Photographers Are Buying Cameras on Amazon But Getting Cat Food Instead
Photographers have revealed their devastation after they were sent cat food and cheap shoes instead of expensive camera gear.
A man named Jonathan tells the BBC that he was hit with a “wave of panic” after he ordered a Sony Alpha 6400 camera and a Tamron telephoto lens and received a bag of cat food instead.
“I was very anxious, as I knew it was not going to be easy to get my money back,” he says after he paid $1,730 (£1,420) for the body and lens.
Jonathan, who lives in the United Kingdom, says that he had no suspicions upon receiving the parcel telling the BBC that it “looked normal.”
Because he had signed for the package, Amazon initially did not refund him but after multiple phone calls, he was given a refund.
He got a replacement lens in a matter of weeks but the Sony Alpha 6400 was out of stock so Jonathan had to wait for his $1,096 (£900) refund.
“We’re sorry that some customer experiences have fallen short of the high standards that we expect,” an Amazon spokesperson tells the BBC.
‘Two Pairs of Cheap Shoes’
A 22-year-old photographer was left downcast after purchasing a Panasonic Lumix and lens for $2,435 (£1,999) and receiving something else entirely after he went and collected it from an Amazon hub.
“Inside there was two pairs of cheap shoes — no camera to be seen — it was horrible and disappointing,” says Ethan Martin, also from the U.K. “I was worried about getting a refund, as I had spent so much money.”
Despite having CCTV evidence from the Amazon hub of him opening the box to find shoes instead of camera gear, Martin has still not received a refund from the retail giant and has taken the issue up with his bank.
“I feel robbed, I am £2,000 down, I really hope the bank can help me, it is my last resort,” he says.
A Major Problem
The photographers weren’t the only U.K. Amazon customers being sent miscellaneous items rather than expensive electronic equipment.
A 15-year-old boy from Glasgow was sent a box of pink surgical face masks instead of the graphics card he had been saving for.
“He had bought a graphics card for the discounted price of $487 (£400) on Black Friday, ahead of Christmas, it was going to be his present,” his mom Heather explains.
“Building a computer was his dream, he had been saving birthday and Christmas money for years, and the graphics card was the final part he needed.”
Heather only got a refund for her son after being forced to pay $13 (£11) for the return postage of the unwanted face masks back to the United States.
Last month, PetaPixel reported on a photographer and video producer from the U.K. who received bags of white powder inside the box of his Sony Alpha 7 IV which he paid $3,000 (£2,400) for.
Image credits: Header images licensed via Depositphotos.
