Purchase from Lego.com arrived re-taped/box damage

560Heliport

FWIW, the LEGO sets I saw today were all in good shape. 

560Heliport

Oh, and they're paying an extra $2/hour through April! 

Odeinoichus

What a fascinating conversation. Makes me wonder why I've kept some boxes after opening them? Time to go recycle.

Incidentally, the Parisian Restaraunt I bought from my local LEGO Store during the discount has a damaged box. Do I care? Nope, wanna know why? No? Who cares, going to tell ya anyway.

It's because the LEGO Model is more important, the set is retired and I don't care if the box is damaged as long as I get to build an awesome LEGO set. I really need to get on that.

blokey9

560Heliport said:

Oh, and they're paying an extra $2/hour through April! 

how generous of them.

daewoo

blokey9 said:

560Heliport said:

Oh, and they're paying an extra $2/hour through April! 

how generous of them.

No one is forced to apply for a job there, you know.

les

eBay, Amazon and other retailers rules state that items with damaged retail packaging even if unopened and sealed cannot be listed as new. PERIOD. At best they can be listed as "like new" unopened, damaged box. The retailers own standards dictate that the retail packaging and it's contents are one and the same as far as consumer rights and guarantees.  And besides RETAIL packaging is not the same as shipping packaging.

les

Cyberdragon said:

CCC said:

klinton said:

datsunrobbie said:

If the value is solely in the contents of the box, why do people pay more on the aftermarket for sealed sets than for sets that have been opened?

The assumption that the contents are new and unused. It's about the integrity of the interior product. 

A new set with the seals opened is also new and unused but is often worth less than a new set with the seals intact. And it is worth more than a new set complete with all the bags and instructions that has no box.

That's cause people are nuts. A resealed box with pristine unused contents, is pyhsically exactly the same as the box from the factory. The box...is not...sacred (the Lego is designed to be touched with human hands, it's not the Ark of the Covanent)! I wouldn't care either way buying NIB. Also the point stands that there are so many box collecters these days that keeping a box from the factory is pointless and actually devalues it by adding to them. So don't. And, if you get an old NIB set, OPEN IT (or gift it to someone who will), before you lkeep passing it down till it rots then nobody gets the unboxing experience.

Cyberdragon said:

CCC said:

klinton said:

datsunrobbie said:

If the value is solely in the contents of the box, why do people pay more on the aftermarket for sealed sets than for sets that have been opened?

The assumption that the contents are new and unused. It's about the integrity of the interior product. 

A new set with the seals opened is also new and unused but is often worth less than a new set with the seals intact. And it is worth more than a new set complete with all the bags and instructions that has no box.

That's cause people are nuts. A resealed box with pristine unused contents, is pyhsically exactly the same as the box from the factory. The box...is not...sacred (the Lego is designed to be touched with human hands, it's not the Ark of the Covanent)! I wouldn't care either way buying NIB. Also the point stands that there are so many box collecters these days that keeping a box from the factory is pointless and actually devalues it by adding to them. So don't. And, if you get an old NIB set, OPEN IT (or gift it to someone who will), before you keep passing it down till it rots then nobody gets the unboxing experience.

Among other things the value increases with rarity. As you said Lego is meant to be handled so an unopened set is clearly more rare. Packaging in general is fairly fragile and meant to be discarded.  Retail packaging is hardly about transportation. Those retail packages were shipped and sent to the store in SHIPPING boxes or crates. Retail packaging is about the consumer experience, nothing more.

cody6268

I always thought anything that was returned/had damaged packaging got sold separately as "Warehouse" items on Amazon. Guess I was wrong.

CCC

cody6268 said:

I always thought anything that was returned/had damaged packaging got sold separately as "Warehouse" items on Amazon. Guess I was wrong.

Not all sales on amazon are handled by amazon. If you buy from a seller that ships their own product, then amazon cannot tell if it is a customer return.

Fizyx

CCC said:

cody6268 said:

I always thought anything that was returned/had damaged packaging got sold separately as "Warehouse" items on Amazon. Guess I was wrong.

Not all sales on amazon are handled by amazon. If you buy from a seller that ships their own product, then amazon cannot tell if it is a customer return.

And speaking from experience (having gotten the same set with opened seals more than once after returning it) some of those companies definitely abuse the fact that Amazon is pretty hands off in that situation.

MaffyD

Not just Lego - all sorts of things. I bought a Gundam model kit before Christmas, and it had one leg built when I got it, even though it was listed as sold by Amazon, Warehouse 'like new'.
I got my money back without even needing to return the kit, but not sure I want to carry on building a kit which has been started already...

arathemis

when I ordered the bugatti chiron from the local "amazon type retailer", they just snapped the shipping paper directly onto the box and shipped it.

I couldn`t believe my eyes when i received it.

I took me roughly 15 minutes to peel off slowly the sticked paper, without tearing it and finally succeeded. I didn`t want to return it, since the discount was pretty hefty.

The box looks okay, albeit gathered some dust from the shipping depot.

CCC

MaffyD said:

Not just Lego - all sorts of things. 

Same here. I bought a folding ladder through amazon last year and it was damaged on rungs on the interior and missing bolts so was clearly a used return and not new. It took about six weeks arguing with the company before amazon refunded. It was totally bizarre though, as the company's responses got weirder and weirder, that I should not complain about such things when the world was in a pandemic, that I should be enjoying time with my family instead of complaining about faulty ladders and that by wanting a refund I was stealing food from their children. I would have accepted a partial refund but the company kept digging in and amazon finally stepped in and refunded if I returned it. When I asked how they wanted to collect it as I was not paying (they were large ladders), I was told to keep it as another customer would just complain if they received it and it wasn't worth the courier costs.

SumoLego

CCC said:
...I should be enjoying time with my family instead of complaining about faulty ladders...

Pish Posh!  Don't be ridiculous!

Also, you'll have plenty of opprotunity to enjoy time with your family when you are permanently injured from falling off of a faulty ladder.

MugenPower

CCC said:

MaffyD said:

Not just Lego - all sorts of things. 

Same here. I bought a folding ladder through amazon last year and it was damaged on rungs on the interior and missing bolts so was clearly a used return and not new. It took about six weeks arguing with the company before amazon refunded. It was totally bizarre though, as the company's responses got weirder and weirder, that I should not complain about such things when the world was in a pandemic, that I should be enjoying time with my family instead of complaining about faulty ladders and that by wanting a refund I was stealing food from their children. I would have accepted a partial refund but the company kept digging in and amazon finally stepped in and refunded if I returned it. When I asked how they wanted to collect it as I was not paying (they were large ladders), I was told to keep it as another customer would just complain if they received it and it wasn't worth the courier costs.

TBH, this is why I'll usually only purchase items shipped and sold by Amazon whenever I shop there.  And, the few times I do purchase items from a 3rd party, I'll only choose the ones shipped by Amazon.  I've found that returns and refunds haven't been problematic when going this route.  Even if it costs more, I'll still choose those options just to minimize the potential headaches CCC experienced.

Astrobricks

^ This is why I almost never buy anything from Amazon that doesn’t come with free Prime shipping and returns. 

CCC

I'm the same, if amazon sells the product. It was there, similar sellers on ebay or 1.5-2x the price from a "proper" retailer.

MaffyD

I'm the same - My Gundam was sold by Amazon.

Solojif

Ordered a Rough Terrain Crane from Amazon. When it arrived (no brown cardboard box) the hole in the box was the size of my fist. I’d bet half the pieces where missing. I literally walked down the drive way looking for pieces. It was prime so had no hassle returning it. I don’t ever order anything from amazon unless it’s prime. I received fake go pros, batteries and sunglasses all this Xmas from amazon. They refunded me every time but you have to watch out.