Account deactivated for Inauthentic Complaint - HELP PLEASE!
Dear all learned members
First of all, my sincere apologies for the lengthy post as I wanted to answer most of your questions before they even arise. I wonder if somebody could help as we have found ourselves to be in a pickle!!!
First email from Amazon received on 1st April 2020 (ironically on the day that I was supposed to receive disbursement of over £15k) stating that they would hold back funds but leave our listings active whilst asking for invoices and plan of action for three products as they have received inauthenticity complaints.
We have been selling on Amazon for over three years now and this is the first time I am having to deal with this issue.
To give you a perspective, the three complaints were:
For ASIN: B079Z9PXWF customer wanted to return the product and opened an incorrect return stating that product was inauthentic. We honoured the return and processed a refund for the order. This was the sole complaint out of the 25 units that were sold. We addressed this previously by sending invoice to Amazon which they accepted in January 2020.
For ASIN: B07C11SB2T customer purchased product on 26th September 2019 and decided to return it three weeks later stating performance or quality not adequate as the reason. Return was received on 22nd October 2019 and upon inspection the product was found to have been used completely. This was reported to Amazon immediately on 23rd October 2019 along with photographs of items. This was the only complaint out of 10 units that were sold.
For B01N4CBN4W the product was sent to us by our supplier as part of a free gift set containing 6 items. We listed one of the items and sold it. It was sent to the customer without the original packaging which led the customer to believe that the product was inauthentic. Customer messaged us asking for clarification and we confirmed in an email to her immediately that the product was 100% genuine.
I shall post the history once this thread has been approved by the moderator.
Many thanks for your help!
Jay
Account deactivated for Inauthentic Complaint - HELP PLEASE!
Dear all learned members
First of all, my sincere apologies for the lengthy post as I wanted to answer most of your questions before they even arise. I wonder if somebody could help as we have found ourselves to be in a pickle!!!
First email from Amazon received on 1st April 2020 (ironically on the day that I was supposed to receive disbursement of over £15k) stating that they would hold back funds but leave our listings active whilst asking for invoices and plan of action for three products as they have received inauthenticity complaints.
We have been selling on Amazon for over three years now and this is the first time I am having to deal with this issue.
To give you a perspective, the three complaints were:
For ASIN: B079Z9PXWF customer wanted to return the product and opened an incorrect return stating that product was inauthentic. We honoured the return and processed a refund for the order. This was the sole complaint out of the 25 units that were sold. We addressed this previously by sending invoice to Amazon which they accepted in January 2020.
For ASIN: B07C11SB2T customer purchased product on 26th September 2019 and decided to return it three weeks later stating performance or quality not adequate as the reason. Return was received on 22nd October 2019 and upon inspection the product was found to have been used completely. This was reported to Amazon immediately on 23rd October 2019 along with photographs of items. This was the only complaint out of 10 units that were sold.
For B01N4CBN4W the product was sent to us by our supplier as part of a free gift set containing 6 items. We listed one of the items and sold it. It was sent to the customer without the original packaging which led the customer to believe that the product was inauthentic. Customer messaged us asking for clarification and we confirmed in an email to her immediately that the product was 100% genuine.
I shall post the history once this thread has been approved by the moderator.
Many thanks for your help!
Jay
Seller_hC0hNVDuILaKO
So they have given you a cap to which the funds hold should stick, but if you are inactive then they cannot update the cap and carry out the review properly so you are extending your own misery.
You have been lucky and managed to get reinstated, so now don’t mess it up, dispatch existing orders, remain open and let the review happen quietly in the background.
That is the quickest way to get your funds and keep your account operating successfully.
19 replies
Seller_QWPDhN9199kOR
Hi Peter
Many thanks for your support.
It has been such a relief however funds are still unavailable pending review of the account. They did not mention what kind of review however at least selling privileges have been restored.
Do you know what they are reviewing?
Jay
Seller_QWPDhN9199kOR
Below is the chain of communication between ourselves and Amazon since 1st April 2020.
ORIGINAL EMAIL FROM AMAZON 1st APRIL 2020
Hello,
We are currently reviewing your account due to buyer complaints about the item(s) listed at the end of this email. Your listings are still active, but funds will not be transferred to you and will stay in your account while we work with you to address this issue.
Why did I receive this message?
We received buyer complaints about the authenticity of the item(s) below. 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-europe.amazon.com/gp/help/201165970)
– Policies and Agreements (https://sellercentral-europe.amazon.com/gp/help/521)
What happens now?
Within the next 24 hours, you will receive a phone call from our Account Health Support team to review these complaints. If an Account Health Support associate is not able to reach you at the time of the phone call, we may temporarily deactivate your Amazon seller account.
We’re here to help
If you want to discuss the status of your account immediately rather than wait for Amazon to call you, you can use this link {Moderator edit (Jessica): Link removed} to speak directly with an Account Health Specialist. The Account Health Support team is available 7 days a week, from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Greenwich Mean Time.
Do you believe that you have received this message in error?
If you believe the complaints about the condition or description of your items are unjustified or received in error, please explain how you identified this issue and we will investigate your concern (for example, a complaint created by a competing Amazon seller).
You can view your account’s performance at (https://sellercentral-europe.amazon.com/performance/dashboard?ref=ah_em_pq) or select Account Health on the home screen of the Amazon Seller app on your iOS (https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/amazon-seller/id794141485?mt=8) or Android (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.amazon.sellermobile.android&hl=en_GB) device. The Account Health dashboard shows how well your account is performing against the performance metrics and policies required to sell on Amazon.
-------------------------------------
Complaint type: INAUTHENTIC
ASIN: B07C11SB2T B079Z9PXWF B01N4CBN4W
----------------------------- --------
Sincerely,
Seller Performance Team
Dear ,
Thank you for speaking with us about your Amazon selling account.
As we discussed, Amazon has received complaints from buyers regarding the authenticity of the items listed at the end of this email.
Why is this happening?
Amazon has several product detail and listing policies to ensure customers have a consistent buying experience and receive items in the condition they expect.
Learn more about our policies in Seller Central Help:
–Product Detail Page Rules (https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/200390640)
–Condition Guidelines (https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/200339950)
–Amazon Product Authenticity and Quality Help Page (https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/G202010130)
–Prohibited Seller Activities and Actions (https://sellercentral.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/200386250)
What’s next?
To prevent your account from being temporarily deactivated, please send us the below information within 72 hours.
-
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. -
A plan of action that explains:
– The root cause(s) that caused 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.
1ST PLAN OF ACTION
We prepared the following plan of action:
Thank you for your email and it was good speaking to you on the phone earlier. It allowed me to explain the problem prior to providing the details below.
Please find attached invoices for the following ASIN(s) under review.
ASIN: B079Z9PXWF - Total number of units sold in the last 365 days = 25
This product was purchased from the sole distributor XXXXXX in the UK. The company is called XXXX and their contact details are as follows.
COMPANY CONTACT DETAILS
The relevant ASIN is highlighted on the invoices for ease of reference.
Please note that I had addressed the original inauthenticity complaint on 9th January 2020 by email and had sent the invoice previously to pq-product-review@amazon.co.uk and seller-performance-policy@amazon.co.uk to which I had a response from the Seller Performance Team that they were satisfied with the appeal and I was allowed by Amazon to continue to sell the ASIN. I have attached the email for your reference.
ASIN: B07C11SB2T - Total number of units sold in the last 365 days = 10
ASIN: B01N4CBN4W - Total number of units sold in the last 365 days = 2
The above two products were purchased from XXXXXX. Their contact details are as follows:
COMPANY DETAILS
They are the largest premium beauty products distributors in Europe.
Please note that ASIN: B01N4CBN4W is mentioned in the invoices as Estee Lauder Spring Set which contained the Estee Lauder Revitalizing Supreme+ Global Anti Aging Cell Power Creme, 0.5 oz / 15 ml along with other travel sized products.
The relevant ASIN(s) are highlighted in yellow on the invoices for ease of reference.
We take complaints of inauthenticity very seriously as we have never ever sold counterfeit products.
We had addressed the first complaint for ASIN B079Z9PXWF on 9th January 2020 and sent in the invoices.
We had failed to address the complaint for ASIN B07C11SB2T which meant that we did not provide evidence against the product inauthenticity complaint on the account health dashboard.
A third complaint was subsequently received recently regarding ASIN B01N4CBN4W.
PLAN OF ACTION
– The root cause(s) that caused led to the complaints about the authenticity of your items.
The root cause of the problem arose as a result of three complaints of inauthenticity from customers.
Our account was restricted because customers questioned the authenticity of the products, they received from us.
We feel the complaints came from customers getting items that didn’t match the listing – title, product description, pictures, and specifically packaging
This was our fault because we didn’t review listings properly and take full responsibility
– The actions you have taken to resolve the complaints about the authenticity of your items.
We have formulated a policy to regularly review our account health (everyday) and address any complaints that have been received immediately.
We have devised a policy to review our suppliers and inventory once every eight weeks.
Any products with missing outer packaging or signs of wear and tear have been removed from the inventory.
We have reviewed all our listings to make sure they are correct.
We have worked with our internal customer service team to better address customer inauthentic/safety concerns.
We deleted ASIN B01N4CBN4W, and have deleted additional ASINs that don’t conform to Amazon standards.
We have reviewed all messages from customers to ensure that no other inauthenticity complaints had been received in the last 365 days save for the three complaints mentioned above.
We have changed our packaging procedure, so products are despatched in their original packaging in a corrugated cardboard to avoid any confusion or damage.
– The steps you have taken to prevent future complaints about the authenticity of your items.
We shall ensure that product listings match that of the actual product that is delivered to the customer. All listings will be reviewed on a weekly basis.
We have trained our customer service department to understand and identify the root cause of the concern and answer in detail.
If necessary, we will provide the customer copies of our invoices so they can see we buy directly from distributors.
We will provide phone numbers of the manufacturers so they can call and confirm that the product contains the genuine batch number.
We shall ensure that the policy to retain invoices, check account health and review suppliers as stated above are reviewed and discussed monthly in a meeting with all members of staff.
Also, we have implemented and improved the following:
Quality control at every step in the warehouse: receiving merchandise, shelving, and prior to shipping out to customers.
We have updated our process to check all our listings regularly on Amazon to ensure the information is accurate and up to date: product title, description, pictures
Corrugated cardboard containers with crush proof packing materials are used when shipped to protect box contents.
Every step taken will alleviate customer concerns about authenticity. In the event they are not satisfied, we will offer 100% full refund with no questions asked and without additional steps.
Amazon sent us the following response
Dear,
We received your submission but do not have enough information to reactivate your account at this time. We cannot accept this invoice because it was issued after the date we specified.
To reactivate your account, please send us additional invoices issued before 23/11/2019 for the items listed at the end of this email.
Please also make sure that your invoices or receipts are issued within the last 365 days and include the following information:
–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.
An updated plan of action that explains:
– Greater detail on the issue(s) that you believe caused the complaints about the authenticity of your items.
– Greater detail on the actions you have taken to resolve the issue(s) that caused the complaints about the authenticity of your items.
– Greater detail on the steps you have taken to prevent future complaints about the authenticity of your items.
You can only send .pdf, .jpg, .png, or .gif files. These documents must be authentic and unaltered. The total allowed attachment size is 10MB.
How do I send the required information?
Please submit this information by replying to this email.
What happens if I do not send the requested information?
If we do not receive the requested information, your account may be deactivated.
We’re here to help
You can get help creating your plan in Seller Central Help (https://sellercentral-europe.amazon.com/gp/help/200370560).
You can view your account’s performance at (https://sellercentral-europe.amazon.com/performance/dashboard?ref=ah_em_pq) or select Account Health on the home screen of the Amazon Seller app on your iOS (https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/amazon-seller/id794141485?mt=8) or Android (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.amazon.sellermobile.android&hl=en_GB) device. The Account Health dashboard shows how well your account is performing against the performance metrics and policies required to sell on Amazon.
ASIN :B079Z9PXWF
Sincerely,
Seller Performance Team
There were then emails between myself and Amazon requesting invoices again and again which I them submitted in formats that they wanted to see.
They then sent me the following email
Dear MR,
We received your submission but do not have enough information to reactivate your account at this time.
Please send an updated plan of action that explains:
– Greater detail on the issue(s) that you believe caused the complaints about the authenticity of your items.
– Greater detail on the actions you have taken to resolve the issue(s) that caused the complaints about the authenticity of your items.
– Greater detail on 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 send the required information by replying to this email.
What happens if I do not send the requested information?
If we do not receive the requested information your account will be permanently deactivated.
We’re here to help
You can get help creating your plan in Seller Central Help (https://sellercentral-europe.amazon.com/gp/help/200370560).
You can view your account’s performance at (https://sellercentral-europe.amazon.com/performance/dashboard?ref=ah_em_pq) or select Account Health on the home screen of the Amazon Seller app on your iOS (https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/amazon-seller/id794141485?mt=8) or Android (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.amazon.sellermobile.android&hl=en_GB) device. The Account Health dashboard shows how well your account is performing against the performance metrics and policies required to sell on Amazon.
Sincerely,
Seller Performance Team
Seller_cDarHnP6PRJ0v
Hi @ Marvellous_Beauty,
I appreciate that you have educated yourself on Amazon’s policies and guidelines and came up with proper appeal. I can see from the conversation that your account was reinstated.
Thank you @PeterB for your inputs.
After the review is completed the decision on the same would be communicated via email in your performance notification, basis which funds disbursement would also be decided.
If you have any further queries please let us know.
Regards,
Dhoni
