Amazon is Allegedly Canceling Subscribe & Save Orders to Charge Customers More

[AlphaAtlas]

Amazon says their Subscribe & Save program allows customers to save on items they frequently order, but some users of the program on Slickdeals claim Amazon is trying to overcharge them. In a nutshell, Amazon allegedly cancels the S&S orders, then automatically re-orders the items at higher prices. Amazon customer service told an S&S user that Amazon can cancel and re-enter an S&S order at any time, without a notification to the customer, but Slickdeals didn't find such a clause in the programs's Terms and Conditions. When Slickdeals reached out to customer service themselves, Amazon said "We don't do any such things. If the price is changed for an item on our website it will only be changed for future subscribe and save orders and the current order will not be affected. The discount will be applied to the new price."

According to Slickdealer JVGeneration, "Amazon canceled a Subscribe & Save order and removed it from my canceled orders page. They tried to ship it with my Subscribe & Save at full price. The only proof I had for the lower price was an email confirmation -- they had removed all traces of the original order from my account."

 

[purple_monster]

this is why i already get my receipts and billing statements both emailed and printed. i dont care if people think i am 700 years old.

 

[Sniper|3d-R|]

Sounds like deceptive practices.. No waaay! From amazon? I have not purchased anything from there in years. Once prime went up, it was time to cancel.

 

[nutzo]

Don't trust their Subscribe & Save program.
There's no guarantee that the price won't go up on the next shipment, and then you end up paying more than expected.

 

[Deleted member 184142]

I have lots of S&S and have had prices change a number of times. Each time the item was emailed to me as a price change, and asked if I wanted to still place the order.

 

[Sircolby45]

I have lots of S&S and have had prices change a number of times. Each time the item was emailed to me as a price change, and asked if I wanted to still place the order.

Same here. I always review my orders right before they go out anyway just to make sure everything is in order. I have never had any issues. If I don't like a price hike on something I just throw it out of the shipment.

 

[pcgeekesq]

Just another of Amazon's abusive practices.
But don't count on governments to do anything, Bezos owns too many politicians.
The only solution is the obvious one: Just say No to Amazon.

 

[1_rick]

Don't trust their Subscribe & Save program.
There's no guarantee that the price won't go up on the next shipment, and then you end up paying more than expected.

That's not the complaint here, though. The OP acknowledges that can happen. This story is that the *first* order, which is supposed to have a low price, gets cancelled and then automatically reordered at a higher price, without any notice.

 

[Kinestron]

Don't trust their Subscribe & Save program.
There's no guarantee that the price won't go up on the next shipment, and then you end up paying more than expected.

Yep, this has been my experience. There is nearly ZERO price consistency unlike when I go to the supermarket and some of my favorite products will stay the same for months and if they do fluctuate, it is only something like 10 to 30 cents. With S&S, the very next month a $5 product could be over $7, an $18 product could be over $25, etc. They do give you a list about 3-4 days beforehand and you can see if the price went up significantly so you can cancel anything with a stupid increase but overall I expected a more constant price when using this program.

If they are going to eliminate alerts to price changes then this just makes it all the more unreliable as opposed to shopping at the supermarket that has more consistent pricing. It's almost as if they realize people are constantly cancelling because they don't like the pricing of the next delivery.

 

[dvsman]

I get the notifications like every other Prime S&S user. I think they more rely on you being addicted to beef jerky or haribo gummi bears and just keep on clicking OK than trying to trick you. You can't discount how laziness affects your decision making process. I know it has for me. Alot of my co-workers are surprised when I get a box from Amazon and have no idea what's inside it due to the S&S being different every month.

 

[Kinestron]

That's not the complaint here, though. The OP acknowledges that can happen. This story is that the *first* order, which is supposed to have a low price, gets cancelled and then automatically reordered at a higher price, without any notice.

I would say they are related. I've canceled tons of products because the price jumps way too much compared to the first shipment so now they are going to stop alerting you.

 

[Gweenz]

Every penny counts, the man's trying to run a business!

 

[BloodyIron]

How does this not constitute fraud?

 

[iamjanco]

Buy more, save more. Just don't subscribe.

 

[Dead Parrot]

I have a lot of order screens that I did a print to PDF so I had a record of just what was displayed. Came in handy a couple of times. Kinda hard for CS to argue with a screen print of their website with their order # and the qty/price at the time of the order. The pdf is a lot easier to send in then a hard copy or scanned image of the hard copy.

Have to wonder if this is a one off data glitch or the start of a trend? On millions of orders, a few are bound to get screwed up.

 

[arestavo]

I've had this happen with a couple of bags of Feline Greenies cat treats - $2.49 to $4.99 each and the website still listed them at $2.49 when they shipped.

 

[Patton187]

Sounds like deceptive practices.. No waaay! From amazon? I have not purchased anything from there in years. Once prime went up, it was time to cancel.

They have to make up 68 billion dollars.

 

[NoOther]

I have lots of S&S and have had prices change a number of times. Each time the item was emailed to me as a price change, and asked if I wanted to still place the order.

This is my experience as well. I have cancelled orders because of price changes. I have always been made aware that the product was "no longer being offered". What actually happened is they stopped getting a product sourced from one area and had it sourced from another, and the price changed. I had to resubscribe to it. I have yet to have them surreptitiously change a price without my knowledge. In fact, they have never even shipped me a S&S product without notifying me that it was: 1) About to renew listing the item, quantity, cost, and period. 2) That a shipment was going to be sent out, also showing item, quantity, and the sub period. 3) That some change has occurred.

 

[Disco_Stu_04]

Save yourself another $120 and drop prime.

 

[DocNo]

I dunno how Amazon maintains their reputation with crap like this. That subscribe and save was a bait and switch is unsurprising.

And I really do need to see if Prime is still worth it. Easy to forget and just let it auto bill each year

 

[nutzo]

Save yourself another $120 and drop prime.

With Prime I get 5% back on my Amazon credit card.
With all the stuff I order for work, my prime is easily paid for with that extra 3%.

 

[LurkerLito]

I have never run into a problem with Amazon personally, though to be fair, I only used Subscribe and Save once, and before it even had a chance to send me another package I cancelled it because I still didn't come close to using up what I bought initially.

As far as canceling it I personally won't. It's just too much of a good value for me. 2 day shipping on almost anything I want to buy + Amazon Prime Video and Music + a free book once a month makes it a bargain for me. Just comparing it to netflix which costs like ~$192/year for 4K now makes NF the first thing I would cancel before Amazon.

 

[raz-0]

Just another of Amazon's abusive practices.
But don't count on governments to do anything, Bezos owns too many politicians.
The only solution is the obvious one: Just say No to Amazon.

Nope, doing this in fact is already illegal. Getting a quick summary judgement in a local court is probably not a giant hassle. Your CC company should also be happy to back you up in reversing the charges. Just be prepared to return said item.

I have lots of S&S and have had prices change a number of times. Each time the item was emailed to me as a price change, and asked if I wanted to still place the order.

This is in fact how it shoudl be handled according to the law. If for some reason prior to shipment the terms need to change, or the wait may be longer than initially agreed upon they are required to give you the option to decline prior to shipment or further extending the wait.

That's not the complaint here, though. The OP acknowledges that can happen. This story is that the *first* order, which is supposed to have a low price, gets cancelled and then automatically reordered at a higher price, without any notice.

What is described is indistinguishable from a situation where Amazon's price went up, they abided by the law, sent notice, and the user complaining either omitted it or the mail went to junk. In the case of the mail going to junk, amazon would indeed be breaking the law because absent a response to continue the dragged out transaction, they should assume a no and cancel the order.

this has been the way of mail order in the US since LOOOOONG before amazon was a thing.

 

[NoOther]

What is described is indistinguishable from a situation where Amazon's price went up, they abided by the law, sent notice, and the user complaining either omitted it or the mail went to junk. In the case of the mail going to junk, amazon would indeed be breaking the law because absent a response to continue the dragged out transaction, they should assume a no and cancel the order.

this has been the way of mail order in the US since LOOOOONG before amazon was a thing.

I do not believe this last part is true. This is how a lot of subscription services work. You agree to a term and conditions, some of which specify that if a change occurs, they will notify you and you will have the option to cancel. Basically that puts the onus on you to actually cancel the order, if you don't receive the mailing, that is not the fault of Amazon. This exists in many cases. I could give several from my own experience. In the end though, these are fairly easy to fight if you have records or track down the records.

 

[Disco_Stu_04]

With Prime I get 5% back on my Amazon credit card.
With all the stuff I order for work, my prime is easily paid for with that extra 3%.

You're still wasting money. The card still gives 3% back without prime and you still get free shipping.

 

[jkw]

Timely article. My annual Prime subscription was going to renew on Feb 1, and I haven't been using it much, so I cancelled. I had to click through 4 separate "Are You Sure?", "Look at all of these amazing benefits you'll be losing!!!", "Why Not Switch To Monthly?", "But Wait, There's More!" screens.

 

[Shoganai]

With Prime I get 5% back on my Amazon credit card.
With all the stuff I order for work, my prime is easily paid for with that extra 3%.

Yeah my entire family and various friends use my Prime account and I tell them to just use my Prime card on file and pay me back. They all order so much stuff that many of the normal things I order are basically free. It paid for itself 10 times over already. It’s also great for holidays with the 0% financing. I can just order stuff for everyone all at once and worry about it later. They’ve also been very generous with my credit card limit. Definitely my most used card.

 

[Twisted Kidney]

I was offered a subscription to a monthly shipment of a ten pack of boxers...

Like, I get that I might be a little untidy on occasion and maybe I don't always wipe that well or make time for that all-cleansing second shake, but they clean right up!

I swear!

 

[Shoganai]

I was offered a subscription to a monthly shipment of a ten pack of boxers...

Like, I get that I might be a little untidy on occasion and maybe I don't always wipe that well or make time for that all-cleansing second shake, but they clean right up!

I swear!

Well that was far more than I was expecting to read.

 

[Crosshairs]

With Prime I get 5% back on my Amazon credit card.
With all the stuff I order for work, my prime is easily paid for with that extra 3%.

came here to say this.... .... 5% back more than pays for the membership

 

[1_rick]

What is described is indistinguishable from a situation where Amazon's price went up, they abided by the law, sent notice, and the user complaining either omitted it or the mail went to junk.

No, because what people are reporting is that their order disappears, and a new order is placed, with a later date and at a higher price, and--when they log in to Amazon and check their order history--the original order has not been cancelled, but has disappeared from the system.

 

[SticKx911]

No, because what people are reporting is that their order disappears, and a new order is placed, with a later date and at a higher price, and--when they log in to Amazon and check their order history--the original order has not been cancelled, but has disappeared from the system.

This is alarming. I s&s for things I don’t need -now- I save 5-15%, they save on a little shipping costs by combining items. Win-win. I will definitely monitor the items I add specifically for the deals or coupons more closely.

 

[steakman1971]

I have lots of S&S and have had prices change a number of times. Each time the item was emailed to me as a price change, and asked if I wanted to still place the order.

Yep. I do pay close attention as prices do go up sometimes. I can decide to leave it or cancel it - hassle free.
Not sure what the article is getting at?

 

[nutzo]

You're still wasting money. The card still gives 3% back without prime and you still get free shipping.

Except we occasionally stream shows (only streaming service I currently have), and the non-prime free shipping usually takes a week.
One of the reasons I buy more stuff for work from Amazon (besides the low prices) is because I can get it faster. Especially small stuff like cables.

The quick free shipping is also great for heavy stuff like UPS batteries

 

[mope54]

This is alarming. I s&s for things I don’t need -now- I save 5-15%, they save on a little shipping costs by combining items. Win-win. I will definitely monitor the items I add specifically for the deals or coupons more closely.

This shouldn't be alarming to any regular user who is actually utilizing the system the way it was intended to be used rather than fraudulently submitting orders. Consider that every regular user here is reporting they have never experienced an issue, or at worst, had to confirm the shipment.

Contrast that with the slickdeal user experience. Keep in mind the typical slickdeal user submits a S&S order *but* then either immediately cancels the sub in order to reap the discount with no intention of honoring the subscription. That's outright fraud, which is how the general trend of slick"deals" have degenerated...from finding deals to perpetrating fraud and then the userbase aggressively defending their shitty behavior.

Their shitty behavior has completely fucked over general customers in terms of price matching policies, all credit cards have eliminated price protections, we're no longer protected from pricing errors, and buying clearanced items at one location to return/rebuy it elsewhere and all the while arguing and berating the CSRs trying to limit their atrocious behavior. I've seen threads promoting ticket swapping and coupon fraud, too. Those aren't deals, they're just illegal behavior.

I've been a member of that site for what must be around a decade or longer and it's very rare nowdays to find a straight deal that doesn't involve monkey-business, in my opinion.

 

[mope54]

Yep. I do pay close attention as prices do go up sometimes. I can decide to leave it or cancel it - hassle free.
Not sure what the article is getting at?

My lengthy reply can be summed up as this:

Slickdeals abusers subscribe to save and then immediately cancel the subscription.
My guess is Amazon cancels their so-called subscription order and then re-orders it at the non-subscription price.

 

[focbde]

This is my experience as well. I have cancelled orders because of price changes. I have always been made aware that the product was "no longer being offered". What actually happened is they stopped getting a product sourced from one area and had it sourced from another, and the price changed. I had to resubscribe to it. I have yet to have them surreptitiously change a price without my knowledge. In fact, they have never even shipped me a S&S product without notifying me that it was: 1) About to renew listing the item, quantity, cost, and period. 2) That a shipment was going to be sent out, also showing item, quantity, and the sub period. 3) That some change has occurred.

Same here... Never had an issue.

It's amazing to me reading this thread just how much some people absolutely relish the chance to beat on Amazon, especially given the person reporting it references a website known for promoting methods to fraudulently obtain items cheaper. I think a lot of the same posters generally hate anything 'big' or just love them a bit of drama.

 

[MV75]

Got to pay for that divorce some how.

 

[kju1]

Have to wonder if this is a one off data glitch or the start of a trend? On millions of orders, a few are bound to get screwed up.

Given that computers are handling the orders automaticallyif the algorithm doesnt have any bugs all of the orders should be fine (in respects to being placed at the correct price).

Given Amazon's volume I would expect them to have worked out any kinks in the system by now...

 

[kju1]

This shouldn't be alarming to any regular user who is actually utilizing the system the way it was intended to be used rather than fraudulently submitting orders. Consider that every regular user here is reporting they have never experienced an issue, or at worst, had to confirm the shipment.

Contrast that with the slickdeal user experience. Keep in mind the typical slickdeal user submits a S&S order *but* then either immediately cancels the sub in order to reap the discount with no intention of honoring the subscription. That's outright fraud, which is how the general trend of slick"deals" have degenerated...from finding deals to perpetrating fraud and then the userbase aggressively defending their shitty behavior.

Their shitty behavior has completely fucked over general customers in terms of price matching policies, all credit cards have eliminated price protections, we're no longer protected from pricing errors, and buying clearanced items at one location to return/rebuy it elsewhere and all the while arguing and berating the CSRs trying to limit their atrocious behavior. I've seen threads promoting ticket swapping and coupon fraud, too. Those aren't deals, they're just illegal behavior.

I've been a member of that site for what must be around a decade or longer and it's very rare nowdays to find a straight deal that doesn't involve monkey-business, in my opinion.

Honestly all of the deals I have seen (outside of the S&S stuff) have been straight up legit lower prices or combining coupons. I dont read their forums but I have never seen a front page deal advocating buy under S&S and immediately cancel. Amazons own website used to point out you can cancel at any time (dont know if it still does since i dont do S&S) so I dont see how thats a violation of the terms...