# Has Amazon's quality control been iffy for you lately? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 28, 2012, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291 "2012-02-28T22:33:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/21 "2012-02-29T18:34:30Z")
> [@Jake\_Jones](#): > > Where’s the warning to Snowboarder Bo? HE CALLED HER A LIAR! NOT ALLOWED IN THIS FORUM! GO TO PIT! SHUN! Actually, I think we should send him down to the quarry. ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/22 "2012-02-29T18:42:42Z")
The biggest problem I’ve had with Amazon is that they don’t seem to vet their vendors very carefully. Try looking for something like ink cartridges or a power adapter for a MacBook and you’ll be hard-pressed to figure out whether it’s an official version or a knock-off. Lots of the vendors claim to be selling OEM goods but when you check the comments, people are complaining that it’s not. Seems to me that that would be a paddling, but Amazon doesn’t seem to care. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/23 "2012-02-29T19:15:03Z")
[QUOTE=ZipperJJ] I wonder if there’s a difference in distribution centers? [/QUOTE] There seems to be. When I was living in CA, probably 99% of my stuff came from their Fernley distribution center, and without fail, it was well-packed, and I had plenty of air-pillows and paper wadding to satisfy my personal shipping needs. Now, most of my orders are coming from Lexington, (KY or SC, strangely enough) and about half have been slightly iffy. Nothing as horrid as boxes popping open or electronics knocking around loose, but they could stand another pillow or wad of paper. So far, none of my recent orders have arrived broken, so either I’m buying durable things that can survive a few bumps, or more likely, Amazon made the correct financial decision to conserve on packing materials. ---
**Author:** ![treis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@treis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/treis)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/24 "2012-02-29T19:45:00Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Second, I doubt your email was as described, since English is one of the official languages of India, and nearly every single person under the age of 40 is as fluent as you are. In fact, I’m not sure why you even think it came from India. Ahhahahahah. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/25 "2012-02-29T19:59:44Z")
> [@Finagle](#): > > The biggest problem I’ve had with Amazon is that they don’t seem to vet their vendors very carefully. Try looking for something like ink cartridges or a power adapter for a MacBook and you’ll be hard-pressed to figure out whether it’s an official version or a knock-off. Lots of the vendors claim to be selling OEM goods but when you check the comments, people are complaining that it’s not. Seems to me that that would be a paddling, but Amazon doesn’t seem to care. I’ve had this problem. I wanted another couple of memory cards for my PS and PS2, and the item pictured is a card that’s made by Sony (official version), but many people complain that it’s a knockoff. Sometimes the description even says that it’s an official version. In the case of the PS1 and PS2 cards, there IS a difference. The official cards almost never fail, but the the knockoffs are notorious for failing. And I would think that Amazon would either paddle or simply refuse to do business with a vendor like this. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/26 "2012-02-29T20:13:54Z")
> [@lindsaybluth](#): > > Good question. It’s all new and all fulfilled by Amazon. I think a couple of the packaging errors were from other retailers but the other issues of QC were from Amazon themselves. I have heard some horror stories of buying the used stuff from Amazon but I haven’t ventured down that path myself. Fulfilled by Amazon does not mean sold by Amazon. Hundreds if not thousands of marketplace sellers ‘colocate’ their inventory at Amazon’s warehouses. This describes the program: [http://www.amazonservices.com/content/fulfillment-by-amazon.htm#!features-and-benefits](http://www.amazonservices.com/content/fulfillment-by-amazon.htm#!features-and-benefits) Was this defect associated with something sold by Amazon or something sold by someone else and Filled by Amazon? ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/27 "2012-02-29T20:18:00Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > I’ve bought a ton of stuff lately from both Amazon and “fulfilled by Amazon” and it’s all been ok. Fast ship, tightly packaged. A wide variety of stuff. > > I wonder if there’s a difference in distribution centers? There are differences in distro centers. I’ve shipped product to… I want to say 6 different distro centers. I don’t have time to do a thorough check. Some warehouses unpack quick, some unpack slowly. Some even ship slowly, relatively speaking. I can’t be certain that employees at some warehouses pack more poorly than others, but it would be wholly reasonable. Some of their warehouses are way older than others, some use more temps, some have 3rd shift, some don’t… ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/28 "2012-02-29T20:22:19Z")
> [@Finagle](#): > > The biggest problem I’ve had with Amazon is that they don’t seem to vet their vendors very carefully. Try looking for something like ink cartridges or a power adapter for a MacBook and you’ll be hard-pressed to figure out whether it’s an official version or a knock-off. Lots of the vendors claim to be selling OEM goods but when you check the comments, people are complaining that it’s not. Seems to me that that would be a paddling, but Amazon doesn’t seem to care. Amazon prefers to let feedback sort things out. If your feedback % _and_ your % of customer refunds go too high, Amazon will bounce you. Aside from that, Amazon’s legal team getting a call from HP or Apple’s lawyers on the above issues would likely sort things out. Counterfeit selling is a 2-3 strikes and you’re out affair for sellers in the minor leagues. ---
**Author:** ![RaftPeople](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6f9a4e/32.png) [@RaftPeople](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RaftPeople)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2012, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/29 "2012-02-29T22:12:19Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > Fourth, Amazon doesn’t have “quality control” because they don’t make anything; all they are is a retail seller. They do have quality control regarding their handling of inventory and execution of the fulfillment process. The worn issue from the OP could be wrong inventory picked (2nd quality instead of first) or due to mishandling of correct inventory. In addition, missing packing lists or packing materials are due to internal process problems which fall under the QC category. ---
**Author:** ![Do\_Not\_Taunt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/do_not_taunt/32/2968_2.png) [@Do\_Not\_Taunt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Do_Not_Taunt)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2012, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/30 "2012-03-01T05:56:53Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > The only issue I’ve had with Amazon lately (i.e., in the past year) has been on timeliness of shipments. It used to be that you could go with “slow boat” shipping methods, and they’d almost always meet or exceed the “fast” end of the shipping estimate. I’ve had several recent orders that didn’t even arrive by the “slow” end of the shipping estimate. That said, it’s not entirely clear to me if the issue is being caused by Amazon processing the orders more slowly, the shipper (probably USPS in most of those cases) being slower, or both. You should get an email when it actually ships. I know I always do. ---
**Author:** ![Dereknocue67](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6de8d8/32.png) [@Dereknocue67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dereknocue67)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2012, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/31 "2012-03-01T12:04:40Z")
I’ve been using Amazon for years but haven’t noticed any change in quality of merchandise or quality control. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2012, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/32 "2012-03-01T15:46:58Z")
> [@Do\_Not\_Taunt](#): > > You should get an email when it actually ships. I know I always do. I do; I just haven’t really done the math on how much of the longer total ship time is due to Amazon, versus USPS. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2012, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/33 "2012-03-01T19:36:52Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > I do; I just haven’t really done the math on how much of the longer total ship time is due to Amazon, versus USPS. I do this for a living at around the 30-40 shipments per say level, using Amazon FBA for almost all sales. All of the carriers hit their delivery estimate 98+ % of the time when I track my shipments. I would like to say it’s closer to 99.8% or so, but I’d need to research more before being able to swear to that. If you are, in fact, seeing a slowdown, it’s not UPS, FedEx or USPS. Now, if your stuff is going Lasership or Premiere… I don’t have a sample size large enough to say anything. ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2012, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/34 "2012-03-01T22:12:10Z")
> [@Mr.Slant](#): > > Now, if your stuff is going Lasership or Premiere… I don’t have a sample size large enough to say anything. Who’s that? I didn’t realize Amazon shipped with anyone besides UPS and USPS. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2012, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/35 "2012-03-01T22:20:38Z")
Yeah. UPS, FedEx, LaserShip, Premiere. Lasership: > **[OnTrac](https://www.ontrac.com/)** > > OnTrac helps retailers and shippers with fast, flexible reliable last-mile delivery that reaches 80% of the US population in 31 states & D.C. On edit: 25 of my shipments last month went that way. Premiere: I think, but am not certain: [http://www.thepremiergroup.net/](http://www.thepremiergroup.net/) On edit: Zero in the last month. On edit: Some reports of ONTRAC being used. > **[OnTrac](https://www.ontrac.com/)** > > OnTrac helps retailers and shippers with fast, flexible reliable last-mile delivery that reaches 80% of the US population in 31 states & D.C. On edit: 6 of my shipments last month went that way. The UPS, USPS, FedEx counts are too high for me to eyeball without running reports I’m not inclined to run. ---
**Author:** ![lindsaybluth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90db22/32.png) [@lindsaybluth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lindsaybluth)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2012, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/36 "2012-03-03T20:10:53Z")
> [@Reply](#): > > Also, “fulfilled by Amazon” is different than “sold by Amazon”. Anybody can send merchandise to Amazon, mark it as new whether or not it actually is, and make it eligible for Amazon Prime shipping. Amazon will list and fulfill those shipments, but they are not the same as Amazon’s own stock. Are you sure the products you’re buying aren’t from a third-party vendor doing that? (It’s not always easy to tell) > [@Mr.Slant](#): > > Fulfilled by Amazon does not mean sold by Amazon. > Hundreds if not thousands of marketplace sellers ‘colocate’ their inventory at Amazon’s warehouses. Good catch. I was saying “fulfilled by Amazon” to actually mean “it came from them”. So to clarify, all but one thing I referenced was “sold by [Amazon.com](http://Amazon.com)”. One thing was “fulfilled by Amazon” and everything was brand new, not from the Warehouse. I just double checked to be sure. And you’re absolutely right, it’s NOT easy to tell. My other half just bought a new Xbox360 and didn’t realize till I got the email that it was “fulfilled” by someone else. It was still eligible for a SquareTrader warranty from Amazon. You see the “Prime” logo and automatically think “we’re all good here!” I got my first package shipped Prestige yesterday. Check out [this 20 page thread](http://www.amazon.com/gp/forum/cd/discussion.html?ie=UTF8&cdForum=Fx20DX5GEB7TUX8&cdThread=Tx3VQBRD2ODM6Z2) on how crappy they are. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Slant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c57346/32.png) [@Mr.Slant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Slant)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2012, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/37 "2012-03-03T20:59:41Z")
> [@lindsaybluth](#): > > And you’re absolutely right, it’s NOT easy to tell. My other half just bought a new Xbox360 and didn’t realize till I got the email that it was “fulfilled” by someone else. It was still eligible for a SquareTrader warranty from Amazon. Ain’t easy. I’d been selling on Amazon for 3 years before I stopped occasionally mixing up FBA sellers with Amazon’s ‘mothership’ selling the same item. Thanks for linking the Premiere thread. If I get time, I’ll try to analyze the % of refunds I have to do by carrier. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2012, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/38 "2012-03-03T21:14:56Z")
nm ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2012, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/39 "2012-03-04T04:32:37Z")
> [@Carmady](#): > > Packing? Apparently packing material is out of style these days, I got computer equipment rolling around in an otherwise empty box. I used to get plenty of padding. I got one of these recently for a USB HD. The HD box itself was still enough to protect it and wasn’t damaged, but the outermost box was crushed a bit. I know they’ve been criticized a lot for far too much packing, but there is such a thing as bending backwards too far. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2012, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291/40 "2012-03-04T05:02:11Z")
Amazon’s shipping can be a bit bizarre at times. I carefully grouped six items into an order that qualified for free shipping. They actually sent it in three packages. That’s cool. Except one item was about 2 inches long and a half inch wide. They sent that item by itself in a Amazon box 7 inches by 10 inches. Why they didn’t use a small padded envelope is beyond me. They’ve done that several times before. You’ll get this one small item in a big ass box. I don’t really mind since its free shipping, but it sure is wasting a lot of their money. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-amazons-quality-control-been-iffy-for-you-lately/614291.md?page=3)