Why won't my Whole Foods checkout complete?
April 11, 2020 6:08 AM Subscribe
I keep getting Whole Foods delivery slots but then after payment it reverts back to the cart - doesn't throw a error and the same problem happens on my phone and my MacBook (on two different networks). Any one have any idea what I can do to fix this?
This is on Safari and on iphone. I get a slot, use a valid credit card, and it just acts like nothing happens. Take me back to my cart after submission. Their tech support has been useless. Any ideas?
This is on Safari and on iphone. I get a slot, use a valid credit card, and it just acts like nothing happens. Take me back to my cart after submission. Their tech support has been useless. Any ideas?
Be careful. Something like this happened to me when I was buying airline tickets and I was charged several times. It was a big pain.
posted by pairofshades at 6:11 AM on April 11, 2020
posted by pairofshades at 6:11 AM on April 11, 2020
Response by poster: Thankfully it doesn't actually check you out - just let's you now a delivery slot is open. That's why I dont think its the script. I also am not running a script on my phone but having the same issue.
posted by UMDirector at 6:12 AM on April 11, 2020
posted by UMDirector at 6:12 AM on April 11, 2020
Response by poster: One more note: running the amazon app on my phone - not even in browser.
posted by UMDirector at 6:14 AM on April 11, 2020
posted by UMDirector at 6:14 AM on April 11, 2020
How often is your script polling Whole Foods' delivery service? You might be hitting a DDOS filter and being silently rejected if your phone is constantly retrying.
posted by scruss at 6:19 AM on April 11, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by scruss at 6:19 AM on April 11, 2020 [3 favorites]
Response by poster: I thought about it looking at IP or the DDOS thing you note but my phone is on the cell network and my laptop is on my home wifi. I also seems to find the slot, allow me to select it, let me pick payment type and then only when I confirm my order (3 pages later) does it go wonky. I think it might be a glitch in amazon but not sure if its stuck on an item - do I need to rebuild my order, etc. It super strange.
I even tried changing my DNS server.
posted by UMDirector at 6:23 AM on April 11, 2020
I even tried changing my DNS server.
posted by UMDirector at 6:23 AM on April 11, 2020
Best answer: I've had that happen when it said a slot was available, I went to checkout, and I didn't hit "place order" fast enough. I assume someone else got through before me and I think it's just because they're so busy.
The strategy I've been successful with is refreshing my cart until a slot appears, immediately taking it and checking out. Slower than this and it's taken.
I also had luck right when they opened today (1 hour before posted time, they're opening early for seniors) -- 2 time slots were available on refreshing and I checked out no problems.
posted by DoubleLune at 7:24 AM on April 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
The strategy I've been successful with is refreshing my cart until a slot appears, immediately taking it and checking out. Slower than this and it's taken.
I also had luck right when they opened today (1 hour before posted time, they're opening early for seniors) -- 2 time slots were available on refreshing and I checked out no problems.
posted by DoubleLune at 7:24 AM on April 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
Best answer: There are any number of things this could be, on your end and on their end. This system isn't designed to be used this way in the best of times, and it's struggling under load. Their tech support is probably throwing their hands in the air like everyone else.
A gajillion people are running similar scripts right now with only the vaguest of notions how they work, and Whole Foods is one of the biggest target.
I'll tell you what I wish I had told my friend yesterday, and I can't emphasize this enough:
Unless you would more-or-less be comfortable writing such a script yourself, be HIGHLY suspicious of this.
People were doing this on Ebay way back in the day. One or two of those scripts eventually became actual products. A whoooole heap of them were used to get people's personal info or put malware on their machines. There are other places to get your groceries.
posted by aspersioncast at 7:50 AM on April 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
A gajillion people are running similar scripts right now with only the vaguest of notions how they work, and Whole Foods is one of the biggest target.
I'll tell you what I wish I had told my friend yesterday, and I can't emphasize this enough:
Unless you would more-or-less be comfortable writing such a script yourself, be HIGHLY suspicious of this.
People were doing this on Ebay way back in the day. One or two of those scripts eventually became actual products. A whoooole heap of them were used to get people's personal info or put malware on their machines. There are other places to get your groceries.
posted by aspersioncast at 7:50 AM on April 11, 2020 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: I finally found some other people having this issue. Does seem to be that even if you find a slot it doesn't hold it while you process - so even a second behind someone else and it's gone. I had assumed if you picked a slot it would hold it for a minute while you process before releasing it. Guess not.
posted by UMDirector at 8:45 AM on April 11, 2020
posted by UMDirector at 8:45 AM on April 11, 2020
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by UMDirector at 6:09 AM on April 11, 2020