Help with empty return package to amazon

[Uponmytiptoes]

Sorry if this is the wrong board.
Before Christmas I returned a faulty iPad to amazon. I returned this through a hermes collection organised by amazon.
I've contacted amazon about this return several times in the last week as when I checked the returns status it has said that they're still waiting for the return to arrive yet accoriding to the hermes tracking it was delivered back to the on 23rd December.
Amazon have now said that the parcel was empty and I need to return the iPad before they will refund.

I can only assume that the iPad was stolen from the package either on it's way back to amazon or once it got there. Please can anyone help? It was a huge amount of money that I can't afford to lose.

Have you used their online chat or phoned them?

I'm sorry to say this is going to be a problem for you proving the ipad was in the package when you handed it over to the collector.
When I returned a faulty iPhone to apple I recorded myself put the phone in the box, seal the packet and hand it over to the collector. I told the guy I had done this too. I also emailed apple to to tell them the phone was on it's way and I had video evidence the phone was the correct model and packed as instructed.
I did this because I had heard a story like yours previously.
Unfortunately you are going to have to prove you did the right thing. Get ready for a fight.

Did it have the weight of the parcel on it by any chance. If so you have proof it wasn't empty and its been stolen.

It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything using Hermes but in my experience, when posting something using Royal Mail the item is weighed before posting. Do you have a receipt with a weight on. This could help you to prove that you sent an item with a weight. The issue is, that could’ve been a bag of carrots, but I think it’s quite telling that the box was empty when it arrived...

Hermes don't weigh the parcel when it is collected or when it is dropped off at a shop.

In a complete u-turn they've refunded me!
I contacted hermes who told me that they wouldn't help and I had to contact amazon (this was an automated system, I couldn't get through to a real person) so I got another call back from amazon customer services.
I explained what had happened and said that as they had provided the return label that it was them who had the contract with hermes. I explained that hermes wouldn't help me and they would need to contact them for weights etc.
I asked them to look at my record as a customer of nearly 20 years, everything I had returned previously had turned up etc.

The guy put me on hold for a while then came back and said he'd refund straight away.
I'm not sure if it's something I said that helped or if he found out that they'd had the wrong information about my order and it was there after all...googling makes me think this was too easy for it to have been anything I said so I'm wondering if they got me mixed up with someone else.

Either way I'm hugely relieved but really could have done without the stress!

Thank you all for your help. And for anyone who is in the same position and finds this thread I found an email address of someone higher up in amazon who seems to have solved these types of issues for people before. I don't know if I'd be okay to post it on here but I'd be happy to PM to anyone who needs it.

Glad you've got it sorted, OP :)

Hi uponmytiptoes

Please could I have the email address that you mentioned?
I'm having a nightmare trying to get a refund for some in ear headphones that I returned. They said the box was empty, it definitely was not!
Massive thanks ;)

Anna