My appeal for section 3 ban (counterfeit items) got escalated for second review.
I presented supply chain documentation along with invoices from my supplier clearly showing chain of custody and still got denied. Said in the performance notification that they couldn't verify the invoice from my suppliers. I got on the phone with them and the amazon associate said all the documentation was good and it should've been approved and that he'd escalate for a second review for the internal team to take a look. He said it would take 3 days at least to hear back from them and it's been close to a week now. Anyone else ever had this happen before? Did the 2nd appeal help? How long did it take for them to review them? Did they ask for a plan of action? If you have information to offer please do.
My appeal for section 3 ban (counterfeit items) got escalated for second review.
I presented supply chain documentation along with invoices from my supplier clearly showing chain of custody and still got denied. Said in the performance notification that they couldn't verify the invoice from my suppliers. I got on the phone with them and the amazon associate said all the documentation was good and it should've been approved and that he'd escalate for a second review for the internal team to take a look. He said it would take 3 days at least to hear back from them and it's been close to a week now. Anyone else ever had this happen before? Did the 2nd appeal help? How long did it take for them to review them? Did they ask for a plan of action? If you have information to offer please do.
7 replies
Seller_qTJiCxRI8PpIZ
The only thing I can say is that I've noticed chain of supply is getting approved way less often than having an LOA directly from the brand itself. I'm not sure why the change, but I know you aren't the only one who has had this problem.
Seller_kIukTwdhvntAp
"I presented supply chain documentation along with invoices from my supplier"
Just a couple things here. You do NOT say that this is an AUTHORIZED wholesale distributor AND you say nothing about having an LOA from the brand.
Pay attention to what @Seller_qTJiCxRI8PpIZhas stated about the need for an LOA now.
Here is my standard template on the changes taking place --
THE AMAZON TWO STEP -- A NEW DANCE FOR SELLERS
More and more frequently Amazon is taking a TWO STEP approach and you are probably caught with not doing one of the steps (or either one!)
You are likely confusing AMAZON allowing you to list (or at least "ungate") an item or category and actually being APPROVED to sell a product. Amazon may have ungated you for a CATEGORY but there can be 100's of brands in the category and they ALL have their own restrictions.
AMAZON is only interested in FEES. They will allow a chimpanzee to list if it means they collect $$$$$.
Additionally, brands that you COULD sell yesterday may be restricted today or next week. Amazon is a moving target to deal with.
DO YOU have an LOA from the brand allowing you to sell on here?
If you have an LOA that specifically says you can sell on Amazon you MIGHT survive this. Is it POSSIBLE that the brand has sent Amazon a "whitelist" of approved sellers and did not have you on it? Contact your sales rep at the BRAND(S) involved and ask about their whitelist. (You DO have a rep at the brands, don't you?)
More and more brands are providing such a "whitelist" of their approved sellers and if YOU are NOT on the list you will be stopped in your tracks and probably hit with an IP violation.
I had one of my brands stop me because they CHANGED the company they hired to screen sellers. The NEW screener did not recognize my Amazon store name because I do all my purchases under a different LLC. It took a couple weeks to get straightened out and no problems since then.
DID YOU source from AUTHORIZED wholesale sources that your rep at the brand says are OK.
NOTE the verification is required from the brand that the source is legitimate and authorized, NOT from one of those touted on TikTok and YouTube as having "thousands of brands and products" that assures you that they are authorized.
If you have watched any YouTube or TikTok videos FORGET everything you saw there.
Spend hours/days on Seller U and read the Forum to see all the really creative ways rookies and experienced sellers find to get suspended by ignoring the advice above!
https://sell.amazon.com/learn
Seller_6S7p4d6Vp9NRS
Thank you for the response.
Firstly, the supply chain documentation was issued to me from a rep at L'Oreal Paris which is the parent company of CeraVe, so Amazon saying "they can't verify documentation" is quite troubling. This is the origin of where Amazon gets products from as well! I used the documentation to get ungated for the product that I was selling, the AM + PM CeraVe bundle, and only that bundle, I sold no other CeraVe items.
The reason my account was deactivated was "section 3 counterfeit items", right, so an LOA wouldn't prove that my items were authentic. An LOA would only prove that CeraVe has allowed me to sell the product, not that the one's that I sent in were authentic, correct? I also see in a follow up post by Emet that if they can't verify my supply chain docs so my supplier needs a letter of authorization? Why would my supplier need a letter of authorization? He's not the one with the deactivated account, I am, he doesn't even sell on amazon. Why wouldn't the support team have told me this on any of the calls that I've been on with them about this? They never said that's required.
So what's the solution? If I get an LOA I'm good?
"Amazon is a moving target". Is this another way of saying that it's a luckshot and there's no way to know if I every get my account back?
Seller_kIukTwdhvntAp
"An LOA would only prove that CeraVe has allowed me to sell the product, not that the one's that I sent in were authentic, correct?"
This is correct, BUT it is an indication to Amazon that you are following at least one of their policies. When it is paired with an invoice from a legitimate authorized distributor you have a chain of custody and authenticity.
" Why would my supplier need a letter of authorization? "
Because there are THOUSANDS of gray market goods out there that sell items that may, or may not, be authentic. Any legitimate wholesaler can be found by contacting your sales rep at the brand and asking them for their list of authorized wholesalers.
""Amazon is a moving target". Is this another way of saying that it's a luckshot and there's no way to know if I every get my account back?"
NO, it's a way of describing what every seller faces on here on a daily basis. As I said to start that part of the answer -- "brands that you COULD sell yesterday may be restricted today or next week."
" the supply chain documentation was issued to me from a rep at L'Oreal Paris which is the parent company of CeraVe,"
This is no different from a seller here getting one answer from one person or BOT on Amazon and getting an entirely different answer from a different person or BOT. It is VERY unlikely that the individual that furnished the paper trail to you has a clue about what decisions the brand leadership is making. The upper leadership there has now made a decision about restricting sales on Amazon. THAT is a very high level decision and the decision to restrict sales here was made very recently.
"If I get an LOA I'm good?"
This is VERY unlikely since CeraVe has now been added to the list of 'forbidden brands' and there are numerous reports of suspensions for selling their products now.
If you have a sales rep at the brand they can confirm this to you. ALSO, if you have a sales rep there, they SHOULD have given you advance notice of the changes so you could dump inventory BEFORE the restrictions took place.
Emet_Amazon
Hello @Seller_6S7p4d6Vp9NRS,
Thank you for posting about your account deactivation again.
As mentioned in your original post on this topic, I inquired about your supply chain. Where exactly did you source your products from, did you receive a letter of authorization for CeraVe? Does your sourcing documents show or verify proof that you sourced them from an authorized distributor for resale on amazon? If we've directly stated we cannot verify your supply chain, we will need your suppliers letter of authorization to verify their approval.
I do see that this is pending review but have no access to the information under review thus I cannot provide any guidance. I cannot give you any time frame on the review as these teams will complete reviews in the order they are received. Once they complete their review, you should receive a follow up notice in seller central.
The forums community and I are here to support you. Please let us know how we can help you from this point forward.
Emet.
Emet_Amazon
Hello @Seller_6S7p4d6Vp9NRS,
Thank you for following back up on this.
I have followed up with the appropriate teams for the situation who have confirmed the current documentation that was recently reviewed on 9/20/24 cannot be accepted. They also advised that they cannot provide the reasons for this decisions as they do not divulge their internal review processes. I would suggest reaching out to your point of contact and confirm that they are authorized distributors.
I would also confirm that your invoices have not been altered, changed, or edited in any way and are a scan or photo of the original documentation. Does your documents show you sourced them from L'Oreal, or CeraVe directly?
As noted by @NEVERLAST, having an LOA confirms you were an approved distributor of the brand. The same goes for your supplier. Confirming your supplier has proper authorization for redistribution of these products and brands allows us to have more confidence in the supply chain.
You will also need your invoices to be acceptable. An LOA by itself will unlikely resolve your situation as a whole. As noted above the primary concern is simply being able to accept your invoices at this time. I would continue working with your supplier to verify they are an authorized distributor for confirmation they are even allowed to sell these products, then additionally confirming your documents meet all of our requirements to be accepted.
The forums community and I are here to support you. Please let us know how we can help you from this point forward.
Emet.
