Upfront summary: Is Amazon safe?
Amazon Pay is just one of the many services Amazon provides for its customers. Amazon Pay can be used by small and large businesses alike, offering an alternative for payment options. Amazon Pay uses your customer’s stored Amazon Account information to create a faster and secure check-out process.
Amazon is owned by one of the most well-known and trustworthy companies globally—we believe Amazon Pay is very safe!
Amazon Pay Company Information
| Official Website: | www.pay.amazon.com |
| Founded: | 2007 |
| Owner: | Jeff Bezos |
| Number of Employees: | Amazon as a whole: Over 1 million |
| Revenue: | 5.25 million USD |
| Location: | Seattle, Washington |
| Customer Service Contact: | Webpage contact |
| Social Media: | Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube |
What is Amazon Pay?
Amazon Pay is a subsidiary of Amazon.com, Inc. which was founded in 1994 by Jeff Bezos. Amazon Pay allows merchants to process payments through their customer’s Amazon.com accounts. This platform is a little different than most payment processing systems businesses use today, but it also offers a more convenient way to pay—for customers and companies.
Since Amazon is a very well-known company name throughout the world, many customers will already trust Amazon. Using Amazon Pay will give your customers a little relief, knowing their payments will be processed securely and by a company they already know.
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How does Amazon Pay work?
Amazon Pay reduces the steps customers need to take during the checkout process at external merchant’s websites (including yours!) Less steps leads to fewer abandoned shopping carts and repeats customers for your business. The Amazon Pay button can easily be added to your website, by following the steps mentioned here.
Amazon Pay essentially takes customers from your website, redirects them to Amazon to retrieve their stored payment information, then sends them back to your webpage to finalize the check-out process.
Once online payment has been processed through Amazon Pay, it will forward the money to your account minus the transaction fees. The transactions usually process on the same day.
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Is Amazon Pay safe and legit or a scam?
Amazon is one of the most trusted and widely known companies in the world today. Amazon Pay is very much a legit company and a safe online payment system. It’s common knowledge that customers want the most security they can get when shopping online. Amazon Pay is probably one of the best in security.
According to an Amazon Pay blog post, most of its consumers rated Amazon Pay as 10 out of 10 when it comes to the ‘security of the transaction.’ One anonymous consumer said,
“I trust Amazon and shop almost exclusively with them. At the few places I shop that are not Amazon, I will choose the merchants that offer Amazon Pay over another. I believe that the fewer places that have my payment information the better.”
Amazon.com and Amazon Pay shouldn’t steal sensitive data and are generally free of viruses or malware. Always be cautious when using the internet, use your antivirus software and beware of potential phishing scams! Phishing scammers will pretend to be a company to steal your personal and financial information.
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Is Amazon Pay trustworthy and reliable?
Like mentioned before, Amazon Pay is trustworthy and reliable, as it comes from a responsible company that has been in business since 1994. In a blog post titled, “Top Reasons Why Consumers Like Amazon Pay,” Amazon Pay lists security and trust as the primary reasons customers love using its payment system.
One consumer surveyed said,
“I try not to shop on websites which I’m not familiar with because I feel uneasy about sharing personal information such as credit card info and my billing address. However, if one of these smaller, less familiar websites do have the Amazon Pay logo it makes me feel more secure about shopping there.”
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Amazon Pay Fees and Costs
Amazon Pay does not require a fee from your customers using the service. For the business side, transactions will cost the merchant 2.9 percent plus 30 cents per domestic transaction. If you conduct an international purchase from your website or mobile site, the fees will be 3.9 percent plus 30 cents.
Amazon customers can also use Alexa to purchase items. There is a slight increase in processing fees, 4 percent plus 30 cents for a domestic transaction. International purchases will have 5 percent plus 30 cents in fees.
If you receive a chargeback claim not covered under Amazon Pay’s Payment Protection Policy, they will charge you $20 plus tax. Disputed chargeback fees are non-refundable. If you issue a refund for a customer, you will be refunded the processing fees on that transaction.
The Amazon Pay system is free for businesses to use and claims to have no hidden fees. A list of fees can easily be found on its website, so it’s good that Amazon Pay is transparent with how cards are processed.
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Does Amazon Pay have good customer service?
Amazon has a highly loyal customer base, because of its good reputation. From a secure website to its customer support, Amazon prides itself on respectably treating its customers.
According to Amazon Pay’s support page, if you choose to add Amazon Pay buttons to your website, you will also receive Amazon customer service support for transactions.
If you are in need of assistance on the merchant side, Amazon Pay support can be reached through its webpage here.
Does Amazon Pay have a refund policy/buyer protection?
There’s no charge to use Amazon Pay besides transaction fees. Amazon Pay merchants can issue refunds to their customers for no cost.
Amazon Pay does offer a Buyer Dispute Program, which can apply if someone uses Amazon Pay to purchase from a merchant, paid the merchant for an item but it did not arrive, or if they received the item but it did not come as described.
The Amazon A-to-Z Guarantee only applies to the purchase of physical goods. If a customer’s item falls under this category, they must wait 15 days from the order date to submit a claim. Once 15 days hit, they have 75 days to file a claim. If an item does not fall under the A-to-Z Guarantee, customers need to wait 14 business days for delivery of services and one business day for the delivery of digital items. From that point, they have 30 days to file a complaint.
Any complaints can be filed through the consumer’s Account page on Amazon Payments.
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How do I delete an Amazon Pay account?
To close an Amazon Pay account, sign in to your account on Seller Central, then go to the Contact Seller Support page. Once you go through the steps with support, they will have to close the account for you.
The pros and cons of Amazon Pay
Pros
- Owned by one of the biggest companies in the world
- Trustworthy
- Offers multiple payment options
- Instant refunds on specific payment methods
- Very secure
- Faster online shopping experiences
Cons
- Amazon Pay balance cannot be used to purchase certain gift cards
- The interface can be slow sometimes
- Does not offer an Amazon Pay mobile app
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Amazon Pay Careers
Amazon is a great company when it comes to its employees. A place for the opportunity with job roles in data science, engineering, management, product development, and more, job seekers have a lot to choose from!
Amazon Pay is located in the U.S. state of Washington. It offers healthcare benefits starting on day one for all employees and their family members. They also provide benefits like 401(k) matching, paid leave, and more. Amazon is one of the companies that offer tuition reimbursement for employees who want to further their education and want to grow.
More of the exciting careers at Amazon Pay are found here.
Best Amazon Pay Alternatives
If you don’t want to use Amazon Pay for your website checkout process, there are many other available options to use.
- Flattr
- Stripe
- Privacy.com
- Payoneer
- PayPal Payments
- Google Pay
- Apple Pay
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Additional FAQs
How do I sign up for Amazon Pay?
Visit www.pay.amazon.com and click Business Registration. You will be prompted to sign up for the option you want. If you are already using an e-commerce provider, you will create your Seller Central account based on your provider. If you do not already have an e-commerce provider, you will create a Seller Central account through them.
What should I know before using Amazon pay for my business?
Amazon Pay is available for merchants in the United States. If you register as an individual, you will need to be at least 18 years old, be a permanent resident of the United States, or be a United States citizen. You cannot be a United States visa holder. If you register as a business, the business needs to have a physical United States address, bank account, and a credit card based in the United States.
Once you meet all of the qualifications, you will need the following items for the Amazon Pay registration process:
- A United States based phone number
- A credit card and checking account with a United States bank
- A taxpayer ID, Employee Identification Number, or Social Security Number
- The website URL you plan to use Amazon Pay on
Can Amazon Pay help my business with marketing?
If you plan to add promotions and marketing to your business plan, Amazon Pay can help. If you visit their merchant tools page, you can find ready-to-use content and recommended marketing programs to build your business even more.