Inauthentic Product Claims - Account Suspension - POA Help please

Hello everyone,

We have recently had our account suspended due to claims of inauthentic products as were hoping to get a bit of help with our Plan of Action please. (Apologies if I don’t quite reply correctly, this is my first time posting on the forum.) To provide some info, we own hair salons and purchase the items direct from the manufacturer. We can say with absolute certainty that the products are genuine. We received the below email first -

Dear XXX,

Your Amazon Seller account has been temporarily deactivated and your listings are no longer active. Funds will not be transferred to you but will be held in your account while we work with you to address the following issue.

Why is this happening?
We attempted to reach you by phone today to discuss buyer complaints we received about the authenticity of the items listed at the end of this email. In order to ensure that customers can shop with confidence on Amazon, we take “inauthentic” complaints seriously. The sale of counterfeit products on Amazon is strictly prohibited. You can learn more about Amazon’s policies regarding the sale of counterfeit items in Seller Central Help:
– Amazon Anti-Counterfeiting Policy (https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/201165970)
– Policies and Agreements (https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/521)

How do I reactivate my account?
To reactivate your account, please send us the following information:

1. Copies of invoices or receipts from your supplier issued in the last 365 days for the ASINs listed below
   –These documents should reflect your sales volume during the last 365 days.
   –Please include contact information for your supplier, including name, phone number, address, and website. We will maintain the confidentiality of your supplier contact information.
   –You may remove pricing information, but the rest of the document must be visible. For ease of our review, you may highlight or circle the ASIN(s) under review.

2. A plan of action that explains:
   – The root cause(s) that led to the complaints about the authenticity of your items.
   – The actions you have taken to resolve the complaints about the authenticity of your items.
   – The steps you have taken to prevent future complaints about the authenticity of your items.

Here are a few things to consider as you create your plan:
–Sourcing: Are you sourcing the product from a trusted supplier?
–Listing: Is the product accurately described on Amazon? Have you ensured that there is no ambiguity and the customer is well informed?
–Packaging: Is the product in its original packaging as listed on Amazon?
– Shipping: Have you taken all appropriate steps and quality checks to ensure that the product is stored, packed, and shipped appropriately?
–Review your communications from buyers to better understand the issues.
–Be as specific as possible in your plan.
–Do not limit your plan to issues with specific orders.

You can only send .pdf, .jpg, .png, or .gif files. These documents must be authentic and unaltered.

How do I send the required information?
Please submit this information by clicking the Appeal button next to this message on the Performance Notifications page in Seller Central (https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/gp/customer-experience/perf-notifications.html).

What happens if I do not send the requested information?
If we do not receive the requested information within 17 days, or after two unsuccessful appeals (whichever occurs sooner), your account will be permanently deactivated. Failure to successfully appeal this decision may result in funds being withheld and any FBA inventory of the items that caused “inauthentic” complaints in Amazon European fulfillment centers may be destroyed at your expense.

We’re here to help
If you have questions about this policy or information requested above, please contact us at (https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/cu/contact-us/cmn/QUALITY). The Account Health Support team is available to discuss your account performance 7 days a week, from 7:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Pacific Time. Additionally, please find assistance creating a plan of action at (https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/201623610). You can see your balance and settlement information in the Payments section of Seller Central. If you have questions about those, please write to payments-funds@amazon.co.uk.

You can view your account performance at (https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/performance/dashboard?ref=ah_em_op) or select Account Health on the home screen of the Amazon Seller app on your iOS or Android device. Your Account Health shows how well your account is performing against the performance metrics and policies required to sell on Amazon.
– Download iOS App at (https://itunes.apple.com/uk/app/amazon-seller/id794141485)
– Download Android App at (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.amazon.sellermobile.android&hl)

■ ASIN: X
■ TITLE: X

■ ASIN: X
■ TITLE: X

■ ASIN: X
■ TITLE: X

Sincerely,

Seller Performance Team

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We replied with the following Plan of action, and attached an invoice from last month which showed the 3 ASINS:

We understand our account health is not currently in line with Amazon’s and our own level of acceptance. We believe this is the result of - regularly updated and refreshed packaging and branding by the supplier which can cause confusion to buyers who have previously purchased the product.

We are taking the following steps to improve our performance – Ensure imagery is up to date with current new branding and product packaging to help buyers clearly see what version of the product they are purchasing. Offer quick response times to customer queries and messages.

We will continue to purchase our products directly from the supplier and send these to customers in their original packaging and cellophane when applicable. We will streamline our inventory update process to continue to keep images up to date with current branding, and continue to offer returns to customers who are not satisfied with their purchases.

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They replied back to us (in German?!) so I queried with them as I wasn’t sure if it was a genuine response. It was, and they said that the appeal had been rejected and to resubmit. We’ve spent some time looking over various other threads that deal in a similar nature and have drafted the below based on that. Any advice would be very much appreciated.

Dear Seller Performance Team,

Firstly, many thanks for the opportunity to appeal the claim of inauthenticity in our products which resulted in suspension.
We understand our account health is not currently in line with Amazon’s and our own level of acceptance, and know that Amazon take concerns of inauthentic items very seriously. In this plan of action below we will outline all issues and the steps taken to rectify this immediately and in the future.

Root Cause, what happened:
• Amazon was concerned about the authenticity of ASINs XX, YY and ZZ due to buyer concerns:
o Packaging – The manufacturer recently updated their packaging to fall in line with their new branding which caused confusion to a buyer who had previously owned this product
o Product formula – The manufacturer updates their formulas in line with scientific information to provide the best possible product which caused confusion to a buyer who had previously owned this product
• Upon your initial request, we did not provide an appropriate plan of action detailing how we would ensure these issues would not arise in the future
• We did not provide enough invoices to adequately convey our units sold on Amazon in the last few months

Immediate Action, what we have done to resolve the problem:
• All aforementioned ASINS have had additional imagery submitted to ensure buyers can clearly see the product they are purchasing
• All previous customer concerns regarding authenticity were responded to in a timely fashion and offered returns
o Please see return request for order XXX
o Please see Message dated XX/YY/ZZ from XXXX
• We reread and reviewed the Amazon counterfeit policies and guidelines to ensure we followed these in full

Long term changes, what we will do to prevent similar complaints in the future:
• All inventory will continue to be sourced directly from the official manufacturer
• We will verify each new product listed so it matches the description in full, including imagery
• We will continue to sell these products in their original packaging and condition
• We will regularly review the Amazon guidelines and policies.

Supplier Details – XXXX
Number – XXXX
Address - XXXX
Website – XXXX
Contact Details – XXX

We have attached 7 invoices which include ASINS XX, YY and ZZ and match the level of stock sold across Amazon in the last month. We believe this appeal addresses all concerns, and look forward to the opportunity to sell on Amazon again.

Sincerely,

XXX