Many Amazon customers have received full refunds for faulty or incorrect products, and Amazon often even lets them keep the items. However, one furniture seller was determined to get back at a buyer in California for this customer-centric benefit. The individual in question had purchased a $500 couch, which was also supposed to come with an ottoman. When the sofa arrived, the ottoman was missing. The customer contacted Amazon, who contacted the seller, but when the seller didn’t respond, a full refund was issued. Then, the shady vendor came out of the woodwork.
The California buyer woke up to a text message to their personal phone from the enraged seller: “The product rightfully belongs to our company and needs to be returned immediately. To resolve this matter amicably, we WARN you to take ​one of the following actions WITHIN 48 HOURS of this notice.” The first demand was that the customer repay the refunded amount in full. The second was to send the couch back to the seller in its original condition. If these DM-sent demands weren’t shady enough, the threat to the buyer was where things really looked suspicious.
“Failure to respond or comply within the stipulated timeframe will leave us no choice but to escalate this matter through LEGAL channels to recover our losses and protect our business interests. Best regards, Alex.”
Since then, the customer has contacted Amazon and is awaiting to hear back from its customer service. However, they went to Reddit to vent their frustrations on the matter. Luckily, they seem to be in the right and covered by Amazon’s TOS. “The company violated the TOS just by texting my personal phone number, which is apparently a HUGE no-no,” they wrote in r/legaladvice. “I don’t owe them anything; it’s not up to me to ‘make it right’ by their standards,” they continue.
Fortunately, the users in the comment section agree with the California customer and are generally on their side. However, to make everything work, the top commenter strongly suggests against directly contacting the seller, as it’s against TOS. “Keep communicating through Amazon,” they advise. “The seller is almost certainly trying to get you to do something outside of Amazon’s formal channels because they know they have violated those terms of service.” Fortunately, this means there isn’t much the seller can actually do. “Who says they’re not located in another country? Would be one heck of a legal battle,” remarks another.
Hopefully, Amazon will handle the case, and the seller will receive a hefty penalty, if not a ban, from the website. Ironically, “It will cost them more than $500 to go after you over the $500, as one user told OP. It’s clear the seller was either shady from the start or didn’t want to own up to their mistake. Whatever the case, this story holds a great lesson: don’t take the bait if an Amazon seller tries to make you break TOS.
