Just some 2 cents here. I had a string of USB / mem card failures / corruptions in a short space of time. When I checked my Amazon orders they we're all through the actual vendor themselves eg. Sandisk.
After doing some Googling I didn't seem to be the only one. When Amazon receive an order of an item, they may not pick it from a vendor's stock as advertised on their listings. They will pick it from what makes the most sense in terms of time for the person picking the order to the distance of where that item may be, even another vendor who is stocking the "same item".
So another vendor may have stock of a fake USB drive, with the same packaging, same ASIN (Amazon Standard ID), same look, but dirt cheap components. You place your order for a name branded drive, directly from the vendor. Amazon get the "same" product from another vendor, because it costs them less, and deliver the crappy one to you.
Not saying this is exactly what happened to you, and you may have switched to another brand for your replacement, but might be worth considering.