Amazon cancelling eclipse safe glasses under recall

#1

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Two separate Amazon solar eclipse glasses sellers called KGW Saturday following Amazon’s recall. Both said their products were verified as safe and manufactured by companies approved by NASA. But their glasses are still under a recall.

Manish Panjwani’s Los Angeles-based astronomy product business, AgenaAstro, has sold three times its average monthly revenue in the past month. Ninety-five percent is related to the solar eclipse. He hired seven extra temporary workers just to help with the pre-eclipse boom.

Panjwani’s eclipse glasses come from two NASA-approved sellers: Thousand Oaks Optical in Arizona and Baader Planetarium in Germany. He said he provided documentation to Amazon proving the products’ authenticity weeks ago, with no response from Amazon.

On Saturday morning, he woke up to 100 emails from customers after Amazon issued a recall for his products.

“People have some of the best glasses in the world in their hands right now and they don’t believe in that product,” he said. “They’re out there looking for something inferior.”

Panjwani said Amazon is temporarily retaining some of his profits because of the recall.He also has almost 5,000 glasses at an Amazon warehouse, which customers can no longer purchase.

“That’s just sitting there. I cannot sell it and I cannot get it back in time for the eclipse,” he said.

Amazon sent Panjwani this statement following the recall:

“Due to the evolving circumstances around Eclipse glasses, it’s important that you have funds available to address customer returns. We will be holding back a portion of your funds from prior sales of Eclipse glasses and will continue to evaluate the need to hold a reserve for these funds. As we learn more about the safety concerns related to Eclipse glasses, we’ll assess changes regarding your disbursement reserve balance."

A second eclipse glasses seller based in Tucson, Ariz., Lunt Solar System, said their products are also verified but under a recall anyway.

Amazon did not respond to KGW’s specific questions about the sellers.

Amazon creating fear, uncertainty and doubt without responding to responsible marketplace sellers.

Edited by: Jake@SellerSupport on Aug 14, 2017 8:07 AM
External URL Removed.

#2

Amazon is preventing lawsuits

There should be none listed without testing

Amazon is being, properly, proactive.

This is a health and medical concern

What is your personal problem?

#3

someone is sleeping with someones wife…

Nasa approved the damn things…how is this item blocked?

Take a look at the feedback from this…and its only been half a day…hes not going to make it from this.

I really hope Amazon does something about this. they need to let them sell the damn glasses and remove all the neg feedback this issue caused.

#4

I guess you don’t know how to read. First of all, the source was an NASA approved vendor - testing had been done.

Secondly, the Amazon marketplace seller had requested approval from Amazon weeks and weeks ago, now with only a week before the actual event, they create FUD and never respond but seize the marketplace sellers funds.

My problem is how Amazon created this mess and putting it on the marketplace vendors.

#5

By that logic:

Only the NTSB could sell a used car.
Only the USDA could sell sirloin steak.
Only the FDA could sell aspirin.
Only the BATFE could sell deer rifles.
Only the CPSC could sell chain saws.
Only the FAA could sell drones.
Only the GPO could sell books.

#6

This is only my opinion, but those solar glasses should only be sold by NASA or a Research university and not by any Joe Schmoe in the streets.

#7

Mere speculation, of course, but I’m guessing Amazon Fulfillment Services filled orders from seized counterfeit stock (prevention of commingling through FNSKU is not as ironclad as it could be when Amazon’s automated systems are tasked almost exclusively with completing a sale - hence one of the primary reasons for the existence of the cubiscan protocol). Upon discovering an error of this nature, I think there’s a high probability that Office of the General Counsel standard dictates call for shutting an affected listing down until the FCs can sort it out.

#8

{quote:title=WWJBD wrote…}
Amazon is preventing lawsuits
{quote}

Amazon is preventing some classes of lawsuits. Just speculating here, too, but it appears as though Amazon’s lawyers and bean counters did some corporate calculations. Which would be more costly: lawsuits by vendors forced to refund (unnecessarily) or lawsuits by end-users blinded by fake glasses?

#9

This is a sad mess that could end-up causing businesses to fold. I think Amazon is doing what they must - they were not really left with a choice, especially after the Forbes article, but I also believe they should have made it top priority to return these sellers’ property from FCs.

We all get into stuff thinking we will make good money and sometimes these ventures only harm us. It’s not much different than placing bets and gambling often comes with losses instead of profits.

#10

Very valid points.

Seems like an opportunity for the nimble, though.

#11

This sounds like a legitimate reason for the seller to take Amazon to arbitration.

#12

I got the email from Amazon that they will be refunding my order for the glasses although I haven’t seen the credit yet.

The seller is getting destroyed with negative feedback now:

I ended up ordering another pair from Adorama. So many places are completely sold out.

#13

I was selling genuine american paper optics glasses purchased at a local grocery store. Amazon removed my listings because they wanted a whole invoice instead of a retail receipt. A few days later, all my customers received and email telling them not to use the glasses. They are getting a refund and no need to return. Then they put $3000 of the $6000 i made on them on hold in my account. All this without any notification from amazon about any of it. I call ed last friday and was told to email seller support. Yesterday I realized the rest of the money in my account was on hold. Still no answer from seller-support 5 days later. They cannot even tell me if the refund they promised all the customers is coming from my account. The guy I talked to yesterday and his supervisor had no idea that email to the customers ever went out. They asked me if I had a copy. I told them to look at my messages to see what my customers were telling me. I still have no idea what is going on, and neither do the people at seller support. Now my entire account is on hold, almost $8000 for glasses that I am 100% positive are legitimate glasses. The entire situation just sucks.

#14

If you purchased them at a local grocery store, you do NOT know that they are genuine. There are plenty of fakes out there.
Unless you sourced them from APO, you have no idea if they are genuine or not. The APO glasses I bought from Amazon turned out to be fakes.

#15

+“genuine american paper optics glasses purchased at a local grocery store.”+

It is sellers like YOU that cause so much grief for legitimate vendors.

#16

Amazon opened the gates to Chinese counterfeiters, who sold these items.
Amazon knows they have a huge counterfeit issue on Amazon, but this is one instance where people could be injured due to counterfeits.

They are in serious damage control now, by recalling all glasses they take themselves out of the lawsuit.
They are doing what they do best, ignoring a problem till it becomes a company breaking issue then throw everyone under the bus for their lack of planning/ action.

#17

I bought a 10 pack of American Paper Optics rebranded glasses, that don’t appear to be knockoffs. I bought it from a vendor is an authorized American Optics dealer. That seller stated on all his listings ‘Make sure you buy from us, not one of the counterfeiters on the listing. If you buy from us you can be certain they are real.’

That’s great and all, but he’s FBA. How do I know that the counterfeiters products aren’t in the same bin with combined inventory…and they ship the counterfeits even if you buy from the dealer that NASA said is legit?

#18

Really? They came in cases of 2000 directly from APO. They are genuine. The people who sourced off alliwhatever are the ones to blame for this. Not the people doing retail arbitrage

Edited by: RestartandStaySmart on Aug 16, 2017 8:41 AM

#19

I would guess that 1 lawsuit by 1 blinded person would equal more than the combined profits of all these glasses. We’re not talking about a $1,200 finger or a $3,000 thumb. Blindness is 100% disabling. It could cost millions.

#20

Wait, first you said that you got them at the local grocery, now you’re saying that they came “directly from APO”. If they came directly from APO, then you should have provided your invoice.

If instead you believe that just because you bought a lot of them from the grocery and the grocery didn’t bother to unpack them that they are not fake, then you really need to learn about sourcing. Fake ones come in boxes, too.

Yours may be real; may be fake, but without an invoice, the reasonable thing for Amazon to do is assume that they are fake.
(one tip; look at them. If you are looking at the front, are they silver? Or black? Because if they are black, they are most certainly fake. Of course, being silver is not a guarantee, but it’s a good sign).