Caught out on shipping charges

I order things online quite frequently.  Since moving to the UK last year, I have been using Amazon.co.uk for most of my purchases.  I did a search for some photo mats the other day.  In the search bar I typed in "photo mats/UK"
It took me to Amazon and I found some nice ones there. They were fairly cheap too.  So I did a 1-click purchase.  Much to my horror later, I received an email confirmation later showing the price of the mat to be $6.99 and the shipping to be $145.00!!!  I had purchased from Amazon.com and not Amazon.co.uk.  This is a 16 X 20 piece of cardboard for crikes sakes.  I called Amazon as quickly as possible only to be told they could do nothing to stop the order.  I called the bank to stop the charge going through only to be told I could only contest it once the charge appeared on my statement.  Of course, by then, the item would have already been shipped and even if I got a refund for the product, I would not get a refund for the shipping. I am really upset over this stupid and costly mistake.  I will no longer buy anything from Amazon.com after learning they have no buyer protection at all.

Do they not show you the shipping charges on the screen before you click "purchase"?

Can you not go into your order history and cancel? I've cancelled from there before, but possibly only from amazon orders, not from marketplace sellers.

I would contact Consumer Direct and see if you have any legal redress, although I am pretty sure you can only get a refund on the purchase price, not the shipping.

http://www.consumerdirect.gov.uk/

Was it Amazon you actually purchased from or a third party vendor?

Do they not show you the shipping charges on the screen before you click "purchase"?

When you do 1-click purchase, it doesn't show you the shipping charge,

Was it Amazon you actually purchased from or a third party vendor?

It was an Amazon seller and the lady from Amazon told me that since it was one of their sellers, they would do nothing.  When I asked about the outrageous shipping charge, she said they could charge whatever they wanted for shipping. 

I am trying to contact the seller directly.  The item is supposed to be shipped today from New York but the office has not been open yet. Hopefully i can get through in time to stop the shipment.

Maybe you could have it shipped to someone you know in the US?

I had thought of that idea, thanks.  I just need to be able to reach someone at the store before they ship it out.   

That really bites! Hope you can get it sorted.

I made my first ever order from Amazon last week and it was only when I got the confirmation email that I realised I had somehow ordered 2 of the same bloody books. Fortunately I was able to cancel the order and then re-oredered 1.

If you purchased it on a credit card you can dispute it with your credit card company.

I did use a credit card and called them last night.  They can't do anything until the charges appear on the statement and we could contest them then.  However, the shipping charges will have already been incurred at that point.

Are you able to contact the seller directly?

I did use a credit card and called them last night.  They can't do anything until the charges appear on the statement and we could contest them then.  However, the shipping charges will have already been incurred at that point.

Correct but I would believe you should be able to get a suspension of the charges whilst they investigate/dispute, meaning you wouldn't have to pay for those charges once the statement became due.  Keep an eye on your internet banking facility, they can dispute the second it becomes billed to the account if all else fails.

That really bites a big one!!! Hopefully you'll be able to contact the seller before they process the order!! *Fingers crossed*

Not good at all!!  Thanks for bringing this to our attention so we can look out for it in the future.

$145 is crazy as a shipping charge. I just bought books for my best friend who's staying in China, and Amazon charged me either $18 or $20 for shipping. (Granted, it's non-expedited, so it will take 3 weeks, but still, I think expedited shipping was only $50 or so.)

Good luck getting this straightened out and reversing the charges!