Surprise bill from Amazon, what the hell?!

[madamesilverspurs]

Last edited Thu Sep 20, 2018, 12:35 PM - Edit history (1)

A month ago I spent about $12 at Amazon, bought a replacement hand control for my electric recliner. It's the only time I've ever bought anything from Amazon. So I was more than shocked a few minutes ago when I went to my online banking to reconcile my checking account, and in big red letters it informed me that I'm overdrawn, thanks to an Amazon bill over $100!

Yes, I'm freaking out. I have two automatic deductions due next week, and there's no money to cover them. I'll call the bank first thing in the morning. Haven't been able to find any way to contact Amazon to ask them what the hell they think they're doing.

Has anyone else had this happen with Amazon? How did you resolve it?


Update:
First of all, thanks for all the responses, you DID help!

This morning has been spent on the phone, first with Amazon (who promised a full refund within 3-4 business days) and then with the bank (who promised to undo any overdraft fee that will happen when my automatic insurance withdrawal hits in a day or two). The bank says that the refund from Amazon won’t likely show in my account before next week. In other words, Amazon ripped me off, the bank knows about it but is taking an “oh well” attitude about it, and I’m left to rediscover the warm and wonderful world of pawn shops in order to be able to put gas in the car. As for Amazon, I won’t be back.


Again, huge thanks to DUers, your help is very much appreciated -- as always!


.

[Laffy Kat]

1. Not exactly. However. I did get a from a new Mastercard I didn't apply for with...

A charge for over $100 for my new Amazon Prime fee which I also didn't apply for and do not want. I call Amazon and they credited the amount back, but it made me mad. Applying for new charge cards impacts one's credit. Now I have to cancel a credit card I didn't want in the first place. I'm telling you Amazon is sneaky and unscrupulous and you have to watch them like a hawk.

[sprinkleeninow]

2. I've called Amazon a few times. They were very polite and helped

resolve what it was I contacted them about.
Get a hold of them if you can. And your bank of course. Is your bank C/S available 24 hrs? You may be able to do a dispute real time and reverse the mistake. Something got screwy.

We had one year of almost $700 charges from Poland. Then some bogus ones from Walmart and Bed, Bath, Beyond. Whatta pain in the butt.

💙

[thbobby]

3. I have never had a problem with Amazon that was not resolved

On their homepage, scroll to the bottom, click on help (on the right side of the screen), scroll to the bottom again, click on Need More Help, and then you can see how to contact them either by phone or chat. They have always quickly resolved any payment problems and credit my account within a day or two, but usually on the same day. Good luck!

[LuvNewcastle]

8. Same here.

Every issue I've ever had with Amazon has been resolved right away. My experiences with Amazon employees have been great. They need to give raises to their employees. Amazon's employees are what makes them a great company.

[RobinA]

11. I Have To Say

I have never had a problem with Amazon, and I am an extensive user. My father was a frequent user as well and his only problem ever was they sent him two of a shipment. I tried his darndest to send it back, but they would not take it. I am a Prime member, however, so that trap doesn't apply to me.

I did get caught in a "save money" trap from another company and didn't notice it for a year, during which they charged me $14.99 monthly to save 10% on all orders. I never ordered from this place after one initial order. I called them up and asked them to remove the most recent charge and cancel the program, I figured the preceding year was on me because I didn't check my bill carefully. They weren't going to cancel it because "you requested it." Meanwhile, I looked it up on the Internet and found they caught a lot of people in their little scam, so I called them back, told them I knew it was a scam and that I was going to review them badly every place I could find. Next thing I knew I got ALL the money back. I still don't know how I signed up for it, because I never check those boxes, and I'm on the lookout for boxes that are already checked.

[KY_EnviroGuy]

4. Madamesilverspurs, they may have caught you in their Prime trap.

That's the only thing I can think of that's around $100. We have to be very careful during Amazon checkout because they try their damnedest to induce us to sign up for Amazon Prime. They do that by little pop-up windows that say you could save "X" dollars on this order (or get free shipping) by trying Prime membership.

They're a dirty bunch and they also try to trick us into buying into monthly shipment on supply items. I have to watch every step of my orders for their tricks.

I hope your bank can put a stop on that charge and set you free! You may also need to contact Amazon to straighten out your order and maybe pay shipping charges if what I'm thinking is correct.

Best of luck!.......

[sprinkleeninow]

5. Amazon Customer Service [phone]

Yes, available 24hrs.

[SkatmanRoth]

6. They slipped a subscription to Amazon Prime in on you

I bet you did not even notice when you clicked on that box where you received 'free' shipping and a subscription to Amazon Prime. The marketing folks disguise that just a little bit and snare quite a few inattentive buyers.

[True Dough]

7. I agree with everyone who describes Amazon as "sneaky"

My wife and I order from Amazon once in a while. We both took the Prime two-week free trial. Neither of us made note to go back and cancel so then we each got hit with a full-year charge on our Visa. Neither of us noticed it on the bill (we are sometimes guilty of not perusing every item -- and I avoid looking at my wife's charges because some of the amounts for shoes and clothes can drive me batty).

It wasn't until months later that we realized we were each paying $80 for a service we never really wanted, the old "negative billing" approach. But we had to shoulder some of the blame for not being vigilant enough. And with the few orders we place, there's definitely not near enough value in Prime to retain it. It's a money-loser for us, and a money-maker for the company.

That's not where the story ends, however. I went to "My Account" on Amazon and made sure to check the box for a Prime account renewal reminder one week before it was due (that box should be checked by default, but the company wants you to forget). I got the reminder by email and then went online and cancelled my Prime membership. I remember seeing on the screen, "True Dough, we're sorry to see you go."

So that was the end of that, or so I thought. The next Visa bill comes in and, sure enough, there's the annual charge for Amazon Prime and it's actually more expensive than last year, close to $100. I immediately went to the Amazon website looking for a phone number to call but couldn't find one. So I again used the option to cancel my Prime membership. I figured it would be a hassle to try to get reimbursed but, fortunately, upon cancelling I was informed that since I had not used my Prime membership to make any orders since the latest renewal I would get the full amount credited to my credit card within X business days (I can't remember how many).

So it's done now, but it's been far too much effort and aggravation. I'm reluctant to deal with Amazon again due to these tactics.

[Phentex]

12. I've had good luck overall, but I also think they are sneaky...

they often show an item as Prime or Same Day Delivery but after you add it to your cart, those options are gone. Often the shipping date changes even though they guarantee it if you order by a certain time. I've seen the save 10% now with a coupon only to find out there's some sort of catch like you are agreeing to something else. I've had to update my marketing preferences many times to reflect that I don't want hundreds of email newsletters every day.

When they're good, they're great. But when they're sneaky, they're maddening.

[Fla Dem]

9. Go to their web page and check to see what's listed under orders for your account.

You can find that in the top right hand corner of the web page.

It should list any items that may have been purchased on your account.

Also as someone said you may have signed up for a membership accidently. But their membership fee is $119, not $100.

[cynatnite]

10. I've done something similar...

We have Amazon Prime and once I accidentally signed up for some subscription. I called them up and they cancelled it then refunded the money.

Very easy. You should try it. Good luck.