Amazon Runs Steam Rollers Over Packages with LEGO® Sets Inside

Back in November 2020, I caught a sale on Amazon.com for set #75946-1: Hungarian Horntail Triwizard Challenge. I placed the order in late November and it showed up in mid-January 2021. Yay shipping delays! When I got the package, I didn’t know it had a LEGO set in it. It was in a padded envelope. Really? And then I opened it up and it looked like this…

And if you can’t tell how it looks like someone stepped on it after putting it in a printing press…

So frustrating! I ordered a new set, not a smashed set. That last time I received a smashed set in a padded envelope, I returned the last it. Of course the one I received in return was also beat up in a padded envelope. Go figure…

I can’t put something like this in my Bricklink store without heavily discounting it. Do I break it apart for pieces? What if I was giving this as a gift? I’m sure the response is “Well, you’re just going to open it up and build it anyways. Who cares about the packaging?”

I CARE!!! Amazon, please stop putting LEGO sets in padded envelopes!

So what can you do about it? I’m pretty sure Amazon isn’t going to listen and it is cheaper for them to ship in envelopes instead of boxes. I think your options are to order more than one of a specific set, hope it comes from the same fulfillment warehouse, and hope it forces them to put a larger box versus bag. Or just stop ordering from Amazon.com. None of those are ideal situations. What if I don’t want more than one of a set? Amazon.com is a great place for sales on LEGO sets and I want to keep finding sets on sale.

I’m sure lots of people have received damaged sets. Does anyone have any good tips on how to get around it? Please post them in the comments or send me an email at store@bricksforbricks.com.

In the meantime, happy building!

The Downsides of Amazon!

A word of caution if you plan to buy LEGO sets from Amazon.com (in the US).

I placed an order for some LEGO sets through Amazon.com and then through LEGO Shop at Home and both of them arrived on the same day.  When I opened the two, I was shocked to see the differences in the two packages.

The package on the left is from Amazon.com.  I ordered three LEGO Star Wars sets.  As you can see they arrived in a fairly large box and there was a small sheet of brown paper tucked in with it.  There was a large amount of open space in the box where the sets could shift around during shipment.  I was thankful to see that the sets were not damaged when I opened the package.  The previous two orders I've had from Amazon.com with large LEGO sets have suffered damage and have required me to send them back for a new set or to just deal with having a damaged box in my store.

The package on the right is from LEGO.  You can barely even tell that it is the new modular building, the #10260 Downtown Diner, is in the box and you can see the 60th Anniversary Lego set (#40290).  The team at LEGO packaged it up good with a lot of air packs to make sure there was no damage.  The sets arrived in great condition as they always do.  

So why is this?  I checked in with a friend who spent some time at Amazon and learned why.  My thought was that some worker didn't seem to care or maybe Amazon is trying to save money by not using as much packaging.  I was wrong on both accounts.  From what I learned, everything is automated.  The items are picked by robots off of shelves and the computers tell workers at the very end what box to use.  There are then machines that spit out the appropriate amount of tape and the packaging to use.  So workers don't even have a choice.  They take the materials they are given, package them, and send the box on its way.  

My question was, wouldn't they be concerned about items getting damaged and having to deal with returns?  Well the goal is speed.  Get the packages out as quickly as they can.  Amazon has such a huge volume of orders that they can't take the time to carefully package items.  

LEGO... well I don't know anyone who works at LEGO.  My guess is that they are interested in sets arriving in good condition.  They don't want to pay for returns and they know that they have fans who are interested in collecting sets that arrive with boxes in good condition.

So some advice...
     -If you want to buy sets in good condition for the purpose of collecting, I recommend
     buying them directly from LEGO unless you can pick them up from a store in person.
     -While Amazon often has some great deals on sets, buy from them only if you plan to build
     the set and don't care what the box looks like or if you don't mind a set arriving damaged.
     -Amazon has a great return policy, but keep in mind that you might not always be able to
     get a replacement set.  You can always get your money back, but I have had a number of
     occasions where they would not offer me a replacement set based on the price that I paid.  I
     could buy another set, but not at the same price.

What are your thoughts?  Do I have Amazon completely wrong?  Does LEGO not care as much as I think they do about damage during shipping?  Is it really just UPS or FedEx or the USPS damaging boxes along the way?