u/VillageDull6986

Dealer name: DDGTOP

Factory name: V7F

Model name (& version number): IWC Ingenieur

Price Paid: USD 360

Album Links: See attached photos

Index alignment: Index looks solid. 3 and 9 not perfect but not significantly off.

Dial Printing: Nothing I see worth calling but less grooves as compared to gen

Date Wheel alignment/printing: Requested additional pics for 4

Hand Alignment: Requested additional 12/12 pic

Bezel: Looks fine

Solid End Links (SELs): n/a

Timegrapher numbers: Numbers look fine

Anything else you notice: Why do the needles look black instead of silver

For years, Amazon’s primary competitive advantage wasn't just logistics—it was an unyielding, cultural commitment to Customer Obsession. Today, under its current cost-cutting leadership, that core principle has disintegrated into an adversarial, broken system.

What used to be the gold standard of retail support has completely degraded into a calculated game of evasion, misinformation, and hostile consumer friction.

I recently purchased the new Google Fitbit Air under an explicit pre-order promotional offer: reserving the device early entitled the customer to receive a complimentary promotional Active Band. What followed wasn't just a minor customer service glitch; it was a masterclass in systematic operational failure across multiple tiers of support:

1. The Pre-Order Verification (The First Deception): Before the pre-ordered item even arrived, I proactively contacted support to ensure the promotional offer was securely logged. The Tier 1 agent explicitly assured me in writing that they had successfully activated the specific pre-order Active Band promo on my account and that it would be included.
2. The Promotional Failure: The watch arrived, but despite that explicit prior assurance during the pre-order phase, the promised promotional Active Band was entirely missing from the shipment.
3. Tier 2 Support (The Second Deception): Upon following up on the missing item, a second agent explicitly committed in writing to resolving the error by processing a replacement order to send the Active Band to me directly. This fulfillment was never generated.
4. Executive Customer Relations (The Bureaucratic Wall): After being misled twice, my case was escalated to Executive Customer Relations (ECR). Instead of honoring the explicit, written commitments made by two successive company representatives to provide the promised Active Band, ECR hid behind "policy limitations" and flatly refused to stand by Amazon's own word.
5. The Absolute Absurdity of the "Resolution": ECR’s response is a masterclass in bureaucratic incompetence. They flatly refused to honor the written promises, stating it violates "current policies for promotional items." Their actual solution? They offered a full refund if I return the Active Band. I cannot return a promotional item they never sent me.
6. The Hostile Friction (Holding Refunds Hostage for Data): To cap off this circular logic loop, they are refusing to process a standard return or refund for the watch itself unless I upload a government-issued ID. They explicitly stated: "If you prefer not to share your ID, you won't be eligible for a refund on this order."

Here is the most egregious part: Providing my government ID does not even resolve the issue. Even if I surrender my highly sensitive, private identity data to clear their arbitrary hurdle, Amazon is still flatly refusing to deliver the promotional Active Band they promised me in writing. The ID demand isn't a path to a resolution; it is a bad-faith barrier designed to force compliance while still reneging on their core commitment.

Let’s look at the systemic reality of what is happening here: Front-line agents are clearly incentivized to fabricate written promises just to clear their chat queues and hit turnaround metrics. Then, when the company is held to those promises, the executive tier abdicates all institutional accountability. To cap it off, they deploy aggressive compliance hurdles—demanding private identity data—simply to deny the consumer the promotional item they were originally promised.

Jeff Bezos famously kept an empty chair in leadership meetings to represent the customer and would forward critical complaints to executives with a single, urgent "?" to ensure immediate resolution. Under Andy Jassy's leadership, that empty chair has been thrown out, replaced by a wall of bureaucratic stonewalling designed to tire consumers out until they simply capitulate and forfeit what they are owed.

Amazon support has officially reached an unprecedented low. It is no longer customer-centric; it is actively customer-hostile.

See the attached sequence of screenshots for the exact paper trail of broken commitments.