WASHINGTON (CN) — The District of Columbia sued Amazon on Wednesday accusing the tech giant of excluding certain D.C. residents east of the Anacostia River from its Prime delivery service while still charging them the full membership price.
In the Superior Court for the District of Columbia lawsuit, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb says Amazon since 2022 secretly excluded approximately 48,000 people living in ZIP codes 20019 and 20020 — historically the most underserved parts of D.C.
According to Schwalb, Amazon decided in June 2022 that it would stop using its branded trucks in those areas, and instead use third-party delivery services like UPS and the U.S. Postal Service, which have slower delivery times.
Normally, such a change would be legal, Schwalb said — but Amazon never informed users in the affected areas of the change or its resulting adverse effects. Users continued to pay the $14.99 monthly Amazon Prime subscription fee while being denied its core promise of two-day, next-day or same-day delivery.
Amazon essentially robbed the customers of their ability to make informed purchases, the D.C. attorney general claims.
“Amazon is charging tens of thousands of hard-working Ward 7 and 8 residents for an expedited delivery service it promises but does not provide,” Schwalb said in a statement. “While Amazon has every right to make operational changes, it cannot overly decide that a dollar in one ZIP code is worth less than a dollar in another.”
Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel called the claims “categorically false” in an emailed statement, and said the change was made for driver safety.
“In the ZIP codes in question, there have been specific and targeted acts against drivers delivering Amazon packages,” Nantel said. “We made the deliberate choice to adjust our operations, including delivery routes and times, for the sole reason of protecting the safety of drivers. And we’re always transparent with customers during the shopping journey and checkout process about when, exactly, they can expect their orders to arrive.”
Nantel added that Amazon has offered to work with Schwalb to “reduce crime and improve safety” in Wards 7 and 8.
In 2021, over 72% of Prime packages in the two ZIP codes were delivered within two days of purchase, according to Schwalb. By 2023, only 25% of Prime packages in 20019 and only 24% in 20020 within two days of purchase.
Meanwhile, delivery speeds in the rest of D.C. have steadily increased. In 2020, just under 60% of packages were delivered within two days, then in 2023 that figure jumped to approximately 75%.
In addition, when customers in Wards 7 and 8 have reached out to Amazon’s customer service to address such delivery disparities, Amazon has failed to answer truthfully and described the delays as unintentional, one-time occurrences, Schwalb said.
In one instance in December 2022, a customer tweeted at Amazon asking why the company seemed to “discriminate against residents who live east of the river in D.C?”
The customer explained that when ordering an item in ZIP code 20020, it was delivered in about a week, while ordering the same item in 20003, a ZIP code just 3 minutes away, resulted in same-day delivery.
An Amazon representative responded that was a geographical “edge at which cut-offs happen,” but any delays are “never on purpose or out of malice.”
“Really? So it has nothing to do with the racial/socioeconomic divide that just so happens to coincide with your delivery divide?” the customer replied.
In another instance, a customer service representative on Amazon’s website told a customer that delivery dates vary between ZIP codes because items ship from different Amazon warehouses and suggested the customer delete and re-add their address in their account.
The city council members representing Wards 7 and 8, Vincent Gray and Trayon White, respectively, did not respond to requests for comment.
Gray has stepped back from public office through his remaining term due to early stage dementia. White has been embroiled in controversy and faces federal bribery charges, but secured a third term in November.
Schwalb is requesting that a D.C. judge issue a permanent injunction barring Amazon’s secret delivery exclusion and misrepresentation practices. He is also seeking restitution and civil penalties, to be proven at trial.
“We’re suing to stop this deceptive conduct and make sure District residents get what they’re paying for,” Schwalb said.