Amazon Prime Rip-Off

[mum4jenn]

I am also on Amazons side. I have two kindle fires and another tablet all on my account. My daughter and my husband know to not purchase anything without my ok. No problem. Also I get an instant email that chimes by the way when even a free app is downloaded.

 

[ktmo]

My 7yo has had a Fire since x-mas and has never bought anything. She knows to come to me if there is something she wants to buy. If I didn't think I could trust her to not buy something on my account, I would have gone with a differ device. It works, well for us.

 

[luvmy3]

That is hard to believe that a child could rack up $4,000 before a parent would notice. I get an immediate e-mail for every purchase, even the free stuff downloaded. Easy to track who is downloading what.

I get an email instantly on my purchases, but I don't get emails for my dd's purchases on her acct. I think the child had his own acct funded by the parents CC. In that case, over a month's time it is very possible to rack that much up in charges.
I don't believe everything I read on the internet and whether or not this specific story was true or not, kids charging way too much on their parents CC does happen

 

[luvmy3]

I agree. How could you not notice?

Not everyone tracks their purchases daily on their CC. I rarely use mine so there is no need for me to check it constantly, so if my kids did that, I wouldn't notice until the new statement was available.

 

[Alesia]

Not everyone tracks their purchases daily on their CC. I rarely use mine so there is no need for me to check it constantly, so if my kids did that, I wouldn't notice until the new statement was available.

I get an email every time I purchase anything - within seconds. And if my daughter had a separate account then she would get an email which would bounce to my email account. Any parent who allows their child to have access to their credit card (either directly or indirectly) has a responsibility to make sure it isn't being used without their knowledge. You're just asking for trouble if you aren't monitoring what your kids are doing online.

 

[wekhogan]

I use the Kindle app on my iPad, which I love, but I can't borrow books as I don't have an actual Kindle. I wish I could, but I don't bash Amazon just because I dont like their rules.

I do have a question on libraries, though. Plan on getting DD13 a Fire and I worry about the libraries being mingled. For instance, I love my Fifty Shades, but under no circumstances would she be allowed to read it. Is there a way to separate libraries?

 

[luvmy3]

I get an email every time I purchase anything - within seconds. And if my daughter had a separate account then she would get an email which would bounce to my email account. Any parent who allows their child to have access to their credit card (either directly or indirectly) has a responsibility to make sure it isn't being used without their knowledge. You're just asking for trouble if you aren't monitoring what your kids are doing online.

I totally agree but we all know that just because one should do something, doesn't mean they do I bet that mom will be more responsible now

 

[mjkacmom]

That is hard to believe that a child could rack up $4,000 before a parent would notice. I get an immediate e-mail for every purchase, even the free stuff downloaded. Easy to track who is downloading what.

That's what I was thinking! My kids gave me heart attacks when they first got them, until I realized they were all free purchases. One time, dd asked to buy an ebook, I said ok, but she accidently bought a real book. I noticed right away, emailed them, and the order was cancelled. This happened one other time, I didn't notice until the book arrived, I contacted Amazon, and they told me to just keep the book, and they'd credit my account.

Right now, my favorite company is Amazon, and I LOVE prime! My sister has had it for years, and told me that after my free month, I wouldn't be able to let it go, and she was right!

 

[iheartdisney]

Amazon is the furthest things from a rip off I have ever experienced. We love Amazon!

Amen! I <3 amazon! And i <3 prime, but it is student so I don't get all the perks.

As for the spending issue, when DD9 first got her ipod last year i explained that she can download all the free apps she can fit, but was not to download paid apps. Guess what? She bought $6 worth of apps the first week. She lost the ipod for a week and scooped the litter box at $1 a day until she had "paid" me back. And in over a year it hasn't happened again. i didn't have to make a separate account, I didn't have to delete my credit card info. i had to TEACH her. Teaching is not just about removing the options.

 

[MrsJackSparrow4Life]

It is not Amazon's problem you didn't read the TOS correctly, however there is a simple way to fix this problem so everyone gets streaming and free shipping without having her connected to your account.

Cancel the Amazon Prime on your account, switch it to hers and set up all devices to stream from her account. Then have it where her account is sharing the shipping with your account.

 

[mjkacmom]

I use the Kindle app on my iPad, which I love, but I can't borrow books as I don't have an actual Kindle. I wish I could, but I don't bash Amazon just because I dont like their rules.

I do have a question on libraries, though. Plan on getting DD13 a Fire and I worry about the libraries being mingled. For instance, I love my Fifty Shades, but under no circumstances would she be allowed to read it. Is there a way to separate libraries?

Lol - I don't think there is a way to separate libraries, so instead of downloading that book onto my kindle, I borrowed my friend's nook!

 

[CatNipRules]

I love my Fire and I think that Amazon Prime is absolutely amazing!

The terms and conditions are very clearly spelled out as the PP's stated. Unfortunately most people don't read them and then try to claim that they weren't there.

I've worked in Customer Service, not for Amazon, and have heard it all.

You should use this as an opportunity to teach your daughter about responsibility and money management. I don't believe that 7 is too young to do that.

I don't have a credit card attached to my account. I buy a gift card to use towards purchases.

As for the kid that charged up $4000. The only thing I can think of is that maybe the email was her sons and not her own. IDK.....

 

[mymeme]

Love Amazon! Am so spoiled with Prime. Don't like ordering many other places because it seems like it takes for ever to get here. I do order from Kohl's using all the codes but to me you can't beat Amazon.

meme

 

[rainydayplay]

Seems the OP has already taken herself off Prime. Too bad, I love the service if only for shipping alone. (Just recently bought a Fire for DH, so haven't had much chance of using the streaming yet).

Anyway, you can have multiple credit cards attached to one account. You just have to tell which one to use at any time. There would have been a bit more work to get to the correct CC/DC each time you wished to purchase something, but it was doable.

Also, if using for streaming, there are a lot of shows available without a cost, and would not have meant using a CC/DC at all.

Agree with the multiple cards. My mother has me order stuff for her sometimes, so one of her cards with her name on it is on my account so I can order for her (we live in the same house, in case anyone wants to cry foul on that). You set up one card as default and change the purchase option as you need to. Same with a mailing address. One is default, but you can have multiples associated with your account.

You do realize that the poor Customer Service Rep you just insulted is from HERE in the USA, living here in the USA (if you live in the USA that is), is well trained and fairly well paid for dealing with upset people who don't feel particularly like being rational, right? A dear friend of mine is an Amazon Customer Service Rep. They treat their Customer Service employees well and many make this line of the business their career.

I'm sorry you were upset and wanted something that Amazon couldn't give you, but please don't insult or cast aspersions on a group of people who do their best to bend over backwards for customers 24/7.

The one dealing with CS that I had, I would say from the accent that the person was from India. (Must say I wasn't thrilled with Amazon CS on that call. I had a hold on my checking account for an item that I didn't purchase. It was a large enough hold to cause a few things to bounce. I was tyring to find out why there was a hold for that item, causing overdrafts and fees on my end, and was only told that a hold is place until the item is shipped or somesuch. [This was several years ago..like, maybe 2008?] I don't think he understood what I was saying, and I asked for a supervisor and spent a LONG time on hold before I finallly gave up and hung up. Dealing with CS in any other capacity -- such as email -- has been a pleasant experience, including times I have been sent items I didn't order, whether the items were extra or in place of something important, like my 2012 Unofficial Guide to WDW.)

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

You do realize that the poor Customer Service Rep you just insulted is from HERE in the USA, living here in the USA (if you live in the USA that is), is well trained and fairly well paid for dealing with upset people who don't feel particularly like being rational, right? A dear friend of mine is an Amazon Customer Service Rep. They treat their Customer Service employees well and many make this line of the business their career.

I'm sorry you were upset and wanted something that Amazon couldn't give you, but please don't insult or cast aspersions on a group of people who do their best to bend over backwards for customers 24/7.

I agree the OP was wrong to insult the CS rep, but Amazon does have service centers outside of the US fielding US calls.

 

[hops&dreams]

+1

+2

 

[Granny square]

I get an email every time I purchase anything - within seconds. And if my daughter had a separate account then she would get an email which would bounce to my email account. Any parent who allows their child to have access to their credit card (either directly or indirectly) has a responsibility to make sure it isn't being used without their knowledge. You're just asking for trouble if you aren't monitoring what your kids are doing online.

Seriously!! There isn't any reason it should have happened. Just like the op. if you are monitoring your child then they can't spend the swag bucks. And I have no idea why the snotty reference to people elsewhere in the world working hard for a living.

We have 15 devices on our accounts. The videos stream on all the fires.

 

[clintswifeymomof4]

You paid for a service with clear TOS (that you didn't read) and are upset when you cannot use the service in a way that is not allowed in the TOS... and you are upset with Amazon?

How about admitting that you missed the terms somehow and made a boo-boo and that the fault lies with you, not Amazon.

If you cancelled- good for you- you obviously won't benefit from the service under the current TOS. I'd look a little deeper as to why you feel like your child would spend all of your SB money... do you also hide your purse and car keys in fear that she'll go on a joyriding spending spree?

Set limits, enforce them... if you cannot trust your 7 year old to abide by them then the problem runs a little deeper than Amazon and perhaps the child shouldn't be given an expensive gift like a Fire to begin with.