Amazon Voucher Codes

History of Amazon

Amazon was founded in 1994 by Jeffrey Bezos with its world headquarters in Seattle, Washington. The Amazon.com website was launched in 1995 but it was still a few years before Amazon appeared in Britain. It wasn't until 1998 that Amazon acquired an online book retailer called Bookpages in the UK, and as PR Newswire stated at the time, Bezos hoped this acquisition would "become a fundamental component of Amazon's expansion into the United Kingdom and European markets."

Bookpages was one of the largest online bookstores in the UK and listed approximately 1.2 million books available to customers. They also had a fast and easy to navigate database for customers to locate the book they wanted and their system also had a loyalty scheme, discounts for regulars, gift wrapping and a great customer service focus. Bezos wanted to offer customers in the UK the same selection of items, level of service and great value that was on offer to customers in the US and as Bookpages had the in depth knowledge of the UK marketplace, this acquisition was the perfect solution.

Amazon created a platform called Amazon Marketplace which allowed other companies or individuals to make money through their brand. People can sign up to become an Amazon vendor and sell their products through Amazon, or they can sell secondhand items.

Amazon is famous in several countries worldwide including China, Japan, Germany and France and is recognised for it's scale of choice and not just of books. In recent years Amazon has also started providing music as digital mp3s, and let's not forget the groundbreaking release of the Kindle. This meant access to hundreds of thousands of books available as digital downloads, the latest addition of streaming video and access to games and apps for tablets and other mobile devices.

From it's early beginnings as a virtual bookshop, Amazon has expanded into other avenues and its logo, created in 2000, has special significance. If you look closely at the logo you will see that there is a curved arrow shaped like a smile that links the "a" to the "z" and this indicates the company carries every product you could think of from A to Z. Take a look at the departments below to get an idea of the products you can buy. Amazon also have regular voucher codes, discounted items, daily deals and other promotions available for customers, so if you're looking for a great bargain, then checking for these perks regularly is highly recommended.

Amazon is the go to place to search for something you want to buy online. If you can find it online then you're likely to find it on Amazon, usually cheaper and available for next day delivery. In certain areas there's even a "within the hour" delivery service on selected items.

Brands

It would be impossible to give a full list of the brands Amazon sells here as there are literally thousands, but thankfully, they have already compiled a list of brands under each department and you can select them from their "Top Seller" filter. Simply visit the department, choose the item you'd like to buy then look for the brand you desire using this filter. If you are looking for a specific voucher for a brand, the "top seller" filter can also be used for this. Just type "voucher" into the search box and then use the filter to find a deal for the brand you want.

Departments

Whatever you're looking for, you're bound to find it on Amazon. They have several departments including:

• Amazon Video
• Apps and Games
• Baby
• Beauty
• Books
• Clothing
• Computers
• Digital Music
• Grocery
• Health and Personal Care
• Jewellery
• Kindle Store
• Kitchen and Home
• Lighting
• Pet Supplies
• Shoes and Bags
• Sports and Outdoors
• Toys and Games

Delivery Information

Amazon have a variety of delivery options available.

Some items are eligible for free delivery and will arrive 3-5 business days after ordering. However, there are certain terms and conditions that apply so make sure you read these carefully. You can also choose free standard delivery to nominated pick up destinations where your package will be delivered to a local convenient shop or business that has signed up to offer this service. This is great if you may not be home when the delivery is scheduled and is often easier than rescheduling.

For items that may not be eligible for free delivery, you can choose from standard, one day delivery, priority, express, expedited or scheduled deliveries each of which comes with a charge. The quicker or more secure you want your item, the more costly the privilege and some deliveries will require a signature.

If you're buying something from a vendor that uses Amazon Marketplace, they may have their own additional delivery charges so pay attention to this when ordering. If vendor orders are fulfilled by Amazon then the standard Amazon charges will apply. You can also group items together to reduce costs or have the items shipped faster as soon as they become available for an additional charge.

In the last year Amazon customers have been given the option of signing up to Amazon Prime, a premium service which provides customers with a whole host of services including unlimited free one day delivery, prime video and music, access to over 500,000 books and early access to the best Amazon deals. There is a flat fee charge for this which is currently £79 a year.

Returns Policy

Returning items is easy and most vendors who sell through Amazon will allow you to return items within thirty days of receipt of delivery if the products are complete and in an unused and undamaged condition. Amazon have a general returns policy which will cover most items, however, some items may have specific policies or requirements about returning them which you can read before you buy them. Regardless, by law you have the right to cancel any purchase within 14 days and you also have statutory rights if the item you purchased is not as described, not fit for purpose or not of satisfactory quality.

Security

Amazon take security extremely seriously, and do everything they can to ensure any transactions are safe and personal information is kept secure. When you enter information into Amazon, to create an account or as part of the payment procedure, your data is transferred using a protocol called SSL or Secure Socket Layer. Amazon make sure this protocol follows the latest update and you will be able to view their latest security certificate for added peace of mind. Your data is encrypted into a secure format and is then transmitted over the internet to a destination server where it is received and decrypted.

Amazon policy states that your personal data is never sold, traded or rented and they also promote personal responsibility which makes customers aware of their role in ensuring their own security, like using a strong password, never revealing personal information and being aware of scams, phishing and other harmful online attempts, over which they can have some element of control. Amazon also have a means for customers to report any security threat if necessary.

Reviews

On Trustpilot [ https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.amazon.co.uk ], Amazon.co.uk rates highly, with over 86% of reviewers giving ratings of 4 or 5 stars and less than 10% a rating of one star. Like every other company, some people will have positive experiences and some will have negative, and it's usually only the great or the dire ones that are reported, but it's worth remembering that those leaving reviews at Trustpilot represent only a handful of Amazon's customers.