Amazon.com Subscribe and Save Scam

Amazon.com has recently adopted a "Subscribe and Save" feature which is total BS. As another user wrote, the "Subscribe and Save" feature is mainly available on everyday commodities like toilet paper, dishwashing liquid, deodorant etc. Items you will use and need to buy again at some frequency. The thought is that you purchase an item you typical buy often  and subscribe to have amazon send you the same order each month. You save a few cents and you don’t have to hassle with manually purchasing it each month.

The Bait:

Let say for example an 8lb bag of kitty litter is $8, if you "Subscribe" you will "Save" $1 on the order and they will send it to you for $7 and presumably you will save by paying $7 dollars for the same order each month thereafter.

The Switch:

As the other use wrote, the "terms and conditions" state that amazon can charge you the price listed for the item the day it is shipped, not the price you originally agreed to when you set up the "Subscribe and Save". So, you pay $7 for the first order instead of $8, then the next month amazon charges you $31 for an 8lb bag of kitty litter (nearly 4x the original cost) because they can.

The Results:

If you’re a busy person and don’t check your bank statements, you will never know you're being ripped off. If you do happen to notice the over change, like the other reviewer noted, it might be too late as you might have already opened and used the product. And if you’re on a fix income, this can be devastating to your budget. As a result, millions are being ripped off as amazon baits you into a "Subscribe and Save" with the promise of saving a few cents, and then hikes the prices of these items to double, triple or more of the original value on subsequent auto orders.

Personal examples:

Sounds unrealistic right? Wrong. Many people have personal experience with this and there are numerous reports on this ripoff sceme. The kitty litter story above is true. I've never been keen on allowing any company repeat assess to my bank account without my knowledge and consent each time, so I never signed up for the "Subscribe and Save" feature. However I did purchase an 8lb bag of kitty litter for $8 buck a few months ago. When I logged back in to purchase another bag, I was shocked to see the list price at $31. I noted several reviews on the item complaining about the price hike, many stating they were "Subscribe and Save" customers who subscribe when the product was 8 dollars and had been charged double or triple on subsequent orders. Originally I though the seller must of exploited the system and hiked the prices, however another review pointed out all of these order were fulfilled and shipped by amazon. This isn’t a bad seller screwing people over, this is Amazon itself screwing its’ repeat customers over. The reviewers point about it being Amazon gouging people, garnered more proof for me when I attempted to update my review of this item to point out the dangers of the “Subscribe and Save” feature  and warn people against subscribing. My review was never updated or posted.  I looked at another everyday item I purchased in the past few months, a 150 oz bottle of laundry detergent. I purchased this item at $7 , it was now listed at $21 (3x the original cost). I tried to post a review warning people the price has tripled and not to subscribe, and that review was also never posted. Amazon filtered my reviews because they warned about their  “Subscribe and Save” scam. I also note no reviews on the detergent complaining of the price hike as amazon must of deleted them. I’m sure the reviews complaining of the price hike and “Subscribe and Save” scam on the kitty litter will also be delete soon. It's important to note it is not that the prices of these commodities suddenly spiked in the market place either. I googled both these items and found them for their original respective prices at many places like Walmart and Target. This is an Amazon scam, since Amazon would not let me post the warning against their “Subscribe and Save” scam in the reviews, I’m posting it here.

Bottom line:

DO NOT “Subscribe and Save.” It may save you a buck in the beginning, but it will cost you way more in the long run. Just purchase your items as you need them and stay in control of your money.