Why is Amazon so slow to dispatch?
Discussion
I order a lot from them and have generally found them very good - most of my Christmas presents came from there without problem.
But a few things now just sit in 'preparing for dispatch' for ages. Before Christmas it was a couple of bottles of whisky that took about 2 weeks to be sent. This week it's a coffee maker I ordered on the 4th which still hasn't been sent. Both orders were in stock and sold by Amazon directly.
Is this a new ploy to get people to sign up for prime - just make their normal service abysmal?
But a few things now just sit in 'preparing for dispatch' for ages. Before Christmas it was a couple of bottles of whisky that took about 2 weeks to be sent. This week it's a coffee maker I ordered on the 4th which still hasn't been sent. Both orders were in stock and sold by Amazon directly.
Is this a new ploy to get people to sign up for prime - just make their normal service abysmal?
I found the same on the run up to xmas - i think its because so much is done now by other sellers instead of Amazon themselves. Some things took bloody ages. I got prime in December.
If you use Amazon a lot its totally worth it.
Ive made by £80 back just in xmas deliveries. Everything comes next day.
If you use Amazon a lot its totally worth it.
Ive made by £80 back just in xmas deliveries. Everything comes next day.
Just start a prime trial on a new email when you are going to purchase a few things.
Also if anything arrives late using prime they give you an extra month to say sorry
The bit thats annoying is with out prime you have to select free super saver other wise other get charged for delivery. Not great if your not paying attention.
Also if anything arrives late using prime they give you an extra month to say sorry
The bit thats annoying is with out prime you have to select free super saver other wise other get charged for delivery. Not great if your not paying attention.
David87 said:
Yeah, I think they basically make the non-Prime service deliberately worse so that you sign up for Prime. To be fair, I must have easily made my £80 back as I literally don't go to shops and buy quite a bit of stuff from Amazon.
Likewise, I use Prime loads as it's hassle-free, and I've had six or seven months of free membership by complaining every time something is late. Very good value if you dislike going to shops.I think it is really to differentiate the free delivery from the standard paid delivery too - anecdotal perhaps, but I put an order in over christmas which I inadvertently selected the paid delivery, then realised and changed it after payment (which is possible if you are relatively quick) - and it was despatched the same day. The orders I had made that were "pure" free delivery were 3-4 days before despatch.
I guess the delivery service is the same for everything, but they are just slotting the free ones among the paid ones to fill the system, and minimise cost.
I guess the delivery service is the same for everything, but they are just slotting the free ones among the paid ones to fill the system, and minimise cost.
p1stonhead said:
i think its because so much is done now by other sellers instead of Amazon themselves.
I'm a seller on Amazon in a "gated" category & we get very tight targets on despatch! 1-2 days is the maximum time we're allowed & they would give us a proper slap if we go over that. I've found the stuff to be despatched by Amazon themselves to be slower - to me it seems the items shipped by, but not supplied by Amazon that are the slowest (as a seller, we can send our stock to Amazon & they hold it in a warehouse then send it out - it's called "Fulfilment By Amazon" or FBA).
I bought a book in December using Prime & it was 3 days before it was actually posted. Wasn't overly bothered, but I was surprised as I thought it was all "Next Day Delivery" or is that not the case any more?
I use prime and this still happens on occasions, and there appear to be two causes.
In most cases I've noticed it is 3rd Party Sellers that use Amazon for fulfilment but have inaccurate stock levels for item that are not really in stock or 'expected soon'. When I see an order in that state, I decide if I will wait or cancel the order in favour of an alternative.
One item that was Amazon themselves, some laptop Memory, was reported to me as 'lost' in warehouse when I complained. My assumption is the stock was probably 'put away' incorrectly in the warehouse so could not be found by the picker.
In most cases I've noticed it is 3rd Party Sellers that use Amazon for fulfilment but have inaccurate stock levels for item that are not really in stock or 'expected soon'. When I see an order in that state, I decide if I will wait or cancel the order in favour of an alternative.
One item that was Amazon themselves, some laptop Memory, was reported to me as 'lost' in warehouse when I complained. My assumption is the stock was probably 'put away' incorrectly in the warehouse so could not be found by the picker.
qube_TA said:
I find Amazon to be quite good generally, I signed up to Prime before Christmas to ensure stuff arrived. I wish they'd not use YODEL / MyHermes as they're very unreliable.
Amazon Logistics seems to be a fast-growing delivery method in my experience. They have a depot a few miles from me, and it tends to be the smaller, lower cost items that arrive with them - items I'd previously expect to get via Royal Mail. Indeed, in the last six months I've seldom received a parcel from Amazon that wasn't from Amazon Logistics. This has been everything - from books and Blu-rays, to toys as well as bigger things like laser printers. I've never had a package that wasn't next day - or indeed from the same person - they seem to have a large collection of Eastern European delivery drivers. 
I must admit, I'm considering joining prime today. Was about to order a DVD, and noticed it's already on Amazon TV. The music service will be a nice plus, and since I have a kindle that's also a benefit (although most kindle books are hardly expensive).
With the one day delivery too, £79 for the year doesn't really seem very expensive!
With the one day delivery too, £79 for the year doesn't really seem very expensive!
Stuff directly from Amazon seems to arrive supernaturally quickly. I've placed orders mid-afternoon, only to find it turn-up the following morning.
What I find annoying is when I go for the best priced items, only to realise the delivery will be 2 months from the slowest boat from China. By the time it arrives, I've usually forgotten I've ordered it. One one occasion, I'd forgotten and bought the same thing elsewhere. Must keep better records.
What I find annoying is when I go for the best priced items, only to realise the delivery will be 2 months from the slowest boat from China. By the time it arrives, I've usually forgotten I've ordered it. One one occasion, I'd forgotten and bought the same thing elsewhere. Must keep better records.
I don't like the idea of Prime. Some times I pop things I'm in no hurry for in my basket and wait until I can fulfil a free delivery. Can be awkward though, some items invariably come from 3rd party sellers so don't qualify.
I try to use Amazon but often it's not particularly cheap, so off to ebay.
I try to use Amazon but often it's not particularly cheap, so off to ebay.
Sounds like stock ruptures / losses to me. I.e. The system says 'x' in stock that despatch can't find. Could be damaged, stolen, in the wrong location, incorrectly booked/transacted etc... Its a reasonably common occurance in warehousing and must be a nightmare for a company the size of Amazon.
PositronicRay said:
I don't like the idea of Prime. Some times I pop things I'm in no hurry for in my basket and wait until I can fulfil a free delivery. Can be awkward though, some items invariably come from 3rd party sellers so don't qualify.
I try to use Amazon but often it's not particularly cheap, so off to ebay.
I know what you mean - I use Amazon a lot, but don't generally need stuff straight away so never been convinced I needed prime.I try to use Amazon but often it's not particularly cheap, so off to ebay.
However, at lunch time I signed up for the free trial and so far I'm quite impressed. I've never had a music streaming service before - tried one a few years ago (Spotify I think) but you needed Facebook and I don't use that. Listened to several albums on Amazon so far that I've liked tracks by the artist but never been convinced I'd like a whole album - first one was very good so I bought it and guess it will turn up tomorrow. Got a few others queued up and even if I don't like them enough to buy, it's brilliant for the gym where I was getting tired of listening to my own library.
Will give the video a look over the weekend but I'm beginning to think the next day delivery is the icing on the cake for me rather than the main benefit. So far, I'm fairly sure I'll let them bill me at the end of the 30 days.
The other thing with Prime is that if you do buy something that you do not need quickly, there is usually a "No Rush" option for shipping which drops it back to the 3-5 days. In return for this you get £1 credit (sometimes seems to be £3) to spend on digital stuff (MP3, video, kindle books). I read a lot on my Kindle so have benefited from this. Credit seems to be "per order" so I have been known to split an order for 3 or 4 things into 3 or 4 orders and get £3 or £4 credit instead of £1.
I caved in and bought Prime just after Christmas having calculated what I spent on delivery.
Very impressed so far. I'll easily make my money back by March, I'm sure. What was Love Film is fine.
I also have Spotify and Netflix and am too far committed to want to change that, but if one was less lazy than me, I'm sure £79pa is a no brainer given what you get.
To answer the question on slow delivery - I'm sure it's to get you on Prime. When I order now, I very often get the dispatch notification within a couple of hours.
Very impressed so far. I'll easily make my money back by March, I'm sure. What was Love Film is fine.
I also have Spotify and Netflix and am too far committed to want to change that, but if one was less lazy than me, I'm sure £79pa is a no brainer given what you get.
To answer the question on slow delivery - I'm sure it's to get you on Prime. When I order now, I very often get the dispatch notification within a couple of hours.
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