Just got a letter from a firm I bought off via Amazon "You've been chosen as lucky customer to get £15 commission. If you're satisfied with our service and leave us a 5-star review with min 10 word optionion. It'll be sent to you in 24 hours." Contd - ThreadSky

martinlewis.moneysavingexpert.com • 78 days ago

Just got a letter from a firm I bought off via Amazon "You've been chosen as lucky customer to get £15 commission. If you're satisfied with our service and leave us a 5-star review with min 10 word optionion. It'll be sent to you in 24 hours."
Contd

Comments

carolineegerton.bsky.social•77 days ago

I've been offered a part refund by MyFlowers for improving a bad TrustPilot review - twice. They emailed me the link to my review, so I just used that to add notes to say they'd offered the bribes.

swainy.bsky.social•78 days ago

I had my car serviced by my local Nissan garage last week and they’ve offered me a ‘free’ air con check up worth £40 if I leave them a 5star review on the link that they’re sending me. 🙄

emsido.bsky.social•78 days ago

I once bought a steam mop on Amazon. To get a spare mop head thingy, you needed to leave a positive review. There were complaints online that even if you complied, the spare mop head was not forthcoming. (There were thousands of 5 star reviews.)

templarsplumbing.bsky.social•78 days ago

I sent a battery unit for garden and camping back via amazon and the company wanted me to leave a 5* review or they would press charges and have amazon take my account away, I use amazon a few times a month so that bs didn't work did it

didsburian.bsky.social•78 days ago

Do you mean you bought from

tayloben.bsky.social•78 days ago

Generally for cheaper “eastern” items

probeblynot.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes. And it's partly why I only bother to look at the one-star reviews when I'm assessing whether to buy an Amazon product.

kissmykumquat.bsky.social•78 days ago

Same. Check 1,2 and 3 star reviews. If most are about the product/packaging arriving damaged (or things not within manufacturer control), then in my mind all is ok

dennischatterton.bsky.social•78 days ago

I don't use amazon, tax dodgers.

juniperkeats.bsky.social•78 days ago

You bought off???? (You bought from Amazon.)
Is this the real Martin Lewis?.

silvervstu.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes I’ve had this Martin I passed the email on to Amazon customer service - no reply or action indicated

barnat4.bsky.social•78 days ago

Nah mate ..leave a 6 star review ⬇️

fergalororke.bsky.social•77 days ago

15 for your endorsement; out by a few magnitudes💰

gareth7171.bsky.social•78 days ago

Just leave a 5-star review which says “This seller pays customers for 5-star reviews, none of them are genuine”. They’ll have to send you the £15 because you’ve met the requirements 😆

sanfordme.bsky.social•78 days ago

Sure. And when they don’t pay for your review what are you going to do?

azb2019.bsky.social•78 days ago

Report them to Amazon for what they did and they’ll get banned from the platform

sanfordme.bsky.social•78 days ago

😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂 you hope.

azb2019.bsky.social•78 days ago

Amazon doesn’t want people being bribed for reviews. It devalues their platform.

It’s why they have it in their rules that they can ban sellers that try to buy reviews

sanfordme.bsky.social•77 days ago

And you think that no one has yet reported that company, right.

johnmanningpct.bsky.social•78 days ago

Only issue is that many folk might just look at the star rating, and not bother going as far as the review.

tracyplynn.bsky.social•78 days ago

I purchased something off of Amazon a few months back - it was a POS and I left a 2 star review and received a refund. Since then, the company has emailed me at least once a month to take down my review in exchange for a $25 Amazon gift card. Hard pass.

capjd.bsky.social•78 days ago

That's so immoral. I'd be tempted to call them out on social media!

justbrowsingthanks.bsky.social•77 days ago

Put up bad reviews and then take them down for £25? Have they thought this through…?
Let’s start now, we could all be quids in by Christmas!
🎄 💰 ❄️ 💰 🎅 💰 ⛄️ 💰

sanfordme.bsky.social•78 days ago

As a member of the bottom of the food chain I want you all to know I still use Amazon. Of course the only thing I can buy is food because I don’t have enough money for anything else. Think of how privileged you all are!

tonystead.bsky.social•78 days ago

hmmm... that's how much they think your endorsement's worth? Cheapskates 😉

barnat4.bsky.social•78 days ago

£50 and it's 6 stars 🌟

svenvb.bsky.social•78 days ago

*from

pamhadfield.bsky.social•78 days ago

I've made many reviews on Amazon - they've never offered me any money :(

flicksfan.bsky.social•77 days ago

It may be the 'Marketplace' affiliate system, that has a limited autonomy from Amazon, that does it. Nothing dodgy, but one plagued me for weeks to leave a review.

nbfiddlehead.bsky.social•78 days ago

*Almost* every time I leave a bad review they contact me and send me money

chesterkop.bsky.social•78 days ago

It's become impossible to accept Amazon reviews are genuine. Nearly every item has glowing 5 star reviews and also 1 star reviews saying it's a fire risk or dangerous to children.

tastewart.bsky.social•78 days ago

Sounds to me like they are “cheating” for a positive review. I think I would return it. I look at reviews before I buy but now it can be all lies? Companies should have to disclose if they pay for positive reviews. I would skip right past those items…

robsoncarol.bsky.social•78 days ago

I had one of them. Cheeky gits

francescadaniels.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes quite often, received more in 2023 than this year though

riainnn.bsky.social•77 days ago

I’ve had it with a couple of things - but in both cases I was also very happy with the product

alanwyatt.bsky.social•78 days ago

Your positive review would be worth more than £15 to any company 😄

barnat4.bsky.social•78 days ago

Pay me £££

alanwyatt.bsky.social•78 days ago

Never seen that

alexuk82.bsky.social•78 days ago

Why can't people just make good products anymore

chaosppe.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes, I've had firms send letters a couple times.

sigurd1.bsky.social•78 days ago

Get these all the time

jude50.bsky.social•78 days ago

I won't buy from Amazon - this is just another reason not to imo.

norfolkowl.bsky.social•78 days ago

When Jeff Bezos pays a fair tax on his profits in this country I might use Amazon.

aandrkerr.bsky.social•78 days ago

You can get anything you want off ebay or sellers' own sites.

jacquep.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes, once. Didn't do it.

johnflanagan67.bsky.social•78 days ago

No but if you tell me the firm,I will 👍

barnat4.bsky.social•78 days ago

Lol 😆 🤣 😂

#Savage

larry680.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes had the same after a purchase through Amazon.
£10 voucher in exchange for proof of posting a 5 star review.

sallyinfrance.bsky.social•78 days ago

That’s really crap. I use Amazon a lot ( Amazon France now, for the last few years) and am happy to say I have never been offered such a bribe.

whalton1.bsky.social•78 days ago

I wrote a bad review for printer cartridges (turned out to be fake). The company approached me to with the offer of a full refund if I removed the review. I declined to save others being conned .

riverlorien.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes, several times, unfortunately. Add AI reviews and it's difficult to trust most product appraisals

niklg.bsky.social•78 days ago

I'm more interested in what an optionion is? Is it an option with many layers ? Or one that makes your eyes water ?

capjd.bsky.social•78 days ago

It's similar to a typypo

sujoh.bsky.social•78 days ago

Have you heard the one about the priest, the imam and the rabbit who walk into a pub. "I think I must be a typo" says the rabbit.

martinlewis.moneysavingexpert.com•78 days ago

In other words "we'll pay for a 5 star" review, perverting the review system. Have you ever had this?

brionyryles.co.uk•78 days ago

Yes, and you can report it here: https://account-status.amazon.co.uk/report-review-compensatio

thinkgov.bsky.social•78 days ago

No, but if asked in this way would provide a review that would fail their criteria. Feels almost criminal.

pjbuzz.bsky.social•78 days ago

Happens all the time

valheru.bsky.social•78 days ago

Fairly regularly

swissgooner.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes, a few times. Sometimes it’s even more direct. “Leave us a 5-star review, and we will refund your product.” I work with Amazon on the supplier side and that was a competitor so I tried and they did. Very hard for Amazon to police that with marketplace sellers as purchase is verified by system.

bookworm17.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes, and I didn't comply. I was annoyed as I selected the product due to the 'good' reviews. Hate hate hate scammers.

cleyfaye.bsky.social•78 days ago

It's common. It's also against Amazon's own terms of use, but I'm not sure if they're actually doing anything against that.

keredwh.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes very recently. Ignored it.

fergalororke.bsky.social•78 days ago

No, but the receipt of such missives leads me to discount the reviews presented.

marghchad.bsky.social•78 days ago

I once had someone I'd bought off state, rather bluntly, that only positive reviews would be accepted. Needless to say I never bought off them again.

angieharpist.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yep. £25 offered for five star review. Also, bombarded with phone calls when I tried to send something back!

rowingrabbit.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes, plus offer to send another different item for free in exchange for an "honest" 5 star review. Nope & Nope.

penguingalaxy.bsky.social•74 days ago

I've definitely heard of this happening. I've even heard - though I don't currently have a source to hand - of employees buying stuff on your behalf and posting a review in your name, and it's a verified purchase as it went to you. Not sure how this would work if they haven't hacked you though.

darthming.bsky.social•78 days ago

I had this. Gave it a low rating because it was honest. They bent over backwards and sent me a new version of the gadget within 24 hours for free. Gave the original to a friend

giannarue.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes,for earbuds.

sharon0706.bsky.social•77 days ago

Yes, what I purchased didn’t work so they offered me a refund if I changed my review! It went in the bin.

crickwick.bsky.social•78 days ago

Reviews are now meaningless, trustpilot one of the worst ironically

rob0909.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes.

naphtor.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yep. Got a £20 voucher for a £19 product!

ccrgmac.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes. Also printed inserts with the goods when they arrive. Reported to Amazon but no idea if they act on the reports.

martinfaeporty.bsky.social•78 days ago

Similar to me, except I got it in a separate letter shortly after the goods arrived. Straight into recycling.

noseybloke.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes and so I sent the goods back for a refund. I had made the purchase based on the excellent (paid for)reviews and so felt I had been conned into buying them.

realdeal64.bsky.social•78 days ago

Slay. Agree.

drsteffikeir.bsky.social•78 days ago

yes, and refused to do it. Especially as the item was pants. It's been going on for a while though, and arguably paid for blog post reviews in the day was a similar approach. I did do those if the item appealed but was always honest in the review.

sarahg1000.bsky.social•78 days ago

Report them to Amazon, they’ll suspend their account

daveake.bsky.social•78 days ago

Not with cash, but with free gifts.

vieuxfox.bsky.social•78 days ago

unfortunately , 'no'

makingsawdust.bsky.social•78 days ago

I haven’t, but on eBay after leaving a (justified) bad review the seller complained and had it taken down.

I wouldn’t trust “reviews” on either site.

cattlebat.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes, but I didn't bother complying. I just knew after that the reviews about the seller were worthless.

tbwptag.bsky.social•78 days ago

Happens all the time, "discounts" and vouchers for reviews. I even got offered one to change what was in effect a complaint to a five star

davesward.bsky.social•78 days ago

Via various different incentives, but yes.

mokomoko6.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes, not uncommon. Usually for ‘10% off your next order’ or similar, rather than directly for money.

thejomurphy.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yup. I've had one before. Refused it and reported it to Amazon

kevinholohan.bsky.social•78 days ago

Just had a similar offer in the post today. £50 credit for a stellar review. Was for a set of 4 laser jet ink cartridges which cost me just over £70

bookchallenge.bsky.social•78 days ago

When I put my house on the market I got a letter from a company telling me they’ll buy it off me and to email them for a price (googled them and it said they only offer you 85% of the asking price) the letter said leave a 5⭐️ review and go into a prize draw 😱

gavinregnart.bsky.social•78 days ago

I did. Wrote an honest review because I really liked it. When it broke after a couple of weeks I added a comment and reduced the rating.

jarede.bsky.social•78 days ago

Had them included in my parcel... and i've taken advantage of it

swimbikerunjane.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes I’ve had the exact same thing from an Amazon vendor recently. I complained to Amazon, as the vendor had used my data, outside of fulfilling my order, to send me the letter. Amazon were not really interested!

jepharry.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes, I was offered £20 off my next Amazon purchase...Bribery potentially to lie, so just ignored. But I liked the product and may otherwise have given 5*.

adam.reece.wales•78 days ago

Yes. Once when I reviewed a product at 3 stars offering me a refund and a gift voucher, and another when I reviewed a product at 2 stars offering me a refund.

Sent a copy of the messages to Amazon's customer support, and told both vendors to kindly do one. I did not take the bribes.

fdun89.bsky.social•78 days ago

I'd just do it, get the money and change the review to 1 star 😂

tms1967.bsky.social•78 days ago

Me too!

lateosiempre.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes, £50 from a car company for updating my review from 4 to 5 stars. In fairness, they did rectify the issue that resulted in the initial 4 star review.

debrapatterson.bsky.social•78 days ago

I have been asked to remove a negative review in order to receive a refund on an item that was fake. I posted all of their emails in my follow-up reviews of said item.

jacquelinepye.bsky.social•77 days ago

No, but looking at some reviews it seems others have. I’ve an ongoing complaint via PayPal about an ‘Asian’ site where 90% feel let down and the rest gave glowing reviews.

dfenney.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yep. Thought it might be a scam so ignored it.

jasuk70.bsky.social•78 days ago

Most say about giving a review and you get entered into some kind of competition. Most seem not to mention a Good review.

petenicholson.bsky.social•78 days ago

So is the advice to do the review given it’s free money?! Or is morally questionable?

corpyburd.bsky.social•78 days ago

Yes, and recommend a friend🙄

lardyblokeuk.bsky.social•78 days ago

I received a free filter for submitting a review on a vacuum cleaner but no loaded expectation upfront.

mattpeoples.bsky.social•78 days ago

The public reviewing system is inherently shambolic because we don't know who is reviewing the product - therefore we don't know their motivations. We should all revert back to professional reviewers. I've had a lot of rubbish meals because the restaurant has a TripAdvisor rating of 4.5 +.