Would it be fair to say that Prime and fulfilled by Amazon (as was true of the regular battery versions in OP's links in the first post on the first day), is safer than merely fulfilled by Amazon, which is how the Plus Combo was listed, which I first purchased, that had a 10 day delayed delivery (potentially never to be received) because it wasn't listed as Prime?
Prime and fulfilled by Amazon is really the best case scenario. Since it's Prime, that means it will ship quicker, usually within 2 days. And it means it's also an item that is in an Amazon warehouse and ready to ship out.
Some of the drones linked in this thread are non-Prime, fulfilled by Amazon, and have future arrival dates like November 13-29. I've never sold products that far in advance on Amazon, so I'm not sure how that process works. But I suspect the sellers somehow indicated to Amazon that they have more stock on the way and have committed to sending it to Amazon warehouses shortly prior to those dates so Amazon can fulfill those items by those dates. And if all of that is true, then it would certainly be possible that Amazon would potentially have to cancel sales if the seller does not send the stock to Amazon.
With all of that said, I'd certainly still purchase items like this if it was my only choice. However, since the stock isn't in an Amazon warehouse at the time of purchase, it's certainly possible that Amazon might not be able to fulfill the item.
When you, as a 3rd party seller, choose to list products as Prime, and handle the fulfillment directly yourself, is the sale then governed by the A to Z Guarantee or by Amazon's Guarantee?
Yes, this guarantee protects you when you buy items sold and fulfilled by a 3rd party seller.
I'm trying to reconcile all the Critical Reviews that Amazon claims were fulfilled by Amazon, and are therefore effectively hidden with overstrike, where the issue clearly was not handled by the Amazon Guarantee, such as still waiting for a refund after 2 months, or wrong merchandise received, or unexpected restocking fees, or the merchant claiming returns never received, which sounds like A to Z Guarantee problems between the buyer and the seller, instead of between the buyer and Amazon, where such issues should never happen, if truly fulfilled by Amazon.
Amazon shouldn't be removing reviews unless they've actually fulfilled the order and the review is about their fulfillment process rather than the seller. The thing with reviews is that we only see what the buyer decides to share, which sometimes isn't the full story or may leave out key details.
From my own experience, there have been several times when I've received a completely different item than what I ordered, like a bag of dog food instead of a pack of t-shirts. Each time, Amazon quickly resolved it by either sending the correct item or issuing a full refund so I could reorder.
While Amazon's
return policy lists only a few types of items that may have restocking fees, there are other fees that some buyers might mistake for restocking charges. For example, a late fee might apply if you return an item after the deadline, a fee may be charged for returning a damaged item, or you might pay return shipping on certain bulky items. For most purchases, though, Amazon doesn't charge any fees if you follow their simple and reasonable return steps.
So just sharing a few examples of how orders fulfilled by Amazon could lead to the kinds of reviews you're seeing. And sometimes buyers leave a negative review before reaching out to Amazon for help, which usually isn't necessary since Amazon resolves most issues very quickly once you contact them through the proper channels.
Does the tracking of my order above look legitimate to you?
It looks legitimate and your order appears to be on its way. The wording makes it sound like your package is moving through Amazon facilities instead of USPS, which shouldn't be possible if USPS already has it.
You can check the tracking directly on the USPS website using the USPS tracking number Amazon provided. The USPS site will always have the most accurate and up-to-date information, so I recommend relying on that rather than what Amazon's system is relaying to you.
