Amazon has apologised after it sent a package in clear wrapping, ruining a daughter's Christmas surprise.
Mum Tina Booth, from Newchapel, ordered a £41 Remington hairdryer for her 20-year-old daughter as a Christmas gift.
But the daughter instantly discovered the present after it was left on their front porch in clear packaging, as reported by StokeonTrent Live.
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Now Tina, 52, says Amazon apologised for the mishap and offered a £40 gesture of goodwill.
She says that Amazon delivered three parcels on Wednesday, Decemer 8 and while two were concealed in the regular cardboard Amazon packaging, the hairdryer was in a clear plastic wrapping.
"My daughter is disappointed that she has found out what her Christmas present is from us," said Tina.
“Two of the packages were in Amazon boxes and one was in a clear plastic bag so it was obvious what it was.
“I contacted Amazon to find out why it had been sent like that.
“In my opinion, it is the company's fault for sending out items in see-through packaging. At this time of year, knowing it’s Christmas and knowing things have been going missing off people’s doorsteps, it’s obvious that if something of that value is sitting there it won’t stay there for that long.”
Tina admitted that she used the quick-swipe checkout option when ordering the hairdryer, Amazon told her that she should have selected the gift wrap option to ensure it came in a cardboard box.
Tina added: “We were on a timescale so we clicked the quick-swipe option and the gift option didn’t come up.
“The biggest issue is that it was left in an unwrapped state on the porch. I didn’t know you had to tick the gift option. It didn’t come up as a warning.
“For everything I buy I’ve now got to double check how it’s wrapped and go through all the checkouts even though I am not having it gift wrapped.
“I was still arguing and they told me it’s their policy to be environmentally friendly and reduce packaging. But they contradicted themselves because they sent two parcels in cardboard and the other one in a plastic bag, how is that environmentally friendly?
“They could’ve put all three things in one box and that would’ve solved the problem.”
Tina added: “It was our daughter's only present this year because we are financially struggling, everybody is. We said it was going to be a small Christmas. It’s not like it was a pair of socks sitting there.
“They said the only other thing you could do is return it but if I returned it she’s not going to have what she has asked for and will be doubly disappointed.
“She is old enough to pass it off but the thing is it’s about the principle of the fact and it might have been a young child’s gift or it might have been stolen.
“Be careful because this could happen to you. You could leave something really expensive and you haven’t thought about it.
“I’ve spent thousands of pounds on Amazon, it’s one of the main places where I shop. I do spend a lot there and this is the first time I’ve received anything that’s come like that.
“Now I’d tell others not to use quick swipe and make sure everything is ticked as a gift because even if it’s not a gift it could be left on your doorstep in an unwrapped state.
“I expect the products to be in boxes because you don’t know whether you are going to be in or who is going to pick it up.”
Amazon has responded to Tina's complaint regarding packaging options at checkout.
A spokesman said: "We offer customers the option to conceal their product at no cost by selecting “Ship in Amazon Packaging” at the checkout.
"Amazon continually works on behalf of customers to reduce and minimise the amount of packaging materials we use under our frustration-free packaging programme.
"As part of the programme we have worked with manufacturers around the world to design their products to ship in their own packaging without the need for additional packaging.
"Smaller and lighter packages mean Amazon can pack more orders into each delivery, resulting in fewer trips and less fuel used — all of which minimise our carbon footprint.
"Since 2015, we have reduced the weight of outbound packaging per shipment by 36 per cent and eliminated over one million tons of packaging material, the equivalent of over two billion shipping boxes."
