Amazon under fire as lawsuit alleges shady practices on Prime Day: 'Paid more than they would have'

"Two Amazon Prime members filed a class-action suit in Washington federal court, accusing Amazon of advertising false discounts during its Prime Day event, per Top Class Actions. Cathy Armstrong and Oluwa Fosudo allege Amazon uses fictional "list prices" to mislead consumers into believing they are scoring better deals than they actually are. For instance, the suit says Amazon claimed it was offering a 44% discount off a list price of $179.95."

"However, the plaintiffs say that the price is inflated. Previously, Amazon sold the product at a list price between $130 and $160, according to the lawsuit. "Because Amazon used a Fake Prior Amazon Price to calculate the Prime Day Percentage Discounts, Plaintiffs and other consumers like them paid more than they would have had the items truly been discounted (i.e., from the actual prior price) with the Prime Day Percentage Discounts that Amazon promised and that they relied on in the transaction," it says."

"Amazon's data centers still account for massive amounts of pollution, even as the company increasingly relies on clean energy to power them. Meanwhile, Prime Day encourages shoppers to snag deals before they expire and splurge on merchandise they may not need, leading to excessive waste. Misleading marketing tactics could lead to even more pollution on the back end if disgruntled consumers return overpriced items."

Two Amazon Prime members filed a class-action suit in Washington federal court alleging Amazon advertised false discounts during Prime Day by using fictional 'list prices' to calculate percentage savings. Plaintiffs cite examples where Amazon claimed steep discounts off inflated prior prices that did not reflect recent selling prices. The complaint asserts that consumers paid more than they would have if discounts were calculated from actual prior prices. Critics note that Prime Day's urgency encourages excess purchasing and returns, which add to environmental harm. Amazon's large data centers and delivery operations continue to generate significant pollution despite investments in electric vehicles and clean energy.

Read at The Cool Down