Poor product performance and no clear refund path
I purchased Gun Oil H2O personal lubricant from Empowered Products through Amazon as a first-time customer.
Unfortunately, I found the product dried extremely quickly, which has not been my experience with other lubricants such as KY or Astroglide. Because of this, I attempted to initiate a return through Amazon. However, I was directed to contact the distributor due to the nature of the product.
When I contacted Empowered Products, I was asked to provide the seller (which was Empowered Products), my order number, full name, shipping address, and photos of the bottle and lot number. I provided all requested information promptly.
After that, communication became very slow and repetitive. I waited about a week without a response, followed up, and was told the representative was waiting to hear back from another department. After additional follow-ups, I was asked to provide the same photos again, which I did. Despite multiple attempts to get an update, I continued to be told to wait.
Eventually, I was informed that because the item was purchased through Amazon, Empowered Products could not issue a refund. This was frustrating, as Amazon had already directed me to the company for resolution. As a result, I was left without a clear path to resolve the issue.
There is also no clear indication on the Amazon listing that customers may not have refund options if there is a problem with the product, which I believe should be made more transparent.
During this process, I did receive direct communication from the CEO, Scott Fraser, who offered to send samples of other products while I was waiting. When the samples did not arrive after a few weeks, I followed up and was told they would be reshipped with tracking. I eventually received them.
However, after informing him that I had received the samples and noting that it had been over a month without resolution on the original issue, I did not receive any further response.
Overall, I found the process to be time-consuming and ultimately unresolved. I felt I had to follow up multiple times without clear communication or a consistent resolution path.