Stop this unfair practice Amazon
Amazon Marketplace Sellers Deserve Better
I’ve just had to refund a £50 book because a buyer contacted me six weeks after purchase claiming it hadn’t arrived. Amazon sided with the buyer — no surprise there — but here’s the kicker: Amazon only lets sellers access shipping labels for 30 days. So I couldn’t retrieve the tracking number. Royal Mail won’t compensate without it. And the buyer? They’re allowed to raise claims well beyond that window.
Amazon lets buyers raise INR claims after 30 days ✅
Royal Mail requires tracking info to issue compensation ✅
Amazon deletes label access after 30 days ❌
Sellers are left footing the bill ❌
This isn’t just poor policy — it’s a system designed to protect platforms and punish sellers. We’re expected to absorb losses, stay professional, and keep selling while the rules work against us.
Enough is enough. Amazon, Royal Mail, and other carriers need to align their timeframes and give sellers the tools to defend themselves. Until then, we’re operating in a rigged system.
If you’re a seller who’s faced this — speak up. The more noise we make, the harder it is to ignore.
Stop this unfair practice Amazon
Amazon Marketplace Sellers Deserve Better
I’ve just had to refund a £50 book because a buyer contacted me six weeks after purchase claiming it hadn’t arrived. Amazon sided with the buyer — no surprise there — but here’s the kicker: Amazon only lets sellers access shipping labels for 30 days. So I couldn’t retrieve the tracking number. Royal Mail won’t compensate without it. And the buyer? They’re allowed to raise claims well beyond that window.
Amazon lets buyers raise INR claims after 30 days ✅
Royal Mail requires tracking info to issue compensation ✅
Amazon deletes label access after 30 days ❌
Sellers are left footing the bill ❌
This isn’t just poor policy — it’s a system designed to protect platforms and punish sellers. We’re expected to absorb losses, stay professional, and keep selling while the rules work against us.
Enough is enough. Amazon, Royal Mail, and other carriers need to align their timeframes and give sellers the tools to defend themselves. Until then, we’re operating in a rigged system.
If you’re a seller who’s faced this — speak up. The more noise we make, the harder it is to ignore.
36 replies
Seller_76AUwmqvSyRIM
I sympathise with the issue you faced however I am struggling to understand why you can't access the tracking code after 30 days.
I only use buy shipping for large letters. For my parcels, I use C&D and get it to update Amazon. I've gone back as far as the 6th April and all my large letters include the tracking reference.
My parcels which were done on C&D also show the tracking code.
How do you buy your postage labels?
EDIT - having thought about it, I guess you mean the customer address? If that is the case, I recommend that once a month like clockwork, you download a report listing all your orders and save it to your computer. You will then be able to go back and get the customer address at any time.
Seller_XjqHrm0hP3h21
To be fair even if you had tracking GPS signature a photo of customer reading the book you would still lose. Amazon is a haven for scammers very easy for them to refund when it's not their money. Yet when they lose our shipment for FBA it's like getting blood from a stone. They are a disgrace.
Seller_HMxMRdomHkjHi
Don't you have the proof of postage label? I buy all of my postage through Amazon. I then get all of my postings scanned at the post office. I keep all of the proof of postage in date order to enable me to check on the Royal Mail tracking site for any claims of none delivery
Seller_Y6V2xdbvmYvBI
the tracking number should be in the sales record you shouldn't need the label as it's supposed to be inputed when you confirm the shipment if your shipping yourself i have just check a order from 6 months ago and all my tracking numbers are there in the sales record of the order
Seller_YAxcDLHl55uw4
Agreed, it is extremely annoying that Amazon withdraws access to Buy Shipping labels after 30 days. I therefore keep a record of all Royal Mail 2d barcodes in a spreadsheet for later reference, and it has helped me out so many times where opportunist buyers have tried getting a freebie. 9 out of 10 back off immediately when you show them the evidence. (Incidentally, Evri tracking numbers DO remain stored and visible in the order).
However, I wouldn't dream of sending out a £50 book without some kind of tracked and signed for service. Unfortunately, even though Evri Signature Confirmation is sold by Amazon Buy Shipping, you can't actually receive that service from Evri, and Amazon just refunds the extra you pay for Signature Confirmation. I've raised it as an issue a number of times, and have got nowhere. Seller Support ended up telling me not to bother buying it.
Much better solution, outside of Amazon Buy Shipping, just buy Royal Mail Tracked 24 or 48 with signature, it's insured up to £50 as standard, with the option to insure up to the full value of the parcel. While nothing is 100% safe where unscrupulous Amazon customers are concerned, tracked and signed will offer you considerably more protection than a standard 1st/2nd Class 2d barcode.
Seller_GPLxAbyNPI33I
I used to use RM Click & Drop for all my Amazon orders, but now just use C&D for ebay.
This is because I read sometime ago that a sellers VTR metrics would be screwed over unless AZ buy shipping was used.
Is this no longer true?
Seller_YAxcDLHl55uw4
The key with VTR is the VT bit - valid tracking. As long as you are providing valid tracking (which you are with RM Tracked 24/48), you should in theory be ok. My VTR is at 100%, even though I've bought RM Tracked 48 externally to Amazon Buy Shipping a number of times over the last 30 days. While I do prefer to use Buy Shipping as much as possible to avoid all the VTR headaches, there is no suitable Buy Shipping product that I can find that adequately caters for £50 sales. Evri Delivery Confirmation won't stand up if the customers says they didn't receive it; RM 1st/2nd Class Signed For (non-tracked) isn't worth the paper its printed on (for Amazon purposes); and they don't offer RM Tracked 24/48 (which offers £50 insurance as standard). Therefore IMO the only viable solution is to not use Buy Shipping, and use Parcel2Go or RM directly to buy a more resilient tracked/signed service. As long as you enter the tracking number correctly when marking as dispatched, you should be ok.
Seller_19xPhE8YgkmxW
Hello simplytextbook,
I'm not sure you're right about VTR - some months ago there was a problem with the Amazon Buy Shipping Labels and they did not register when the Post Office tried to scan them.
I was going away for a couple of days and had a parcel with one of these invalid labels (I use ABSL routinely), so paid the P. O. for a newly issued label and posted the item...
I then entered the Tracking Number from the Proof of Posting and the other details into the appropriate boxes on Amazon (which I've done many times before) and claimed a refund for the 'unused' Amazon label
Royal Mail Tracking couldn't confirm delivery of the item (no arrival scan) and my VTR was 0% for a month...
So I concluded that it's not just the validity of the Tracking Number and details that matter, but the actual delivery scan is needed as well
Sorry this is so long but hope it helps
Brian
Seller_YAxcDLHl55uw4
Were you using a fully tracked service such as Tracked 24 or Tracked 48? I'm assuming not, as these cannot be routinely purchased via Amazon Buy Shipping. If you were sending with just standard 1st/2nd Class, these are not tracked services, and will fail VTR if not purchased via Amazon Buy Shipping. The "tracking number" on the POP receipt is just a Delivery Confirmation code, and is disregarded by Amazon for VTR purposes.
Seller_b1TpDL1b2ZLa2
Had this many times, for £100+ items too. You just have to rely on the fact that most people aren't pond life scum and hopefully this will only happen once every ~20+ orders. Hopefully the profit on the rest will absorb such losses.
Seller_2EG6N58tYDYmC
I am not exactly sure what the difference is between 2nd Class Large Letter and Royal Mail 48 (CLR48) Large letter but I use the CLR48 and I can see tracking codes even from last year orders. I hope this helps.
Seller_pYsaXHjXOfdem
Shame Amazon seem to be a law unto themselves. e Bay just released this new policy to protect sellers. Amazon should step up and do the same and as you stated also NOT penalise sellers by making them refund after the 30 day period:
"We’ve heard from you, our sellers, that one of the biggest frustrations is when delivery delays lead to Item Not Received (INR) claims and unexpected refunds - only for the item to show up days later. This is why, starting in November, eBay will introduce a new improvement to enhance trust and reduce friction from these premature INR claims.
What’s changing?
Before: Seller issues a refund to close an INR case. If the parcel is delivered later, the seller will not recover their refund and it will be lost.
From November 2025: If tracking shows delivered within 30 days after a seller has refunded, eBay will reimburse the item cost and remove any negative or neutral feedback directly linked to the claim and regarding delivery.
Are you covered?
You qualify automatically when you meet the following criteria:
Item dispatched within your stated handling time.
Used a tracked shipping service purchased via eBay labels on our platform.
Tracking shows that the item was delivered within 30 days of original case closure.
Your seller account has not been flagged under our risk detection policies.
This helps ensure sellers aren’t penalised for delays outside their control, and reinforces our commitment to standing behind sellers who do the right thing.
Seller_SooKfqYdUflLd
You have to factor this nonsense into your business plan I am afraid, there is no point letting it rent space in your head over something you are pretty much powerless over
God (Good Orderly Direction) grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can & the wisdom to know the difference !
Seller_RguKGMHvWFmo3
Yes I totall agree. Similar things have happened to me.
Have reported to CMA who said if they get enough complaints and its a in the public interest they will investigate Amazon and RM.
Royal Mail wouldn't allow me to claim and as you stated deleted customer info so I could not cross reference.
Amazon just refund willy nilly.
So peeps if you can submit a report to the CMA (Competition and Markets Authority) easy to find by typing "CMA report an issue" into Google
