, and have witnessed how many times their prices fluctuated the potential savings are clear. However, given the large number of other reliable sites for media, with cash back incentives (such as Deepdiscount, now offering 10% via Microsoft Cash Back Live), and other stores that ship as fast, and have as large a selection, I hope some people will respond by increasing their "shop around" skills.

For years and years I recommended Amazon to family and friends for this policy, as well as their excellent Prime shipping program, selection and baseline pricing-for the policy, for the extra peace of mind, and for their outstanding service. But this shows that even Amazon is not immune to disregarding the customer-as usual it's about the bottom line. I have written to them, and although I received the standard "we've passed on your comments, we are sorry you are unhappy" line, I made my discontent heard. Hopefully others will do the same.
 
they just posted up about Amazon suddenly canceling people's accounts as well

really makes you wonder what the fuck is going on over at Amazon
 
oh man... i'm disappointed too... this is a major reason i always order from amazon.com i'll have to think hard before i order from them next time... doh!
 
[quote name='buckythekat']they just posted up about Amazon suddenly canceling people's accounts as well

really makes you wonder what the fuck is going on over at Amazon[/quote]I just read that... Scary. It's been years since I returned anything, and I'm not a Prime member, but like I said I've used the Price Guarantee many times. Now I'm all nervous that Amazon is going to cancel my account. This really has been a bad week for them in terms of pleasing the customer.
 
Why is the petition closed? I ordered a 360 Arcade two wks ago to PM on Sep 7th. I damn sure will return it versus paying $80 additional dollars...

edit: After reading Consumerist's article, it seems as though it applies to purchases AFTER Sep 1. I'll find out in a few days, that's for sure.
 
[quote name='mbartholow']Why is the petition closed? I ordered a 360 Arcade two wks ago to PM on Sep 7th. I damn sure will return it versus paying $80 additional dollars...

edit: After reading Consumerist's article, it seems as though it applies to purchases AFTER Sep 1. I'll find out in a few days, that's for sure.[/quote]The author created a new, more evenly tempered petition here:
http://www.petitiononline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?popg2
 
So I don't know about anyone else, but I e-mailed Amazon like normal to request a price adjustment, and they did it per usual. It went through today, and I e-mailed them yesterday.

They didn't even mention anything about the price protection ending.
 
[quote name='Maromi']So I don't know about anyone else, but I e-mailed Amazon like normal to request a price adjustment, and they did it per usual. It went through today, and I e-mailed them yesterday.

They didn't even mention anything about the price protection ending.[/QUOTE]

When was the purchase made?
 
Just fired off an email to them to get $5.02 back from an 8-port Netgear switch purchased on 08/17. Should be interesting to see if the response is anything but the usual "yes, the item is a lower price now, here's your credit" canned response.
 
[quote name='shrike4242']Just fired off an email to them to get $5.02 back from an 8-port Netgear switch purchased on 08/17. Should be interesting to see if the response is anything but the usual "yes, the item is a lower price now, here's your credit" canned response.[/quote]
I'm anxious to hear their response to you. Did Amazon silently reinstate the policy?:whistle2:k
 
[quote name='Vader582']I'm anxious to hear their response to you. Did Amazon silently reinstate the policy?:whistle2:k[/quote]My purchase was done before 08/31, so they should approve it. My curiosity is if they tell me that the policy isn't valid anymore, and I'm stiffed.

They should do the price adjustment without question, as it was ordered before 08/31, and it's within 30 days of purchase.

The real wrinkle will be if the two BR's I ordered on 08/30 or 08/31 (can't remember which off-hand) get covered for any price drops.
 
Well, as I said, mine was ordered in September, and they gave me no trouble at all--didn't even say anything like "this is the last time," etc..
 
[quote name='Vader582']Did Amazon silently reinstate the policy?[/quote]I just received a post-order adjustment for Final Fantasy Tactics A2 (ordered and shipped in August). The email I received does mention the September 1 cutoff date.

The discounts we offer for items on our web site do vary from time to time. I've checked your order, and found that we now offer discount on "Final Fantasy Tactics A2" than at the time you placed your order.

Since your purchase was so recent, I have requested a refund of $3.00 to your credit card. This amount reflects the difference between the price you were charged and the discounted price. The refund should be processed in the next few days and will appear as a credit on your next billing statement.

You may view returns and refunds by clicking the "Your Account" link at the top of our web site, then clicking "Go!" next to "open and recently shipped orders." Completed refunds will appear at the bottom of an individual order's summary page.

NOTE: Only orders placed before September 1, 2008 are eligible for a price difference refund under the Post-Order Price Guarantee policy. As of September 1, 2008 we are no longer offering discounts if prices change on our website after you make a purchase.

I hope you will understand our limitations in this regards.
Click to expand...
 
Yeah, done shopping with Amazon for sure. This is stupid.. after the latest delays in my video games and blu rays, Ill pay a few bucks more at retail rather than deal with this no more price matching bs or whatever it is.
 
[quote name='Ryuukishi']I just received a post-order adjustment for Final Fantasy Tactics A2 (ordered and shipped in August). The email I received does mention the September 1 cutoff date.[/quote]I'll have to check the email I received yesterday about the credit and see if that note about Sep 1st is in there.
 
[quote name='Ice2Dragon']Yeah, done shopping with Amazon for sure. This is stupid.. after the latest delays in my video games and blu rays, Ill pay a few bucks more at retail rather than deal with this no more price matching bs or whatever it is.[/quote]

That doesn't really make any sense. Maybe I'm misunderstanding you. You're not going to shop at Amazon if they don't have price protection, even if the item is cheaper than in retail stores? You're going to pay extra...because the already lower price won't get any lower?
 
[quote name='Maromi']That doesn't really make any sense. Maybe I'm misunderstanding you. You're not going to shop at Amazon if they don't have price protection, even if the item is cheaper than in retail stores? You're going to pay extra...because the already lower price won't get any lower?[/QUOTE]

Basically, he's willing to pay a small premium for price protection with a speculative discount in the future. It actually makes sense in certain cases. For instance, the price differential must be "fair and reasonable." I would have to type a bunch of scenarios out or make a tree, but he is acting fairly rational, even though, his decision has some previous history playing a large role.
 
Well, tax is a big factor, too. Even if I miss out on a price drop here and there, I still think Amazon is almost always a best bet for games.

That being said, like I mentioned, they refunded my $3 like normal on a September purchase, so who knows what's going on as of now?
 
Probably a slow trickle of not doing these price guarentees?

It might be better than a severe cutback since they really didn't announce it that much.....

it'd be bad to cut off a service and expect people to find out themselves.

This should have been a mass public email sent out. I don't remember getting anything like this before.
 
looking at this list - http://www.priceprotectr.com/retailers.jsp

the only other retailers besides Amazon now to not offer price protection are

Geeks.com
Newegg
Ritz Camera
Tilly's (who the heck is this?)

I think this proves even more that Amazon made a bad decision, their main competition has always been the B&Ms

and Best Buy, Circuit City, Wal-Mart, Target all offer price protection
 
[quote name='buckythekat']looking at this list - http://www.priceprotectr.com/retailers.jsp

the only other retailers besides Amazon now to not offer price protection are

Geeks.com
Newegg
Ritz Camera
Tilly's (who the heck is this?)

I think this proves even more that Amazon made a bad decision, their main competition has always been the B&Ms

and Best Buy, Circuit City, Wal-Mart, Target all offer price protection[/quote]

Last experience I had a few months ago, Buy.com would not adjust their price even within hours of purchase.
 
[quote name='buckythekat']looking at this list - http://www.priceprotectr.com/retailers.jsp

the only other retailers besides Amazon now to not offer price protection are

Geeks.com
Newegg
Ritz Camera
Tilly's (who the heck is this?)

I think this proves even more that Amazon made a bad decision, their main competition has always been the B&Ms

and Best Buy, Circuit City, Wal-Mart, Target all offer price protection[/QUOTE]

And those places dont have price drop as frequently as amazon, plus they charge shipping and tax. Plus amazon has a much better selection.
 
[quote name='62t']And those places dont have price drop as frequently as amazon, plus they charge shipping and tax. Plus amazon has a much better selection.[/quote]

wait were you really trying to use that as a positive for Amazon? that's exactly why a lot of us are upset that Amazon got rid of price protection

I also just noticed that in payment options Amazon no longer lets you pay by check (or basically place an order on hold while you check funds on your account)
 
[quote name='Demolition Man']You know if Amazon wasn't changing the price on an item about 50 times a day... then we wouldn't be so freakin paranoid about if we are getting the best deal. Dumb decision on Amazon's part on this. Do they not realize that we have plenty of other choices that still do offer price matching? I guess they must feel that their name now is what will drive business - nevermind that an name alone does not always guarantee business.[/quote]


Geez, I didn't know about Amazon getting rid of POPG till this thread. Damn.

I haven't purchased anything since July because I've noticed the prices fluctuating like the freaking stock market more so now than I remember in several years as a customer. And if it doesn't move, they aren't much cheaper than locals anymore either.

It's too risky with the new policy to hit the buy button at the wrong hour/minute and not have any recourse on the same day, much less 30.

Any tax savings is potentially nullified with the gamble, and waiting two weeks with saver shipping before I get to even touch it makes it almost pointless to shop Amazon unless it is a rock bottom sale.

Too bad. Even my UPS driver has commented on the cutback of orders.
 
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