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Amazon Accidentally Sold $13k Camera Gear for $100 on Prime Day

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Re: Amazon Accidentally Sold $13k Camera Gear for $100 on Prime Day

#81
post #6

I like the comment suggesting articles like that being banned. That lens has been one of my dreams for years now for birding. Though 800mm is kinda ridiculous and probably impossible to hand hold. I did nearly get lucky like this some years back when Walmart $100 gift cards were on sale for $10. All my orders were cancelled. It seems like several of these Amazon orders have been delivered.

Yeah normally I don't care about this or that hot deal, but as a fellow birder seeing the 800mm was a gut punch. (I don't think anyone handholds that one, at least not long)

Re: Amazon Accidentally Sold $13k Camera Gear for $100 on Prime Day

#82
post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Totally agree with you there. If I were on the other side of something like this it would SUUCK! But you know people, even honest ones find it hard to resist “sticking it to the man”, i.e. the one with advantage, the baddie. Many rationalizations will be made. “It’s peanuts to them”, etc.

A father and son were walking down the street. The father tips his hat to a woman they pass. The son asks: "Father, why did you tip your hat to her? She's a prostitute, not a lady." The father replies: "Son, you are correct, she is no lady. But I am a gentleman."

As much as I agree with the point you're making, there's nothing wrong with being a prostitute.

Re: Amazon Accidentally Sold $13k Camera Gear for $100 on Prime Day

#83

Amazon would be within their rights to refuse to honor such purchases. I also don't think it's ethical to take advantage of such mistakes. What if it was you who accidentally listed your house for $60,000 rather than $600,000? What if you accidentally included an extra 0 on the check you wrote?

Or this whole thing was a stunt. And a successful one that cost less than any equivalent in paid ads.

Re: Amazon Accidentally Sold $13k Camera Gear for $100 on Prime Day

#84

IANAL. Any U.S.-based lawyers out here? I believe a listed price is an "invitation to treat" which means a retailer can charge whatever they like regardless of listed price (whether in a physical or online store), but at what point can't an online retailer cancel/back-out of a transaction? Let's say the merchant and buyer are both California-based for simplicity. Would it be legally similar to "theft by discovery" (e…

I'm also not a lawyer, but they have the ability to correct the error right up until it's delivered to you - every online retailer has something like that in their T&Cs. There's been plenty of cases where retailers have cancelled order and refunded any moneys paid and customers have had no recourse to enforce the contract.

After you've got the goods in your hands - well, there's likely a lot less they can do about it.

Some resources for the US here: https://smallbusiness.chron.com/company-advertising-price-wr...

Changing the price after the fact, or demanding you return it - well... That could end up with them in a whole lot of hot water themselves.

Re: Amazon Accidentally Sold $13k Camera Gear for $100 on Prime Day

#85
post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Totally agree with you there. If I were on the other side of something like this it would SUUCK! But you know people, even honest ones find it hard to resist “sticking it to the man”, i.e. the one with advantage, the baddie. Many rationalizations will be made. “It’s peanuts to them”, etc.

A father and son were walking down the street. The father tips his hat to a woman they pass. The son asks: "Father, why did you tip your hat to her? She's a prostitute, not a lady." The father replies: "Son, you are correct, she is no lady. But I am a gentleman."

In many countries prostitution is as legal as software development. I think we should refrain from these jokes, especially since most do it out of a lack of alternative careers and to feed families.

Re: Amazon Accidentally Sold $13k Camera Gear for $100 on Prime Day

#86
post #2

I recently "got" free echos from Amazon pricing error only to see the orders get cancelled and a single echo shipped at the normal prime day pricing though that was not what I agreed to.

I got a couple of those as well but that's in a different ballpark then this goof up. Plus those were Amazons products.

Re: Amazon Accidentally Sold $13k Camera Gear for $100 on Prime Day

#88

Amazon would be within their rights to refuse to honor such purchases. I also don't think it's ethical to take advantage of such mistakes. What if it was you who accidentally listed your house for $60,000 rather than $600,000? What if you accidentally included an extra 0 on the check you wrote?

I guess we found the common ground in the USA; pulling one over on Amazon to the tune of $10,000. Years of virtue signalling rendered moot by the shot at getting something unearned at the expense of somebody else. There is hope yet.

Re: Amazon Accidentally Sold $13k Camera Gear for $100 on Prime Day

#89
post #50
post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is what I'm thinking. Take a small (for Amazon) that will be dwarfed by people who sign up for or renew Prime memberships hoping to luck out on a similar deal in the future.

according to random people in the slickdeals thread the loss was $16 million

So 0.1% of profit. Is that not small?

Re: Amazon Accidentally Sold $13k Camera Gear for $100 on Prime Day

#90
post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, Amazon would be. That doesn't make what the customer did ethical.

What's unethical about buying something for the listed price? edit: rephrased for clarity

What’s unethical about taking advantage of another human who made a mistake?
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