Amazon has come a long way since its beginnings. What started as an online music and video store is now one of the Big Five in the United States, along with Apple, Microsoft, Meta, and Alphabet. It is the largest international e-commerce company.
Amazon offers several services as a multinational technology, one of the most common being electronic purchases of countless products to be delivered directly to the door of your home. What happens if the package is stated to be delayed in transit? Here we will explain what to do in those cases.
What is the meaning of a package delayed in transit on Amazon?
Normally, Amazon packages arrive within the stipulated time; however, if this does not happen, the e-commerce company will notify you of the change of delivery day.
On Amazon’s website or in its application, you can check the status of your order; this is referred to as tracking the package. This works through a tracking code that is unique to each package.
In this tracking guide, Amazon will place the day the package is expected to arrive and the current status of the tracking. If there is a delay, the message “package delayed in transit” will appear. This means that the time or date the package was due to arrive has passed.
This message is only a warning so that you know that the package may not arrive at the predicted date because it is operationally delayed. This warning does not specify where the package is or when you are able to receive it.
Why is my package delayed in transit?
This message will not explain why the package has not arrived at Amazon’s post office. However, here are the most common scenarios where you may receive the “package delayed in transit” message
Bad weather
The most common case is a delay due to bad weather or adverse weather conditions. Torrential rains paralyze cargo transports, which means all packages are held at a processing center until the transports can be resumed.
In addition, it is very common for freight forwarding activities to be suspended when seasonal changes occur.
Another weather change is heavy snowfall. Both transportation and factory activities are suspended. Amazon is responsible for dispatching all workers to reach their homes and take shelter from the snowfall.
International customs procedures
The procedures that packages have to undergo at customs, in the case of international shipments, may cause delays in the package shipment. In these cases, Amazon cannot do anything about it as they must wait for customs approval.
These procedures usually do not take long. However, it will influence the flow and demand of packages entering customs.
Wrong or missing address information
If at the time of receiving the package at a customs office, a mistake is found in the arrival address or the necessary information is missing for shipment to a local post office, Amazon will not be able to make the classification and then proceed to redistribution.
In these cases, the tracking number must be utilized to contact the recipient and ask for the missing or mismatched information needed to resume the sorting and shipping process to the local post office.
What do I do if I get a “package delayed in transit” message?
As you cannot know the reason for the delay of a package, Amazon recommends keeping an eye on the tracking of the package through the tracking guide. If necessary, wait up to 48 hours more than the time shown on the tracking number while expecting the package to arrive.
Many delays are self-rectified without major problems, so your package may arrive on the day stipulated in the tracking guide. What may change is the time that was originally specified.
Remember that the “package delayed in transit” message is only a warning from Amazon’s offices that a delay in delivery may occur, but it is not a fact.
If my package is delayed 48 hours or more
Amazon has a guarantee system called “The Amazon Delivery Guarantee,” where the recipient is guaranteed to receive the package by a certain date. You will be asked to confirm the delivery date so that you are aware of the receipt, and then a confirmation will be mailed to you.
If there is a delay in the order, Amazon will tell you that there is a 48-hour delay after the specified delivery date. Before that deadline is reached, calling the company’s customer service will not be very beneficial because it is still within the time frame determined in the purchase agreement.
Now, if after 48 hours, the recipient has not received their order, they can call Amazon customer service at 1-866-216-1072 and state their case. You must have the order number, account information, and personal phone number for them to contact you.
You can ask for a full refund of the purchase for the lost package, where Amazon should be held responsible for not complying with their policies in the Amazon Delivery Guarantee. In this way, they will accept the late claim and generate a full refund of the purchase.
Compensation for packages
If you do not want to make the refund and decide to wait for the order to arrive, even if it is delayed more than 48 hours beyond the date specified in the purchase, Amazon will compensate you for packages that do not respect the stipulated delivery time.
Among the compensations offered by Amazon for not complying with its shipping guarantee are:
- Free shipping on your next Amazon purchase
- Promotional $10 credits
- 25% off your next purchase on the site
- One free month of Amazon Prime membership (in addition to the free month offered by Prime)
For Amazon to grant these compensation benefits, you must submit your claims for delays longer than the 48 hours set by Amazon. Customer service will ask you if you want a refund, you must refuse, but communicate your discomfort with the delay.
References
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“Late Deliveries – Amazon Customer Service.” Amazon.Com. Spend Less. Smile More., https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=GL669SSDXFCJ2ZA6.
For years I have studied American finance regulations. All the information in this blog is sourced from official or contrasted sources from reliable sites.
Salesforce Certified SALES & SERVICE Cloud Consultant in February 2020, Salesforce Certified Administrator (ADM-201), and Master degree in “Business Analytics & Big Data Strategy” with more than 13 years of experience in IT consulting.