"The Risks of Shopping on Amazon" by Daniel Guss
My guide to not getting ripped-off, cheated and having your privacy invaded
@TheGussReport on Twitter - On Saturday, I was in a higher-end store at one of LA’s busiest shopping destinations when I noticed something odd.
Three shoppers wearing sunglasses (in the early evening) each had their sweatshirt hood pulled-on with the drawstring tightened such that it obscured their face.
Sure enough, they suddenly grabbed well over a thousand dollars of merchandise that was on display near the security-less store entrance. They bolted out unimpeded.
Neither the attractive 100-pound woman controlling the bustling store’s headcount nor California Highway Patrol officers running a toy drive a few yards away served as a deterrent or gave chase. “Nobody got hurt,” a store manager erroneously told me, ignoring the fact that we all eventually pay for every item stolen, “and it was a good shopping experience for everyone.”
All the more reason to stay home and shop on Amazon, right?
Except, Amazon, the world’s largest online retailer, is not without risks, either.
Here is my guide to minimizing your chances of getting ripped-off, cheated and having your privacy invaded there, too.
The seller isn’t always who you think it is
On Amazon, the party from which you buy could be (1) Amazon, (2) a familiar brand like Crocs or Pyrex or (3) third parties with quirky or odd names like clothing retailer Little Donkey Andy. This becomes clearer if you scroll each product page and look for “Shipped By” and “Sold By.”
While there is nothing inherently wrong in buying from third parties, use caution when buying from sellers who imply (with Amazon’s blessing) at the top of their pages that they are the manufacturer with links that say “Visit the Olay Store” when their “Sold By” indicates that they are not Olay.
From an innocent perspective, these third-party sellers may want you to see all of the products that Olay (or Crocs, Pyrex et al) offer, in the hope that you’ll return and buy from them instead. But in the real world, that’s a naïve take.
While theirs could be genuine, legitimately obtained merchandise, the next section shows how that isn’t always the case.
Stolen or Counterfeit Merchandise
I recently purchased an Olay skincare product for a family member from what I later discovered was a third-party Amazon seller.
When it arrived, I discovered that the product came with a curious history, namely a label on the product package that read “NOT AVAILABLE FOR RESALE.”
A good guess is that it was a store sample.
When I complained to Amazon, it showed no interest in the specifics and simply issued a refund and told me that we could use, donate or discard the product.
A few weeks later, I made the same purchase from the same seller.
This time, the sticker on the inside of the package read “THIS ITEM INTENDED FOR SALE AT WALGREENS.”
After getting the same refund and response from Amazon, I reached out to Walgreens media relations, which told me that it supported the Integrity, Notification, and Fairness in Online Retail Marketplaces (INFORM) for Consumers Act, but never asked for the seller’s information.
At last glance, the seller is still selling Olay products on Amazon. And that assumes the products aren’t counterfeit altogether.
Rigged Ratings / Paid Ratings
It is always a good idea to lean toward products on Amazon that have 4.5-star ratings or higher, as well as thousands of reviews that would be too onerous to rig.
Because many Amazon ratings are rigged.
I regularly receive email pitches from China-based Amazon sellers using Westernized names, asking me to buy their product, give it a 5-star review and they will refund the purchase price via PayPal.
I recently accepted one such offer to see how it would play out.
The seller I chose made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. Either:
a 3-in-1 wireless charger for iPhone fans;
a Bluetooth karaoke microphone; or
a wart remover.
How could I not engage with this seller?!?!
Since I neither do karaoke nor have warts, by default, I chose the multi-device, wireless Apple charger.
True to their word, the seller immediately refunded the purchase price. After trying it for a few days, I concluded that it was a good product, but not worthy of 5 stars. I sent the seller a note explaining why, and they thanked me for my time, allowing me to keep the item or give it away, but requested that I not post a review.
While the seller may have violated Amazon’s rules for obtaining my contact information, there was nothing inherently wrong with them asking me to try out their product. But the takeaway is to consider skipping products that have an irrational percentage of 5-star reviews, especially when the number of reviews is relatively small.
Don’t trust the “Cost Per Item” claims
The phrase Caveat Emptor, or Let the Buyer Beware, reminds us that we need to think for ourselves when shopping on Amazon.
Sometimes, third-party Amazon sellers miscalculate whether buying a larger quantity is a better value for you. In this case, buying one of the item is a much better value than two.
But you can’t even trust Amazon to price things fairly or transparently.
In this example, Amazon’s “Subscribe and Save” feature misleadingly discounts only some of the items, which are identical.
Amazon likes to say that such things “are system errors,” but before they offer you a refund, they still try to hold onto your cash, which brings us to the next section.
The problem with Amazon gift cards and “promotional credits”
When Amazon makes mistakes, their overly apologetic overseas customer service reps read from a series of scripted replies, like, “I know this is very upsetting to you, but please do not worry,” and then ask whether you want an Amazon gift card or a refund.
Obviously, the response should always be:
Sometimes, when Amazon fails to deliver on time, or leaves a package where you told them not to, reach out to their customer service reps and request a promotional credit.
Since they assume that the delay is “very upsetting” to us anyway, they will almost always give you a $5 promotional credit toward your next purchase, but it has to be on a product that is sold AND shipped by Amazon.
What they also don’t tell you is that if you wind up returning that item, you don’t get the $5 promotional credit back.
Very upsetting, indeed.
Beware of products with apps
Recently, I received an accent lamp from Amazon that came with the cool feature of being able to control it from my phone, even when I am away.
Obviously, using this requires an app.
And every app has a privacy policy.
Curious, I copied and pasted the entire privacy policy into a Word doc. Not including the text from lower-levels of conditions to which I had to first agree in order to download the app, the privacy policy contained more than 3,000 words which most likely would have allowed unknown entities to access everything on my phone, but also allowed the seller to sell my personal information — and yours, if you are in my address book or are a social media contact — to others.
In short, never forget that every privacy policy makes us the product and that Amazon, Facebook, TikTok and governments around the globe easily access, save and will inevitably use it for their own purposes, often immediately.
I declined the privacy policy and returned the lamp.
The dubious promise of “free returns” on Amazon
Most Amazon product pages promise “free returns,” a phrase that is subject to interpretation.
For safety reasons, Amazon cannot re-sell health and beauty or food items. Shipping them back costs them and their sellers a fortune. Amazon’s first scripted response will be that you cannot get a refund because the product cannot be resold.
If this happens to you, tell the rep to look at the product page and see where it says “free returns.” Tell them that you bought the product based on that assurance.
Then play their game and ask for a supervisor. They’ll promptly give you a full refund and, if you ask, often the aforementioned $5 promotional credit.
But what about free returns?
Another way that Amazon tries to pick your pocket is to charge you a fee for returning items at some locations instead of using their drop-off lockers or Whole Foods, which are few and far between.
Always choose the free option and, if the rep does it for you, ask how much it costs and how far it is from your location. If it is too far, tell them and they will waive the fee, if there is one, for a closer drop-off.
Don’t assume Amazon has refunded your money!
When the Amazon app tells you that it will issue a refund upon receipt of your returned product, don’t take it at its word. Scroll down your purchases and you may find that you never got your money back. I did this once and found no fewer than seven refunds that weren’t issued.
When you reach out to Amazon for your overdue refunds, don’t be surprised if you are told “I know this is very upsetting to you, but please do not worry.” Followed by, “A system error occurred, but I will issue your refunds right away.” And finally, “For the inconvenience, Amazon is giving you a $5 promotional credit.”
Maybe brick-and-mortar shopping isn’t dead yet.
Caveat emptor, my friends.
Caveat emptor.
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(Daniel Guss, MBA, is a multi-award-winning journalist. In June ‘23, he won the LA Press Club’s “Online Journalist of the Year” and “Best Activism Journalism” awards. He has been City Editor for the Mayor Sam network, and a featured contributor for CityWatchLA, KFI AM-640, iHeartMedia, 790-KABC, Cumulus Media, KCRW 89.9 FM, KRLA 870 AM, Huffington Post, Los Angeles Daily News, Los Angeles Magazine, Movieline Magazine, Emmy Magazine, Los Angeles Business Journal, Pasadena Star-News, Los Angeles Downtown News and the Los Angeles Times in its sports, opinion, entertainment and Sunday Magazine sections among other publishers.)