After having missed some valuable shots of Bryan doing amazing stuff, I finally decided to open up my checkbook for a more modern camera. Thanks to previous researches done by Michael and my cousin Alex, I knew exactly which camera to get — another Canon — Canon SD800 with built-in image stabilization.
Within 36 hours of the purchase from Amazon, the price of the camera dropped by $20 BEFORE it was even shipped! So I dug around to see if Amazon has a policy to match its own prices — no luck there. However, Amazon does have an unwritten rule on “price drop” policy within 30 days of purchase — they will refund the difference of the price for the same item within Amazon stores. Thanks to this bargain hunting site for the tip. And apparently there’s also a site dedicated to helping customers track their items purchased from Amazon complete with an email reminder feature (for free!).
Here’s a blurb from Amazon’s customer service department:
From: cust.service***@amazon.com
Subject: Your Amazon.com Order (#***-*******-*******)
Date: February 22, 2007 10:15:38 PM PST
To: ********@wiredatom.comThank you for writing to Amazon.com.
The discounts we offer for items on our web site do vary from time to time. I’ve checked your order, and found that we now offer a greater discount on the item than at the time you placed your order.
Since this item was shipped so recently, I have requested a refund of $20 to your credit card. This amount reflects the difference between the price you were charged and the discounted price. The refund should be processed in the next few days and will appear as a credit on your next billing statement.
You may view returns and refunds by clicking the “Your Account” link at the top of our web site, then clicking “Go!” next to “open and recently shipped orders.” Completed refunds will appear at the bottom of an individual order’s summary page.
I hope this solution is satisfactory. Thank you for shopping at Amazon.com–we hope you will visit us again soon.
.
.
.To contact us about an unrelated issue, please visit the Help section of our web site.
Best regards,
Serena
Amazon.com Customer Service
http://www.amazon.com
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Check your order and more: http://www.amazon.com/your-account
This was what I did to get the refund:
1. Use Amazon’s Return & Refunds Contact Form.
2. On the subject of the form, select “Refund Inquiry” and hit “continue”.
3. On this screen, there should be a list of eligible items for the inquiry. Check ones that you’d like to have the price difference refunded and click on “continue” again.
4. Then next in the comments box, simply tell them you’d like to get a refund in the difference in price… etc. Be nice though.
Within a few hours of my request, Amazon’s email came through and my refund was approved! This gives me yet another reason to shop at Amazon!
One related note: Buy.com used to have a price match guarantee with a similar (but not nearly as intuitive) process. But the company has since become a pain in the ass to deal with on almost everything (well, except the checkout). Unless you have a compelling reason to shop at Buy.com, my experience tells me to stay away from them…