DC suing Amazon because Amazon avoids crime-ridden area of DC.
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Anonymous
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There are bad pockets in those areas, but it isn't like the entirety of the east of the river zip codes are bad.
DC AG is right here. If Amazon doesn't want to deliver there, then they should not be offering Prime memberships that guarantee delivery. |
Anonymous
But it doesn’t make that promise. |
Anonymous
This. The AG is not "big mad" that Amazon decided not to use its in-house delivery service to these zip codes -- that's their prerogative. They are being sued because they used 3rd party delivery service which is lower without informing customers in these zip codes that they were not getting the same Prime service as customers in other areas. And he's arguing the harm was great in these zipcodes than it would have been elsewhere because these households are already underserved by services (grocery stores for instance) and so rely more heavily on Amazon for basic goods. Amazon exploited this need by collecting Prime memberships fees from these households, and advertising it's Prime service to these households, without disclosing that it doesn't actually offer true Prime services in these zip codes. It's actually a pretty good case and if the AG can get Amazon to refund membership fees to these customers and pay restitution for the the fraudulent sale of Prime memberships, it benefits all consumers in DC by keeping Amazon accountable for delivering on its promises for Prime service. Prime gets more expensive every year and the company is clearly trying to find ways to avoid delivering on its promise. They should not be allowed to make these promises, collect fees, and then not deliver (literally). |
Anonymous
Please cite the DC law that requires Amazon to deliver anything, anywhere. |
Anonymous
When you contract with people and charge them to do X knowing full well you don't intend to fulfill the terms of the contract, you are in breach and can get sued. It has nothing to do with local law. |
Anonymous
You can read the complaint your own self, here: https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/DC-v-Amazon-Complaint-12-4-24.pdf The main law at issue is the Consumer Protection Procedures Act (“CPPA”), D.C. Code § 28-3909 From the complaint: Businesses operating in the District have every right to take measures to protect their employees and contractors. But when those decisions materially diminish the quality of the goods and services that District consumers are paying for—and that businesses have assured District consumers they will receive—businesses cannot implement those decisions in secret. On the contrary, businesses have an obligation to be transparent about those decisions so that District consumers can make informed purchasing decisions and can have confidence that they receive the full benefit of what they have paid for. |
Anonymous
Amazon doesn’t promise anything vis-à-vis Prime. I don’t live in a high crime area of DC and I frequently encounter items not available for Prime delivery. There has been a long standing practice of DC government trying to punish companies that divest from poor, high crime areas. They harass supermarkets. They harass pharmacies. They harass banks. This has been going on for decades and is nothing new. |
Anonymous
And then, if they didn’t offer prime membership in those ZIP Codes, the AG would be suing Amazon for that. |
Anonymous
That's just incorrect on the facts. |
Anonymous
I guess that's for the courts to figure out now. If you charge people for Prime they should get the service you charge them for. If not, sell them a discounted service or don't charge at all. |
Anonymous
It's not even that. If Amazon had been honest when they customers asked questions, there would be no lawsuit. Their chat reps flat out lied |
Anonymous
Prime is slow in some places. It's all in the TOC and Amazon would have been in the clear if they owned up to it. Affirmatively misleading customers in response to inquiries is why they got in trouble. |
Anonymous
Does Prime guarantee delivery? |
Anonymous
No, but when an agent of the company tells you that there that the zip code isn't the reason, then the AG has a case. This is what happens when you have minimum wage and outsourced employees responding to customer inquiries in writing. It's hard to disavow when the customer is lead to believe that they are communicating with Amazon by Amazon and there is a preserved record of the conversation. |
Anonymous
The bolded is the DC AGs interpretation of the law and facts. It doesn’t represent the actual law and facts. |