Update!
On 20/04/2015, I received two phone calls from First Flight Courier, Bangalore asking the status of delivery. Finally the product was delivered to me on 20/04/2015 at 5:30 pm.
On observing the outer carton(photo attached) I found to my surprise that the First Flight Consignment number is being provided by FLIPKART itself. So its up to FLIPKART when to handover the product to the courier company. This way they delay the dispatch on their end and enjoy the pre-payment received from the customer for few days by providing their allotted Courier dispatch consignment number to the Payment Gateway and get their payment released. In other words working capital for doing business is being arranged free of cost
Original Complaint as under:
On 14/04/2015 evening I booked One Moto E(2nd Gen) 3G vide order number OD302588082044133300 with delivery assurance by 21/04/2015 and One Strontium MicroSD Card 32 GB 10 vide order number OD002588942722340400 with delivery assurance by 18/04/2015. Both the items were to be supplied by same seller WS Retail from New Delhi and were prepaid by Credit Card.
The SD Card was dispatched by the seller through Ekart and was received by me on 16/04/2015 morning i.e. second day.
The Moto E Mobile was dispatched by First Flight bearing consignment number D991Q2722562 which shows that the item was handed over to First Flight Courier on 15/04/2015 at 5:38 pm. Since the distance from New Delhi to Kanpur is not much as it takes 6 hours by train and approx 8 hours by road so I was expecting the phone on 17/04/2015( also keeping in mind that the memory card was delivered to me on 16/04/2015).
To my surprise, I have not received the phone til now i.e. 19/04/2015. On tracking the First Flight it shows the packet location in New Delhi and there is no updation since 16/04/2015. On inquiring from First Flight office in Kanpur, they say that if the item is booked on 15/04/2015 in Delhi then it should be delivered in Kanpur by 17/04/2015 as per their standard delivery schedule.
On inquiring from Flipkart Customer Care the executive replied that as promised the item will be delivered on or before 21/04/2015. When I told that the SD card was delivered on 16/04/2015 from the same seller(WSRetail) and the second item i.e. Mobile was handed over to First Flight Courier on 15/04/2015 then why is there so much delay? I also asked the current location of the item? She was unable to comment on any of my questions. She just kept on repeating that as promised the item will be delivered on or before 21/04/2015.
Now the big question is that where is the current location of the Mobile? Why there is so much delay by the courier company when the item was handed over to the Courier company on 15/04/2015? Why one product is delivered second day of order whereas another product booked at the same time does not get delivered even after 5 days?
The answer to this is very interesting. Every body does not know that payment of all prepaid orders(paid through Credit Card/Debit Card/Net Banking) is withheld by the Processing Gateway until the seller submits them the proof that the ordered item has been dispatched. So a Consignment number of the Courier company is given, in connivance with the Courier Company, to the Payment Gateway with an intimation to the buyer. After this the payment is released to the seller by the Payment Gateway. WHEREAS the product is never dispatched on the date and time mentioned in the dispatch intimation. The funds are utilized for few days and then the product is dispatched. It is because of this that it takes so much unexplained time shown at the courier end. This malpractice is done by every e-commerce company and FLIPKART is no exception to it. If the rule changes a bit and the payment be released by the Payment Gateway only after receipt of item by the buyer then there will be no delay in delivery.
This malpractice should stop and buyers should not be cheated.
Rajeev Awasthi
Kanpur