Amazon may have ensnared a million new Prime customers over the holidays, but given the amount of customers still waiting for deliveries 'guaranteed' for Dec. 25, the retailer may have been wiser to ease up on the boasts.
As it bragged of having 'tens of millions' of customers signed up for the $79-a-year, two-day delivery service, it was forced to hand out compensation to those who weren't able to give gifts on Christmas Day.
The company is handing out $20 gift cards to affected customers, plus refunding those who did shell out for shipping, following complications with both UPS and FedEx deliveries.
Customers may also be eligible for a one month free extension on their Prime membership if they take the issue up with Amazon.
Throwing UPS under the delivery van
For its part, Amazon is claiming that orders were processed and passed onto the couriers in time for Christmas delivery and is blaming UPS and FedEx for missing the deadlines.
"Amazon fulfillment centers processed and tendered customer orders to delivery carriers on time for holiday delivery," an Amazon spokeswoman told the Wall Street Journal. "We are reviewing the performance of the delivery carriers."
A UPS spokesperson added: "The volume of air packages in the UPS system did exceed capacity as demand was much greater than our forecast."
Via AllThingsD
