Deactivated – POA not accepted!
Hello all,
I got deactivated for submitting invalid FBA lost and damaged inventory claims. Essentially, I have not been selling on FBA for very long and did not read the relevant policies before submitting reimbursement claims for lost and damaged inventory. I contravened the policy by submitting too many claims in a short period of time (I checked and it was 7 lost and 4 damaged claims in 5 months), not researching the claims properly, and in part due to using low quality generic packaging that could have led to the inventory becoming damaged.
The first email from Amazon asked for proof of purchase for the items, and proof of delivery for them at the FC. I supplied these, and a POA. I have updated the POA a couple of times following advice from Seller Support to give more detail on the root causes. But I have now received an email that sounds more final “We reviewed the information you provided and completed the review of your account. We have decided not to reactivate your account due to violations of our FBA Lost and Damaged Inventory Reimbursement Policy”
There is still an option to supply further information in my seller account dashboard though.
Is it worth appealing again, and if so what is missing from my POA?
21 replies
Seller_XShBOZGIQGh7G
POA:
Dear Seller Performance Team,
I would like to appeal the deactivation of my account. I understand that Amazon takes breaches of Seller Policies extremely seriously, and I would like to share with you my Plan of Action addressing the issue.
– The root causes for these invalid FBA reimbursement claims and Invalid claims on missing products
I have investigated and determined that I made a high volume of invalid FBA reimbursement claims for the ASINs mentioned. The root causes for this are:
- I raised FBA reimbursement claims prematurely: I raised reimbursement claims in error, as soon as I noticed FBA items showed as lost or damaged on inventory reports, or when they arrived damaged or with components missing. The reason I claimed for inventory prematurely was because I was concerned about losing stock and working capital. However, I should have objectively researched these claims comprehensively first, to check if they were valid. For example, as a minimum I should have followed the steps outlined here: https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/help/hub/reference/G9ZB3H4DP4H72U6R
• Checked the claim was within the appropriate Claims Window, which varies depending on the type of claim (for example, no sooner than 14 days from the last confirmed movement of the shipment for lost removal orders)
• Checked the ‘Manage FBA Inventory Report’ to confirm that the item had not been found or restored to my inventory in a sellable condition (or in a damaged condition for which Amazon was not at fault)
• Checked the ‘Reimbursements Report’ to see if I had already been reimbursed for the lost or damaged item
• Checked the ‘Removal Order Detail Report’ to confirm the date and status of these orders and checked the ‘Removal Shipment Detail Report’ for shipment status and further information to confirm if the item was eligible for reimbursement
-
I did not review the relevant Seller Policies and Guidance before submitting reimbursement claims: Due to my inexperience selling via the FBA programme (I joined in 2022) I should have fully familiarised myself with all relevant policies. Had I fully reviewed this documentation first, I would not have submitted any invalid reimbursement claims. For example, one key policy relevant to this violation is the ‘FBA Lost and Damaged Inventory Reimbursement Policy’ https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/help/hub/reference/G200213130 which prohibits any activity such as submitting high volumes of reimbursement requests in a short time, and explains the reimbursement claim process that must be followed.
-
I did not take responsibility for monitoring the status of my inventory as I should have. For example, for each ASIN I did not keep proper records that showed the number of items I had purchased, the number of items I had sold, and the status of the remaining items which I could have easily done using the many detailed inventory reports such as’ Inventory Ledger’ https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/reportcentral/LEDGER_REPORT/0 which shows the location of every FBA item that I had not considered such as in transit between warehouses, or in the process of customer return. Instead, I expected Amazon to reimburse me in every case of potential FBA loss, whatever the circumstances. I now realise that was completely unacceptable and hindered our working partnership which did not benefit of our mutual customers.
– Detail on the actions you have taken to resolve the concerning issue:
The following actions have been taken with immediate effect:
-
Reimbursement claims will no longer be submitted immediately: for any lost or damaged FBA items, a full investigation into the item’s history will be conducted in order to eliminate any invalid reimbursement claims. For the avoidance of doubt, if there is any question whatsoever regarding its validity I will not submit a reimbursement claim.
-
I have familiarised myself in detail with all Amazon Seller Policies, Agreements and Guidelines in detail to prevent the reoccurrence of this, or any other violation. In particular:
• FBA Lost and Damaged Inventory Reimbursement Policy
• Amazon Services Europe Business Solutions Agreement, including the Fulfilment by Amazon
Service Terms
• Prohibited Seller Activities and Actions
• Seller Code of Conduct
I have also diarised 6 monthly refresher sessions of all relevant policies to review any updates and keep reminded of their critical importance in every business task completed.
– Detail on the steps you have taken to prevent the reoccurrence of this violation:
-
I have implemented a checklist to check the validity of any reimbursement claim: since 20th January 2023, a checklist must be completed which contains all the steps required to check missing or damaged inventory to satisfy the requirements of the relevant Seller Polices. Only if this checklist has been signed off by myself (as business proprietor), and if no other claim has been raised within at least the previous 2 months, can a reimbursement claim be submitted.
-
I have improved my product and shipping boxes: since 20th January 2023, I no longer use lower quality generic boxes, which are not suitably robust, and I now only pack products in rigid, high-quality, glossy OEM boxes. I also wrap them in a much larger volume of packing material within the shipping box to prevent movement of the contents and damage in transit. In addition to protecting against damage in transit and fulfilment operations, this also improves the customer experience as they look great upon arrival.
-
I will proactively monitor my account health: I will check my account health dashboard and my performance notifications on a daily basis. I am aware that, if reactivated, my account will be closely monitored for any recurrence of these violations which would likely result in its permanent deactivation. For this reason, I will act extremely cautiously and even after the appropriate research, I will not submit any reimbursement claims unless absolutely necessary.
I believe that my Plan of Action sufficiently addresses the issue and I look forward to driving up quality and the customer experience when selling on Amazon.
Kind regards,
Seller_XShBOZGIQGh7G
Performance notifications:
First email:
Hello,
Your Amazon Seller account was deactivated in accordance with Section 3 of Amazon Business Solutions Agreement. Your listings have been removed. Funds will not be transferred to you but will stay in your account while we work with you to address this issue. Ship any open orders to avoid further impact to your account.
Why did this happen?
We have taken this measure because this account has repeatedly submitted high volumes of FBA reimbursement claims for Removal Orders driven by ‘Invalid claims on missing products’ that were ineligible for reimbursement.
ASINs Under Review: X001MU2265, X001LKIQEX, X001ND0A83, X001NMAQF1, X001N46NPV
How do I send the required information?
Submit the documentation by following instructions in the banner on the top of your “Account Health” page:
https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/performance/dashboard
Or send them to sellercredit-appeals@amazon.co.uk.
What should I include in a Plan of Action (POA)?
The POA should explain what happened:
– The root causes for these invalid FBA reimbursement claims and Invalid claims on missing products
– The action you have taken to resolve issues
– The steps you have taken to prevent in the future.
Here are few things to consider as you create a POA:
– Sourcing: Are you sourcing the product from a trusted supplier?
– Packaging: Are you fixing packing issues that caused items to get lost in the warehouse? For example, using a box from another product to pack your shipment. Rectify incorrect stickering, labeling and case pack errors.
– Quantity: Are you verifying that the inbound quantity matches the PO prior to shipment and taking measures to ensure items?
– Shipping: Are you taking all appropriate steps and quality checks to ensure that the product is stored, packed, and shipped appropriately?
– Carrier error: Are you tracking your carrier to ensure it is delivered at an Amazon fulfillment center (FC)?
What happens if I do not send the requested information or a sufficient explanation?
If you do not provide a valid appeal, or choose not to appeal the account will remain deactivated. After 90 days following this notification, you may separately request a funds disbursement by contacting disbursement-appeals@amazon.co.uk. We will conduct a separate investigation to evaluate your account and if we find that you have engaged in deceptive, fraudulent, or illegal activity; or have abused our systems or repeatedly violated our Policies that protect our customers and selling partners, we may withhold some or all the funds in your account.
We’re here to help
If you have questions about this policy or the information requested above, contact sellercredit-appeals@amazon.co.uk.
Learn more about our FBA reimbursement policies and Seller Code of Conduct in Seller Central help:
– “FBA Lost and Damaged Inventory Reimbursement” policy:
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/200213130
– “Amazon Product Authenticity and Quality” help page:
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/G202010130
– “Condition Guidelines”:
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/200339950
– “Selling Policies and Seller Code of Conduct”:
https://sellercentral-europe.amazon.com/gp/help/G1801
Has your account been deactivated in error?
If you believe there has been an error, submit an explanation to sellercredit-appeals@amazon.co.uk. Your explanation should include the following information:
– How your account has not violated the FBA policy.
– Evidence or examples that show that your account complies with the reimbursement policy.
You can view your account performance by visiting “Account Health”:
https://sellercentral-europe.amazon.com/performance/dashboard?ref=ah_em_ap
You can also select “Account Health” on the home screen of the Amazon Seller app on your iOS or Android device. The “Account Health” page shows how well your account is performing against the performance metrics and policies required to sell on Amazon.
– On iOS:
– On Android:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.amazon.sellermobile.android&hl=en_GB
Sincerely,
Seller Perfomance Team
2nd email:
Hello,
We received your submission but do not have enough information to reactivate your account at this time.
To reactivate your account, please send proof to demonstrate the validity of your FBA Reimbursement claims for the ASINs under review that are listed below:
ASINs Under Review: X001MU2265, X001LKIQEX, X001ND0A83, X001NMAQF1, X001N46NPV
How do I send the required information?
Submit the documentation by following instructions in the banner on the top of your “Account Health” page:
https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/performance/dashboard
Or send them to sellercredit-appeals@amazon.co.uk.
What should I include in a Plan of Action (POA)?
The POA should explain what happened:
– The root causes for invalid claims for missing products on removal orders.
– The action you have taken to resolve issues
– The steps you have taken to prevent issue in the future.
Here are a few things to consider as you create your plan:
– Sourcing: Are you sourcing the product from a trusted supplier?
– Packaging: Are you fixing packing issues that caused items to get lost in the warehouse? For example, using a box from another product to pack your shipment. Rectify incorrect stickering, labeling and case pack errors.
– Quantity: Are you verifying that the inbound quantity matches the PO prior to shipment and taking measures to ensure items?
– Shipping: Are you taking all appropriate steps and quality checks to ensure that the product is stored, packed, and shipped appropriately?
– Carrier error: Are you tracking your carrier to ensure it is delivered at an Amazon fulfillment center (FC)?
What happens if I do not send the requested information or a sufficient explanation?
If you do not provide a valid appeal, or choose not to appeal the account will remain deactivated. After 90 days following this notification, you may separately request a funds disbursement by contacting disbursement-appeals@amazon.co.uk. We will conduct a separate investigation to evaluate your account and if we find that you have engaged in deceptive, fraudulent, or illegal activity; or have abused our systems or repeatedly violated our Policies that protect our customers and selling partners, we may withhold some or all the funds in your account.
We’re here to help
If you have questions about this policy or the information requested above, contact sellercredit-appeals@amazon.co.uk.
Learn more about our FBA reimbursement policies and Seller Code of Conduct in Seller Central help:
– “FBA Lost and Damaged Inventory Reimbursement” policy:
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/200213130
– “Amazon Product Authenticity and Quality” help page:
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/G202010130
– “Condition Guidelines”:
https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/200339950
– “Selling Policies and Seller Code of Conduct”:
https://sellercentral-europe.amazon.com/gp/help/G1801
Has your account been deactivated in error?
If you believe there has been an error, submit an explanation to sellercredit-appeals@amazon.co.uk. Your explanation should include the following information:
– Evidence or examples that show your account complies with the reimbursement policy.
You can view your account performance by visiting “Account Health”:
https://sellercentral-europe.amazon.com/performance/dashboard?ref=ah_em_ap
You can also select “Account Health” on the home screen of the Amazon Seller app on your iOS or Android device. The “Account Health” page shows how well your account is performing against the performance metrics and policies required to sell on Amazon.
– On iOS:
– On Android:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.amazon.sellermobile.android&hl=en_GB
Sincerely,
Seller Perfomance Team
3rd email:
Hello,
We reviewed the information you provided and completed the review of your account. We have decided not to reactivate your account due to violations of our FBA Lost and Damaged Inventory Reimbursement Policy (https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/200213130). Funds will remain blocked and you may appeal for funds after 90 days by writing to disbursement-appeals@amazon.xx
We may not respond to further emails regarding the status of your account.
For more information, please view our FBA Lost and Damaged Inventory Reimbursement policy: https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/200213130 (https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/200213130).
Thank you,
-Amazon
Sincerely,
Seller Perfomance Team
Seller_XShBOZGIQGh7G
No, it says an error occurred with a red exclamation mark 
Seller_aLk5FfP2racDU
Hello @JPA2000,
This is Xeno from Amazon to help you with your concerns.
We understand the concern regarding your account deactivation. Let’s work together in finding the solution.
I really appreciate you for the information that you have provided, which has made things easy to understand.
We would have really loved to help you but in this case as the team has decided they would not be able to reactivate your selling account in order for you to continue selling on Amazon. I completely understand that this would not be something that you would wish for, but we would recommend you to keep an eye out on the correspondence through email or Performance Notifications which will be sent by the team in order to help you with the next steps.
The forums community and I are here to support you. Please let us know how we can help you from this point forward.
Regards,
Xeno
Seller_XShBOZGIQGh7G
Thanks @Demel you are correct. I have not referenced Removal Orders in enough detail, which were mentioned in one of the performance notifications.
I will rewrite the POA to reflect this and re-submit, just in case.
Seller_XShBOZGIQGh7G
Yes all sent back to the same address
Thanks
Seller_XShBOZGIQGh7G
I just checked and we have had a total of 48 removal orders (roughly half were automatic and half requested by us) containing 111 units in total.
It was 7 claims, mostly for individual units although one was a box of 8 units (delivered by Evri where the usual flimsy brown shipping box was badly damaged and only 1 unit was left inside).
I did try and take it up with Evri first as they were clearly to blame, but they said I had to go through Amazon.
We sell a mixture of new and used (all with trade invoices), but the ones with claims were mostly used.
