A software error on Amazon.com caused the price of approximately 75 million to be listed at 1 penny between 7 and 8 pm on Friday Dec. 12, 2014 and affected online stores that use the Northern Ireland-based pricing service RepricerExpress to automatically adjust their prices. Three days later, unshipped orders are canceled but those already processed remain honored; no word has yet to be given on whether sellers will be monetarily compensated.
Small businesses, many of whom operate out of their garage or spare bedroom, stand to loses tens of thousands of pounds if Amazon does not accepted any liability for the inventory losses they incurred. Norman Younger, a seller who runs the Just Catering Supplies market, told Business Insider that hundreds of items from his inventory were purchased and already on route. He argues that “Amazon should take a certain responsibility. Amazon always go on about the importance of customer experience, what about our experience?”
Judith Blackford, owner of the kids’ clothing company Kiddymania, claimed she lost £20,000 overnight and asked for support on twitter: “#supportkiddymania through the amaZon 1p crisis……please.”
Other sellers responded to the situation by immediately consulting lawyers in hopes of taking legal action against RepricerExpress, although the collective concern is that the RepricerExpress, which operates out of an office above a pub, may go bankrupt before it can pay out the compensation claims.
The Business Insider reports that Amazon has ignored calls to offer compensation to its sellers, some of whom lost up to £100,000; however, in addition to canceling unfulfilled orders, the company promises to overrule any negative feedback that stems from the glitch. Unfortunately, it will be the seller’s responsibility to monitor their ratings and report any of the said reviews. Accounts with excellent standings built over the course of months can plummet in a matter of hours and it will still take weeks to rebuild credibility even if Amazon rectifies the damage, weeks that could cost the online business thousands of potential holiday orders.
Source Business Insider
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