# Problems with pre-orders on Amazon



## Linjeakel (Mar 17, 2010)

Anyone else having problems pre-ordering stuff on Amazon?

I tried pre-ordering a DVD that's out in December but it kept telling me it couldn't be delivered to my address. It's the same address I always use and have been using on Amazon since I first shopped with them in the1990s.

So I contacted Customer Services and they told me they were able to put in dummy order for that item using my address, so the problem wasn't with my address, or the item, it was with the device I was using - my PC. They told me to clear cookies, restart and try again, so I did. No luck.

So I tried using my laptop - no luck. I then tried my phone and tablet, using the app as well as the browser and still got the error message as soon as I went to the checkout. So it's clearly not a device problem.

So then I tried randomly picking DVDs and books to order and in every instance when I went to the checkout, if it was a pre-order it gave me the error message about my address and if it was an item already available it was fine.

So I contacted Amazon again and explained what I'd done but they kept insisting that the problem was with me and/or the item I was ordering and that some items just can't be delivered to certain areas. This was even though the problem was occurring for EVERY pre-order but not with anything else.

Another suggestion was that it depended on what was available at my nearest fulfillment centre. I pointed out that as some of the items I tried weren't released till next year they likely wouldn't be in the fulfillment centre yet anyway.

So they said, can you use another address. Yes, seriously. I hardly think if something was unable to be delivered to me it would miraculously be available for my next door neighbour and it would hardly be something I could keep doing anyway.

Amazon say they've referred the problem to the 'relevant department' and it will no doubt be rectified 'very soon'. I'm not holding my breath.

As I write this I just received an email from Amazon with links to help pages for 'ordering with the shopping basket' and 'order form help' and did that solve my problem. I think I nearly killed my mouse with the force I used to click on the 'no' button. 

In the meatime I'll just have to make a note of release dates for anything I would normally pre-order and hope I can order once it's actually released.

To those of you still with me, thank you for 'listening' to my rant. I just needed to vent the frustration!


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

I rarely pre-order anything .... and if I do it's probably a kindle book. So I have no idea if it'd be a problem here as well. I think the last pre-order of a physical item I did was the last Harry Potter book -- so ..... it's been a while. 

It does sound really strange, though -- and I agree the problem is somewhere on their end! 

I offer commiserations.


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## Linjeakel (Mar 17, 2010)

Ann in Arlington said:


> I rarely pre-order anything .... and if I do it's probably a kindle book.


Yikes! I hadn't even thought of Kindle books. 

I just tried pre-ordering a Kindle book and it worked OK. * phew *

Actually that's given me an idea. Pre-ordering a Kindle book doesn't go through the checkout. Maybe if I put on one click ordering and try ordering the DVD that way .......

*off to try it out *


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## Linjeakel (Mar 17, 2010)

Linjeakel said:


> Yikes! I hadn't even thought of Kindle books.
> 
> I just tried pre-ordering a Kindle book and it worked OK. * phew *
> 
> ...


So after endlessly searching help for 'one-click ordering' it turns out it's now called 'buy now'. And it doesn't work on pre-order items (other than Kindle books). * sigh *


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## Andra (Nov 19, 2008)

Amazon sometimes has dumb things happen randomly - and then they fix themselves or somebody fixes it even though it was never broken in the first place. Wait a few days or a week and try again to see if whatever they messed up has been fixed.

They do need to update some of their canned responses. When I complained about the kindle update, they offered to "help me learn how to use my new kindle." Obviously a long-time customer knows how to place orders.


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## Amika 09 (7 mo ago)

My pre-order experience from Amazon was quite good.


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## Linjeakel (Mar 17, 2010)

Amika 09 said:


> My pre-order experience from Amazon was quite good.


I've previously never had any problems either. This seemed to happen out of the blue, but I still can't pre-order anything being released more than a week ahead. And the problem is always the same - whatever the item is, it's not available to be delivered to my address.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Since this thread is awake again.... based on something that happened to my son last week, I wonder if you could fix it by changing your address. Obviously, you'd 'change' it to what it IS, but the system will log it as a change. Maybe a stray bit got stuck in there someway and now the computer doesn't recognize it as an 'address' even though it looks fine with your eyes.

My son had been asked on one of his accounts somewhere to confirm his address and, when he did, they then offered him an option for how to show it -- he doesn't remember if he said to keep the way he typed it or use their suggested, which was just a minor change -- like putting the apartment number on the same line as the street address or under it. But it messed something up and when something was supposed to be mailed to him, he never got it. He's since gone back and re-verified that it -- fortunately he was able to do so by talking to a human.


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## Linjeakel (Mar 17, 2010)

Ann in Arlington said:


> Since this thread is awake again.... based on something that happened to my son last week, I wonder if you could fix it by changing your address. Obviously, you'd 'change' it to what it IS, but the system will log it as a change. Maybe a stray bit got stuck in there someway and now the computer doesn't recognize it as an 'address' even though it looks fine with your eyes.


When I checked, I already had two different versions of the same address on my account, neither of which seemed to be acceptable for pre-orders.

So, I added a third, deleted the other two and tried a pre-order and - success!! 

Ann, you are a genius.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Glad it worked! I guess that's the software equivalent of "turn it off and back on again."


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