Refunding a buyer while there is an A-Z 'under review'
Hi All,
A buyer filed an A-Z claim on an FBM return (on order 113-1714147-1167455). The claim is 100% benign: She only wanted to get 'an update of the status of her refund', and filed the claim before we even got back the item (notwithstanding that we told her, twice, that refunds are issued only after we receive the item back).
One day passed, we received the item and everything is in good shape: The return is slated for full refund, save shipping fees (that are not refundable per policy).
Now, once the item was delivered back, Amazon sent us the normal message on the A-Z asking us to refund in 72 hours, or to report on a problem. However, they DID NOT WITHDRAW the claim. Per our experience, if we refund while there is A-Z 'under review', we will get an auto-defect (The system will wrongly interpret the normal refund as a refund to close the A-Z - This is a known bug in the A-Z system). Last time it happened, we got the defect, appealed it, and some bot rejected the appeal. We had to come here to the forum and to ask for help (and we got it here: The matter was resolved, i.e., the defect was removed, with the aid of a moderator (Quincy)!).
Now, we instantly wrote on the A-Z, asking the A-Z team to withdraw the claim so we can safely refund. That should buy us time (it is on par with 'reporting on a problem', which should, per our experience, eliminate the 72 hour deadline to refund).
What would be your advice then, if I get no response from the A-Z in the next 72 hours? Shall I refund, get the defect, appeal, and perhaps forced to come back here for help? Or, shall I just wait, since the 72 hours deadline may not apply any more? Or, maybe, there is something better to do?
Best Wishes and many thanks for any guideline!
@Quincy_Amazon @Veronica_Amazon @Rose_Amazon @Glenn_Amazon @Tatiana_Amazon
2 replies
Seller_98tz7AXdJixok
Here is an update:
1. After we asked the A-Z team to withdraw (=close) the case so we can issue refund without getting defect, they put the case back to 'action required', sigh.
2. We decided just to go ahead and refund: Buyers are entitled to be refunded for their returns. The system, initially, did not react to our refunding, but when the refund was actually processed by Amazon the case auto-closed and we got, yes as expected, a defect.
3. Reason for the defect? 'We only issued the refund after the A-Z was filed'. Patently bogus: They let the buyer file an A-Z before we got back the item (hence before we need to issue refund)...
4. We appealed (de Jure, there is no 'appeal' on voluntarily issued refunds, but writing to Amazon at the A-Z is, de facto, an appeal). They reviewed the case and made a decision: They granted the buyer a refund, charged us for it, and assigned no defect: This is the correct way to remove the defect where is no formal appeal.
5. Our own stat is that we got, on the last 30+ A-Z cases of our store, 5-7 times defects from Amazon. All bogus, patently flawed. All were removed subsequently by Amazon. So, yes, Amazon's A-Z has serious defects which result at serious overhead, hence time-waste, at our end.
6. The simplest solution for this particular case is to prevent a buyer from filing an A-Z before the fifth day after their return was received. So, why don't they do it this way? We just said it: Amazon's A-Z has serious defects.
@Quincy_Amazon @Veronica_Amazon @Rose_Amazon @Glenn_Amazon @Tatiana_Amazon
JiAlex_Amazon
Hello,
Thank you for using the Forums. I understand these processes can be frustrated and sometimes does not go as we want to, thank you for the feedback provided and highlight some path to avoid an undesired outcome, here are some help pages related to this topic for future guidance reference.
3.5 Prevent or respond to A-to-z Guarantee Claims
Amazon’s A-to-z Guarantee claims
Appeal an A-to-z Guarantee claim
How to respond to an A-to-z Guarantee claim
Any assistance, don’t hesitate to reach out our support channel
Regards,
JiAlex