Amazon hates our Troops

[njstone]

Okay, I"m pissed and had to vent this. I'm trying to buy my wife a nice new camera (Canon 60D), and usually buy stuff like this from Amazon (no tax, free shipping).

But Amazon won't ship it to my APO, and there are a LOT of things they won't ship to APOs. They just don't want to take the extra risk of things getting stolen by USPS (which is a huge problem) or broken with the extra transit.

I know I'm whining here, and that a generation ago people stationed where I can could barely get peanut butter. But this still makes me mad! Hopefully I'll be able to find someone else who will ship here, because I dont' want to just have someone there in the States buy it for me and ship it, because USPS only insures up to $400 (and this package is a lot more than that--and contains a lot of glass).

 

[smokinghole]

I had the same problem when in Turkey.

www.apobox.com

Costs you a but more due to the forwarding service but you get the stuff. I used it for things when companies only shipped UPS/fedex. Never had a problem.

 

[SergeantStogie]

Not just amazon its alot of companies. Worst part is, On their end (the shipper) their is absolutely no cost difference.

 

[BagfullofPings]

First I find out Amazon had no problem selling a book called "The Pedophile's Guide To Love and Pleasure: A Child-Lover's Code Of Conduct", and now I find out they don't ship to APO's. Not that I have used Amazon much, I won't use them from now on.

 

[Treinenwj]

Sooo, how much did that book cost you?

 

[BagfullofPings]

Sooo, how much did that book cost you?

Free with my annual membership.

On a serious note, I heard about it on the news this past week. There are a lot of pissed off Amazon customers right now.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/11/10/entertainment/main7041349.shtml

I think it would be great if the world knew about Amazon's policies with APO's. If you do the Facebook and Twitter thing, tell the world Amazon does not support deployed US Soldiers. I'm sure Amazon would love a double whammy within a week.

 

[SergeantStogie]

Today they refused to mail a bottle of perfume for my wife. So now my free shipping aint so free.

 

[njstone]

Today they refused to mail a bottle of perfume for my wife. So now my free shipping aint so free.

Perfume too? Now that's just sad.

 

[njstone]

Camera Update:

We found another big camera company (B&H) what will ship to APOs, so I think I'll be able to get my wife's camera after all! I'm still sending Amazon a terse email, though.

 

[SergeantStogie]

If you start some sort of campaign, let me know! I'll sign it.

 

[pnoguy]

+1 on the www.apobox.com thing. Works great, very dependable, and cheap. B&H is also a great vendor....they have friggin everything, and are a GSA approved vendor to boot!

 

[Moro]

I am not, at all, standing for anyone being a [ADJECTIVE]name it[/ADJECTIVE]; alas, I do see Amazon's point. Shipping is not the issue, here; but the consequences that may come. Think about the roblem the company may go through if USPS misplaces or suffers an accient whilst handling the item in question. 'tis bad business, and they...well, they are in the business game. Crappy causeality (might be off on the word, forgive the sh*tty translation): aye, indeed. But that doesn't make them the devil, Nate; just take yer bread where they will see to yer needs.

 

[Treinenwj]

IMO the problem isn't Amazon specifically, but the vendors who sell on Amazon. I remember when I was living at an APO addy, I decided I wanted to learn to play bass. I hopped on Amazon and ordered a bass guitar and an instructional DVD. The DVD showed up, but no bass.
After a while I contacted the company, who THEN told me they couldn't ship to APO and refunded my $$. Sh!tty deal, especially since they didn't state it prior to my order, but it was that company's policy not Amazon. After all, the DVD, ordered from a different company but still on Amazon, showed up just fine.

 

[smelvis]

Glad it worked out, I would and will gladly help in any email campaign concerning companies that discriminate against our troops!

Though as I read above this appears to not be the case here!

 

[Crypto Sailor]

I never had any issues when I was overseas...cause all the ship addresses are FPO or APO...I'll check around work and see what folks tell me...

 

[njstone]

IMO the problem isn't Amazon specifically, but the vendors who sell on Amazon. I remember when I was living at an APO addy, I decided I wanted to learn to play bass. I hopped on Amazon and ordered a bass guitar and an instructional DVD. The DVD showed up, but no bass.
After a while I contacted the company, who THEN told me they couldn't ship to APO and refunded my $$. Sh!tty deal, especially since they didn't state it prior to my order, but it was that company's policy not Amazon. After all, the DVD, ordered from a different company but still on Amazon, showed up just fine.

That is sometimes the case ... like Apple won't ship to APOs, and I'm sure some of Amazon's other vendors. But in this case it's all Amazon. I've found several others who will ship to APOs, but it was tough to find one who'd do it for reasonable shipping (I have free shipping with Amazon ... not that it does much good).

 

[smokinghole]

Now I think part of the issue is sending specific items out of the country that aren't "approved" for sale in a foreign country. Now it very well may be approved for sale where you're at but to a retailer APOs are nothing but numbers. Although you're mail goes to a US territory the country that that territory is located in is unknown to them.

I tried ordering a MP3 player while in Turkey and Creative would not ship it to me because of some undisclosed legal reason (or so they said). I do know certain items are only allowed to be sold in certain countries and so forth. In fact in Turkey in order to verify that you are not contributing to the black market there they take inventory of all electronics when you get there. If it breaks you need to keep it for when you leave otherwise you pay big $$$ in fines if you don't have the item.

You're dealing with international BS at this point. However being in Japan shouldn't be an issue to get things. So seriously if you don't want to deal with it apobox.com makes everything normal again because you ship it to Illinois and then they forward it to you.