Got Your Amazon Seller Account Suspended? Here’s What You Need To Know!

March 3, 2023
Written by Ken Zhou
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Amazon Account Suspension is your biggest challenge if you sell on the Amazon marketplace. For an Amazon account seller, it is frustrating to know that what you have been working on for some time gets taken down. However, when this happens, you must take action quickly when you receive the dreaded message that your account has been suspended. 

Amazon, which has 2 billion monthly site users, closely monitors merchants to maintain its marketplace's high-quality vendors have no trouble adhering to these regulations since they want to sell their items to Amazon's 2 billion monthly visitors. 

Amazon's policies are fairly stringent. Sellers are faced with the right to suspend or terminate their selling privileges at any time for a violation committed by an Amazon seller account, according to Amazon’s terms of service, may be intentionally or unintentionally done. As a result, even the greatest sellers' accounts have been suspended. This got several sellers worried even if there was an updated suspension policy.

As an Amazon Seller, it’s important to know the ins and outs of Amazon Seller Account suspension covering the following topics:

  • Why is your Amazon Seller Account Suspended
  • 3 Steps to Retrieve Amazon Suspended Seller Account
  • Crafting your Plan of Action (POA)
  • Don’t Wait For the Worst

To learn more about these, continue reading the succeeding sections and learning more about navigating your suspended Amazon Seller Account. 

Why is your Amazon Seller Account Suspended

Doing research could uncover a compelling explanation for why Amazon suspended your account. Knowing why your account was suspended can greatly boost your chances of having your request considered and subsequently accepted.

There are several reasons why you got your Amazon Seller Account banned. In addition, the violations a seller of the Amazon Web Services service terms can be a reason for your account suspension. In addition, Amazon sellers are required to adhere to Amazon seller performance standards and metrics relating to their account health.

  • Response Rate. The average response rate of Amazon sellers to their customers regarding queries has an impact on the decision of Amazon to suspend a seller account. If an Amazon seller is unresponsive to their customers’ queries, they will likely be suspended.
  • Appropriate Tracking Number. Incorrect tracking numbers are one of the issues customers complain about. In alignment, Amazon is considering this as a basis for suspending an Amazon seller account.
  • Order Defect Rates. Customers receiving defective products often is an obvious reason for Amazon to declare your Amazon seller account as a suspended Amazon account.
  • Late Shipments. Similar to the order defect rate, late shipments, up to a certain limit, is enough grounds for Amazon to execute account suspension.
  • Pre-fulfillment Cancellations. Several fulfillment cancellations could be a strong reason for Amazon to suspend seller accounts.

On top of that, Amazon scrutinizes the real quality of your items in terms of product safety concerns, trademark infringements, product expiry dates, and charges of selling inauthentic or counterfeit products. So it’s important to protect your account from the perils of the internet.

Aside from the criteria mentioned above, the substantial quality of your product will also be tested by Amazon. Amazon’s assessment of your product quality will be up of the following points:

  1. Health and Safety Complaints
  2. Multiple Accounts
  3. Trademark Infringements
  4. Inauthentic Product Listings or Counterfeit Allegations
  5. Product Expiration Dates

If you see any lapses in these areas, review your data to see whether this is a systemic or one-time issue. Understand the factors causing you to fall short of the threshold so that you can properly solve the issue. Include that in your appeal letter.

Now that you have learned the probable reasons why your Amazon seller account got suspended. It’s only appropriate to know how to retrieve it! 


3 Steps to Retrieve Amazon Suspended Seller Account

Once Amazon seller central suspends your seller account, the process of retrieving your suspended Amazon seller account can be anxiety-inducing. However, you’re off to a great start as, at this stage, you’ll be able to navigate through retrieving your suspended Amazon seller account.

Step #1 Read the Suspension Notice

It is important you need to read the suspension notice. Then, to reclaim your Amazon seller account, you must first understand what caused your suspension in the first place. The reason for your account suspension could be any of the ones listed under the “Why is your Amazon Seller Account Suspended.”

It is important to identify this to correct possible violations or prevent issues your Amazon seller account has faced. 

Step #2 Communicate with Amazon

After that, you must initiate communication with Amazon. This is to ensure that you are interested in getting your Amazon seller account and that you’re serious about correcting the possible violations you may have consciously or unconsciously. Take note that when doing this, you must be patient and professional.

Step #3 Prepare your Plan of Action

If your account is suspended, the only way to reactivate it is to complete a Plan of Action (POA) document. You must recognize and rectify the issues that Amazon claims caused it to be suspended. You must also describe how you intend to prevent such circumstances. You must file an Amazon appeal for the Amazon suspension of your account.

When preparing your POA, you need to be strategic, as there are several factors you should consider. Amazon has been using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning tools to automate seller interactions. This means that communicating and connecting with Amazon are increasingly being handled by technology may it be software interfaces or bots. 

Also, when writing for your POA, you must be clear and precise, avoid unclear references, and use appropriate and concise language.

Crafting your Prepare a Plan of Action (POA)

Amazon will assess your Plan of Action to determine whether you are eligible to reclaim your account. Therefore, design a POA with care. A well-written POA indicates you recognized the issue that prompted the suspension, how it occurred, and how you resolved it.

So, how exactly do you craft your plan of action (POA)?

  • Make an apologetic statement in which you appreciate the honor of selling on Amazon and accept complete responsibility for the situation and its resolution.
  • Narrate an explanation of what caused the original unpleasant incident
  • State the actions you took on the customer's behalf or a specific policy violation to resolve the initial incident.
  • Posit your future steps to avoid a recurrence of the problem.

Within the text of the suspension email, a "Submit Appeal" button will take you to the POA form, where you may submit your reinstatement request following the procedures outlined in the Amazon Seller Central guidelines.

Remember not to waste your time writing an appeal or a plan of action (POA) that is not well thought of. There are no assurances that your suspended Amazon seller account will be reinstated once you file an appeal. When your account is suspended, it's natural to grow agitated and take fast action; nevertheless, it's better to keep a cool mind and take calm, methodical actions to prevent digging a larger hole.

Be patient and wait a few weeks. If you haven't heard anything by then, consider contacting seller support to kickstart the review.

Don’t Wait For the Worst

Account Suspension is your biggest challenge if you sell on Amazon. There’ll be a temporary halt in operations. If done wrong, it might jeopardize your account and start over again.

If you aren't an Amazon seller, don't let this article terrify you. We don't intend to discourage you from pursuing your business aspirations but rather to assist you. It's natural to feel restless and frightened if your Amazon seller account has been suspended for the first time. But remember: don't freak out. 

With Seller Interactive’s Amazon Suspension Appeal Service, our team will help you get your account reinstated and verified, perform an in-depth review of your account to identify issues, and assist with legal concerns along the way with our legal experts! Book a call with us, and let’s reinstate your account and secure it from getting suspended.

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