Amazon Prime members will be bombarded by offers until Thursday, as Amazon Prime Day begins.
The day – which is actually four – was hailed as record-breaking by the e-commerce giant last year.
But new figures reveal 55% of Prime Day customers return their purchases, suggesting the deals might not always be all they’re cracked up to be.
Of those, 33% said they were frustrated by return shipping fees, according to a Manhattan Associates poll of 2,000 British shoppers.
Prime Day deals
Some deals will last the whole four days, while others – dubbed “Lightning Deals” – will be launched as often as every five minutes and last for a limited time, usually between three and 12 hours, or until they run out of stock.
Not a member? Get Prime Day for free
If you want access to the event but aren’t a Prime member – you can sign up for Amazon’s free 30-day trial and you’ll be eligible without paying a penny.
To do this, you should cancel within 30 days, or you’ll be switched automatically onto a regular membership, which is £8.99 a month.
The trial gets you access to Prime Video, Amazon Music, Amazon Photos and more.
If you’re a student, you can get six months for free before being charged £4.49 a month.
You’ll need to prove your course enrolment by providing Amazon with your university email address.
How to cancel free trial
To cancel your membership before the trial expires, you’ll need to visit the Amazon Prime membership page, choose “Manage membership” and select “End membership”.
Don’t assume you’ve got the best price
You can use price comparison tools such as Google shopping or Price Spy to find the cheapest online price on that day. However, always bear in mind that some shopbots can leave out or favour certain retailers.
As Amazon’s prices go up and down regularly, you can also use a free price tracker like CamelCamelCamel to chart an item’s Amazon price history before you commit to a purchase.
You should also keep an eye on Amazon Warehouse, which is the part of the website that sells returned or mildly damaged items.
Be wary of customer reviews
It’s always good practice to read customer reviews before purchasing anything online, to look for answers to any queries you might have about a product.
But consumers should be cautious and look out for fake reviews.
A 2023 investigation by consumer group Which? showed that one in 10 Amazon customers could have been offered an incentive in exchange for a five-star review of an Amazon product.
This is done to manipulate reviews and star ratings.
Which? lists some ways for you to spot a fake review, including:
- Look at the reviewer’s profile to see if their history makes sense. Are they buying things they seem to want or need, or might they have another incentive?;
- Check the dates of reviews. If several positive reviews all appeared on the same date, it could be a coordinated campaign;
- Read the reviews properly – some will include little detail about the actual product, which could be a telltale sign of a fraudulent review.
Make sure to dodge fraudsters
Marijus Briedis, a cybersecurity expert at VPN serviceNordVPN, previously told the Money team that “cyber ghouls” haunt the digital aisles looking to scam customers searching for deals on Prime Day.
Scammers might create fake websites that appear to have come from Amazon, asking for personal information or hosting malicious software that is downloaded to devices by clicking on links, Briedis said..
“Consumers should always be cautious of unfamiliar websites, even if they seem associated with Amazon or have the usual branding,” he explained.
“For example, you may receive a phishing email from someone claiming to be Amazon offering you the latest iPhone for half the regular retail price. The discount is unrealistic for the latest Apple tech and should be an immediate warning sign.
“A common sign of fake or harmful sites is misspellings or slight irregularities in the website’s URL.”
How to return damaged items
If you’ve bought a product on Amazon Prime Day and it arrives damaged, the retailer is fully responsible.
Under the Consumer Rights Acts, your purchase needs to be of satisfactory quality (not faulty or damaged), fit for purpose and as described.
If your Prime Day product doesn’t meet one of these requirements, the retailer (not the manufacturer) is in breach.
Amazon will refund the cost of sending an item back if it was sold or dispatched by Amazon.
If the item you purchased isn’t eligible for a free return, and you’re using a pre-paid return label, Amazon will deduct the cost of the return from your refund.
