Customer orders a $50 product. We purchase a USPS shipping label through Amazon, and ship the product to the customer. Customer (almost certainly) lies and claims there was nothing in the product box when he received it. Says he wants a refund.
What are your options and what would you do?
Did you get a receipt when shipping it? If it was weighed you have proof that there was an item in the box.
Are you buying shipping labels from Amazon?
They are so expensive.
How are you managing your profits?
It was shipped with 100+ other packages, so the USPS just did a single scan for the pickup.
Bummer. I’ve had shifty customers too, so I make sure to take pictures of everything and weigh everything, just so I have some semblance of proof.
Amazon’s guidelines usually suggest just refunding the order and asking the customer to place a new one, or sending a replacement. It’s considered top-notch customer service (and honestly, just part of doing business on Amazon). I think this approach works great, especially if it’s a low-cost item for you.
But if it’s a high-cost item or you feel like the customer might not be telling the truth, you could politely let them know that USPS records show their package was delivered on a certain date and time (be sure to attach the proof). If the package was really empty, as they claim, it should have been marked by the post office with a “Received Without Contents” stamp, and they should’ve refused delivery since that’s a USPS issue. If they accepted the package, you could ask for a photo of it with the “Received Without Contents” stamp and let them know you’ll open a claim with the U.S. Postal Inspector to investigate possible theft.
Often, customers will end up finding the package and you won’t hear back. But if they keep pushing for a refund, you can ask them to file an A-to-Z Guarantee Claim.
Just be prepared, this could lead to a negative review. However, such feedback should be easy to remove. Amazon removes feedback about delayed or undelivered orders as long as you shipped on time through Buy Shipping.
I would recommend disputing the claim with Amazon. Provide the tracking information and any other relevant evidence, such as photos of the product before shipment. If Amazon sides with the customer, you might consider refunding the order to avoid further negative feedback.
Tell them to file an A-to-Z claim with Amazon. Most likely, they won’t if they are lying. They’re probably just trying to see if you will issue a refund to make them happy. I don’t suggest doing that. Let Amazon handle this and pay out of their own pocket.
Amazon offers the cheapest shipping. It’s not comparable to Pirate Ship, plus you’re protected against false claims like this. Where are you finding cheaper shipping than Amazon?
Please note that the customer isn’t claiming that there was nothing in the shipping box. He claimed he received the shipping box with a product inside. He just claims that the product box had nothing inside of it. I have reasons to beleive he isn’t telling the truth and don’t wish to give him $50 out of my own pocket. I’m mostly wondering if I’m going to have to ultimately refund him or if Amazon’s A to Z claims cover these types of things (product box being “empty” even when it wasn’t).
Amazon’s A-to-Z Guarantee will cover it since it still counts as a missing package. You might need to provide pictures of the package or product, but in most cases, Amazon will just approve the claim in your favor.
Amazon doesn’t care. You’re out of luck because they allow customers to abuse returns. This happened to us several times with Nike products, where customers returned used shoes.
Any idea how “bad” it is if you lose the claim? What if you lose multiple times? Is there some sort of metric we should be aware of?
If you somehow lose the A-to-Z claim, just appeal it.
Amazon should cover these claims, and they won’t affect your Order Defect Rate (ODR).
Even if they reject the appeal and it counts against your ODR, it’s not the end of the world as long as you keep it below 1%.
Oh, and the most important part: never, ever refund an order after a claim has been opened, as this will most likely result in the claim being closed not in your favor.
I would recommend disputing the claim with Amazon. Provide the tracking information and any other relevant evidence, such as photos of the product before shipment. If Amazon sides with the customer, you might consider refunding the order to avoid further negative feedback.
