Amazon Seller News: Amazon Inauthentic Allegations
In the last decade, Amazon Sellers Lawyer has seen more cases related to inauthentic product allegations than any other area of our practice. This is because of the nature of these allegations, and how difficult they can be to clear as an independent seller. In this blog, we walk you through the meaning of and reason behind inauthentic product allegations and a general overview of the appeals process for suspensions like inauthentic.
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What Does Inauthentic Mean
On Amazon, several issues are most often caused by reports being created against your account or products. Although areas such as intellectual property accusations are more clearly linked to reporting, inauthentic allegations are actually one of the most common outcomes of customer reporting.
Here, customers may allege that your products are arriving with incorrect packaging, missing components, or that they are different from what is advertised on your store page. The nature of this suspension makes it one of the most difficult to earn reinstatement from as an Amazon seller. Because of Amazon’s focus on making customers have positive experiences on their platform, even a single report can be enough to lead your products to be suspended. Even before confirming the truth of these allegations, Amazon may remove your products and issue refunds to customers.
While this can be frustrating, Amazon does have some built in tools that allow you to assert the authenticity of your products. Namely, for sellers using Fulfillment by Amazon, there is a service you can request called a “bin check” which sends an Amazon employee to check on the integrity of your inventory. This can either support your case for reinstatement in future appeals, or can be enough to secure product reinstatement on its own.
Another important route to reinstatement that sellers should be aware of is negotiating a complaint retraction. Securing retractions from your complainant can instantly clear the suspension on your products or account, making it save potentially thousands of dollars in lost sales if handled properly. This is typically done through directly reaching out to the complainant and offering a replacement product, refund, or demonstrating that the product they received was correct.
Appeal Account Amazon – POA Plan of Action
If your products or account are currently facing suspension and you have already attempted to negotiate a retraction, your next step is creation of a Plan of Action (POA) appeal document. These are written appeals that include three sections about your suspension, and any additional supporting documentation for your case.
The first section of a POA is a root cause analysis; detailing the reason you believe you were suspended. Next, sellers should discuss the immediate corrective actions they have taken to resolve issues created by the conditions that led to their suspension. This can mean issuing refunds, replacements, or negotiating directly with the customer for what they wanted. Finally, sellers should go over the future preventative measures they have implemented into their business strategy to mitigate the risk of more enforcement actions against their account.
If standard POA appeals are not enough to get your products back, it may be necessary to move to escalated options. These apply legal pressure to Amazon’s enforcement team, a move that is often required for cases like inauthentic suspension where it is harder to get your account reinstated.
Through the assistance of legal counsel, you may also move to file for arbitration against Amazon if your account continues to be suspended after other options are exhausted. Often, filing for arbitration can be the strongest option that yields the highest success rate for sellers with difficult cases.
Contact Amazon Sellers Lawyer Today!
At Amazon Sellers Lawyer, we have over a decade of experience resolving cases for sellers dealing with exactly these types of suspensions. Whether it be through assisting in the negotiation process for a complaint retraction, or taking Amazon to arbitration, we are here to get you back to focusing on selling. Give us a call today at 212-256-1109 or fill out our online contact form linked here.
About the Author
CJ Rosenbaum, Esq.
CJ Rosenbaum is the founding partner of Amazon Sellers Lawyer. He’s been practicing law since 1995, and since 2016 his firm has focused exclusively on helping Amazon sellers deal with issues like suspensions, intellectual property disputes, and withheld funds.
CJ has written seven books on Amazon seller legal issues including the Amazon Sellers’ Guide to Copyright Law. He has spoken at major industry events like the Prosper Show, Global Sources Summit, Retail Global. CJ also works with the Amazon Sellers Lawyer team to provide free content for Amazon sellers. This is available through their online blog and YouTube channel, frequently covering major Amazon updates and important topics relevant to the seller space.
Through BrandProtectionAmazon.com, the firm also supports brands in protecting their products. This gives the team the unique opportunity to learn from case wins on both sides of the fence, strengthening protection for both the sellers and brands that Rosenbaum & Segall P.C. represents.
Amazon repeatedly rejecting your Plan of Action? Amazon Sellers Lawyer handles suspension appeals and account reinstatement cases – including arbitration against Amazon when they’re withholding seller money. Contact us to discuss your situation and figure out the best path forward.