I’ve been looking more closely at the process of using Amazon’s Buy Shipping for Royal Mail deliveries, including 1st Class, 2nd Class, Tracked 24, Tracked 48, and other services. As sellers, we rely on this service and pay Amazon for the postage. With today’s advanced technology, it’s clear there’s a robust system tracking these transactions.
Here’s how I understand the process:
Amazon Charges Us: When we purchase postage via Amazon, they bill us for the service, so they are fully aware of the transaction. Amazon Pays Royal Mail, Royal Mail must then charge Amazon for these services since we are buying postage through them.
Postage Scanning and Tracking: At some point, Royal Mail must scan the items into their system as part of the process to allocate deliveries. Given this process, I have a question, why are sellers still held responsible for a product not being delivered?
Once Royal Mail collects our parcels and allocates them for delivery, it’s clear they have scanned them in to schedule the delivery. So why is the responsibility still on sellers when the process is entirely out of our hands?
I understand that Amazon’s policy states that sellers are responsible for ensuring delivery, but at what point does Amazon step in to help its sellers avoid customer fraud?
With all this technology, Amazon must know that the item was handed over to Royal Mail. Shouldn’t there be a stage where Amazon assists us in protecting against claims of non-delivery, especially when it’s beyond our control?
I suppose what I’m really trying to say is this: What’s the point of having tracked options with any courier if sellers are still left claiming and losing on items sent 1st Class, 2nd Class, or even Signed For?
Why is it that Amazon will only guarantee orders they deliver through their own network? Why doesn’t Amazon offer a collection service to streamline the entire process for sellers? Wouldn’t that ensure better accountability for both sellers and buyers?
Or… is that the whole point? Is Amazon subtly nudging all of us towards using FBA (Fulfilled by Amazon) exclusively? If so, this raises even more questions about fairness for smaller sellers who rely on FBM (Fulfilled by Merchant).
What do others think the future holds for us sellers to combat fraud, we all know its getting worse !
