An eBook author Elizabeth York had posted a status message on her Facebook page about 18 hours ago, which highlights the need for Amazon to make all eBook purchases nonrefundable.
This is the status message that she posted:
Wow! I am completely speechless. I had seen one of the books purchased were returned and then I noticed more... Didn't think anything of it until I got a email. I don't even know how to reply.
"Ms. York, I wanted to tell you that your books are above par and you should be proud. I was able to read them all, but sadly I returned them all because they range from $0.99 to $2.99 and that is just too much for me to spend on a ebook. Can you please make all your books in the future free so that I do not have to return it?"
Sadly, we do not know who this reader is, so we can call them out on their blatant disrespect for eBook authors and report them to Amazon.com for abusing the return system. But they may state that they were able to refund the money to the buyer as they were unhappy with their purchase. Excuse me, Amazon.com, but don't you have a non refundable policy on applications like computer systems and the stuff like that? And yet, you don't have it for the eBooks that you sell on your site?
It is time for Amazon.com to start closing that refund length for eBooks from 7 days to 1 day since it would make the 'reader' really intended on buying the eBook. Seven days is way too long and it leads to abuse which people are doing and the authors are getting shafted by it.
Amazon has their frequent returner algorithm to prevent pirates from stealing books but they tend to overlook that if you put a time limit of being able to return the eBooks, the readers will have to decide if they want to keep the book or return it. But they would have known what the eBook is about by the preview chapter, they have no real reason not to keep the eBook.
The price that Elizabeth York priced her eBooks at is really good and fair price for an eBook.
The readers must understand that we, authors, may make writing look easy but the thing is, it can take years for a single book to be finished or as long as a month or two to be done. We work hard at writing and then there is the process of editing and finding the perfect cover and fonts for our books and then figure which format to put our books into - hard cover, soft cover, eBook format or audio format and then, we chose the price of either $0.99 to $19.99 for hard cover books.
Please do not treat us, eBook Authors, as we're not worth the money you spend on buying our books and tell us to give you our books free of charge, would you like to go to your job and your boss tell you to work overtime for the next two weeks and at the end of those two weeks and you look at your paycheck to find nothing in there, that is what you do to the authors when you return a book, we don't get a paycheck for our hard work. Every book you buy from us, a child is getting her school supplies bought for the new school year or keeping food on the table or the lights and the roof over their heads. So please think about where the money will be going towards before you think to return the eBook.
If you support authors of any style of book formats from soft cover, hard cover, audio books and eBooks, please sign this petition to help close the refund gap at Amazon.com - Stop the return thefts of eBooks.
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