I spent £60 in the Prime Day sales but missed my chance for a £15 voucher, and now I’m fuming — don’t make the same mistake I did

Let me set the scene: I’ve been patiently waiting for the Prime Day sales to make some big, important purchases. Last night, my patience was rewarded: there’s a deal on exactly the thing I wanted to buy. In fact, a really good deal — the cheapest price all year on this particular gadget. I check out, and I’m feeling pretty smug.

Fast-forward to today, and someone on my TechRadar Slack channel mentions a voucher. Specifically, a £15 Amazon voucher — with no strings attached! — to those who spend over £60 in the Prime Day sales. I have spent well over £60, and I have no such voucher to show for it. My smugness fades pretty quickly.

• Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

A quick investigation reveals my error — after putting the same item back in my cart as an experiment, I see there’s a checkbox for the voucher. In my hurry to secure the goods, I missed it the first time around.

I’m writing this article as a PSA: if you’re shopping the Prime Day sales (perhaps using our Amazon Prime Day deals live blog to find the best bargains), don’t make the same mistake. Take your time and get your voucher. Here’s a picture of what you’re looking for:

There are a few more potential caveats to know about. Most of these are unconfirmed — pop a note in the comments if you have more information you could share.

First, the amounts may be slightly different. I was offered £15 on a £60 spend (on the total basket, rather than needing to be on one individual item), but I’ve seen reports of a £20 voucher on an £80 spend. (My basket was over £80, for the record.)

Second, this deal might not be available to those on a free trial. The official Prime Day deals are only available to Prime subscribers, but signing up for your free month is a popular hack for unlocking those deals without having to commit to a membership long-term. If that’s a workaround you’re pulling, you might not be offered a voucher. (Although it’s still worth looking for that checkbox to make sure.)

There might be a time limit on the voucher. Again, it’d be easier to check this if I’d successfully obtained my own voucher, but there we go. I’m seeing reports the voucher might only be available to use until the end of July. But given that Amazon sells everything from toilet rolls to washing up liquid, I’m sure you can find something useful to redeem it on in time.

More Prime Day deals in the UK