When you decide to sell on Amazon, you're signing up to play by their rules. If you want to make it big, you must avoid Amazon listing policy violations.
It’s super important to get your product page right. A well-done listing can convince buyers to choose your product. It helps set clear expectations, leading to happier customers and fewer complaints. Most importantly, it needs to follow Amazon's rules.
More sellers are getting into trouble because they are not following these rules. Common policy mistakes involve violating intellectual property (IP) rights or selling items that Amazon restricts.
If you don’t follow the rules, Amazon could remove your products or suspend your account. In that case, you'll need to submit a policy violation appeal.
Here's the good part: We're about to discuss policy violations and how to avoid them. Plus, we've got your back with actionable steps for when Amazon flags your account or listings.
Get ready to navigate Amazon's policies like a pro and keep your selling journey on track!
Amazon has rules to ensure that products sold on its platform are good for customers, safe, and not harmful. Following Amazon's seller code of conduct is key to being a successful Amazon seller.
Amazon reminds sellers that they must follow Amazon's brand policy rules and also the laws of their area and country. It's up to sellers to check that their products and how they sell them don't break any rules.
If you get a message from Amazon about breaking a rule, you must reply quickly. This could mean someone has made a complaint against you, or you haven't followed Amazon's policies correctly.
If you accidentally break any of Amazon's product rules, they will inform you through the Seller Central account health dashboard. You must check this dashboard often to keep your account in good shape.
In the Seller Central menu, choose "Performance." Then, click "Account Health" and look at your account health dashboard's "Product Policy Compliance" section. If there are zeros next to all types of violations, it means you have no violations.
Product policy violations on Amazon can include problems with intellectual property, doubts about product authenticity, issues with the product's condition, and other breaches of Amazon's rules.
Amazon lists several types of policy violations:
Suspected intellectual property (IP) complaints occur when Amazon thinks you might wrongly use someone else's IP rights. These complaints aren't directly from the rights owner. Amazon notices something off and suggests you might be stepping on a brand's IP rights.
Reason for violation: Amazon will warn you about suspected IP complaints if they believe your product listing infringes on someone's intellectual property rights.
What happens next? Usually, Amazon automatically sends the suspected IP violation notice, and they might deactivate your product listing.
Advice: Often, suspected IP violations occur because you used the wrong brand name in the product title or brand field. For example, if your product listing title says “iPhone accessories” but isn't an official Apple product, this could be a problem. If you fix the brand name in your listing, Amazon might reactivate it automatically.
Received intellectual property complaints happen when the owner of a brand or IP rights tells Amazon your listing is using their property without permission.
Why you're warned: A brand owner claims you're using their IP rights without permission in your listing.
What could happen? If you ignore Amazon's policy warnings, they might deactivate your listings or even your Amazon account.
Advice: A received IP claim deals with IP rights like a suspected IP claim, but you must handle them differently. You need to fix the issue with the rights owner.
Talk to the brand to get a letter saying it's okay, or show Amazon proof of where you got your products. Send Amazon a letter from the brand saying the issue is resolved, or provide receipts that prove you bought the products legitimately.
Product authenticity complaints happen when customers tell Amazon they think your product is fake. Amazon sees these issues as intellectual property violations.
Why it's a problem: Just because there's a complaint doesn't mean your product is fake. The customer might have made a mistake, been unhappy with the packaging, or thought your product looked too much like a brand-name item and assumed it was a counterfeit.
What happens if you ignore it? If you don't respond to a claim that your product is not authentic, Amazon might deactivate your listing.
What you should do: Amazon expects you to ensure that all products you sell are legal and allowed to be sold. Check where your products come from, confirm they are genuine, and keep all your purchase records, such as orders and receipts. You'll need these if you have to show proof to Amazon.
Another thing you can do as an FBA seller is request a bin check. If you're wrongly accused of distributing fake products, you can contact Amazon and ask for a thorough inspection of your inventory at the FBA warehouse.
This involves someone physically examining the storage bins to verify that your products are authentic and not counterfeit.
Customer complaints about product condition mean a customer has reported that the product they got doesn't match what was described online.
Why it happens: A customer might complain if they buy something listed as "New" that looks worn, is damaged, or seems used in some way.
What could happen? If you ignore complaints about the product's condition, Amazon might stop showing your product.
Advice: Always check your products before you send them to Amazon or directly to the buyer. Pay attention to what customers say in their feedback and ensure your product descriptions are accurate.
When customers complain about product safety, it means they've told Amazon they think a product is unsafe or doesn't meet safety standards.
Why it happens: Safety standards often change, and sometimes, these complaints might not actually be about the product's safety. They could be due to the product being damaged or appearing used.
What to do next? You usually have to write an appeal letter about the violation. But you can't do that if you're missing any important documents.
Amazon might ask you to add warning labels, provide instructions, test the product with a certified lab, or get insurance. If you don't respond to the complaint, Amazon may stop showing your product or even suspend your account.
Advice: If you get a warning from Amazon about this, send them a Plan of Action and follow their steps to get your product listed again.
Amazon will warn you if your listings don't meet their rules.
Why you're warned: You might get a warning for having duplicate listings, creating variations that don't follow Amazon's rules and more. Also, you can't list certain items, like promotional samples, products expiring soon, or items that can't be sold.
What happens next? If Amazon suspends your listing, you'll likely need to appeal. This means you need to write a plan of action (POA). If you don't respond to warnings about your listing, Amazon might remove it.
Advice: If Amazon takes down your listing, you should file a listing policy violation appeal in response.
Ultimately, for any listing policy violation, another thing you can do is remove trigger words from your listing. Trigger words can cause Amazon to deactivate your listing even if you, in fact, didn’t violate any rules.
Restricted products are items that you need Amazon's permission to sell. You have to apply to get approval for these products.
Why this matters: Amazon keeps lists of restricted categories and brands in Seller Central. These restrictions can be different in each marketplace and may change over time. You need to keep checking for any updates. Sometimes, new restrictions can affect products you're already selling.
What could happen? Amazon may ask you to remove listings for restricted products. You might need to show that your product is officially licensed or bought from an approved distributor. If you don't remove a restricted listing, Amazon might deactivate your selling account.
Advice: Amazon will notify you if you're trying to sell a restricted product. Before listing such a product, you need permission. When you try to list a restricted item, a form to apply for permission will often appear in Seller Central.
If you violate Amazon's customer review policy, you've broken their review rules.
Why it's a problem: Amazon does not allow sellers to write reviews for their products or those of competitors. You can't mess with reviews, ask customers to leave, change, or remove a review, or offer them a refund or discount for a good review.
What will Amazon do about it? If Amazon thinks you're tampering with reviews, they'll delete them and your product listing. They might also suspend or permanently block your account.
What to do: Don't try to trick the system with fake reviews. If you get a bad review, reach out to the customer to fix the problem. You can also respond to the review publicly, so others see you're trying to solve the issue.
Another good way to appear authentic or get better reviews is to enrol your products under Amazon Vine. To join Vine, you need to be listed as the brand owner in Amazon's Brand Registry.
To avoid Amazon policy violations, you must check the product history to ensure it hasn't caused issues for other sellers.
Seller Candy can help you with this. We offer services tailored to prevent policy violations, including handling Intellectual Property Violations and ensuring compliance with Listing and Restricted Product policies.
We’ll help you monitor and address any potential issues that could affect your account's health, and we'll ensure that your products comply with Amazon's standards.
If Amazon tells you about a policy violation, respond quickly. Amazon often tells you what to do next. The actionable steps for each item are in your account health dashboard's "Next Steps" column.
Let's look at how you can submit successful Amazon policy violation appeal letters:
Step 1. Look closely at the details of the violation to understand why it happened.
Step 2. Prepare your appeal letter and all needed documents. This usually includes a Plan of Action (POA), invoices from your supplier, and other details.
Step 3. Send your appeal letter, Plan of Action, and documents within 48 hours.
Your Plan of Action should cover:
Step 4. Wait for an update or answer from Amazon, which can take 5 to 7 business days.
Step 5. Provide more information if Amazon asks for it.
Note: Your account health dashboard will show the policy violations until you can show Amazon that you've fixed the problems. You can submit successful appeal letters with a POA.
These violations remain visible for up to 180 days but will not affect you after you fix the issue.
If you encounter any difficulties, remember to contact Amazon Seller Support for assistance.
To boost your product's visibility on Amazon, optimize your titles, bullet points, and descriptions with keywords. Also, consider sponsored ads and Amazon’s A+ Content.
If Amazon suspends your seller account, first understand why by reviewing Amazon's email. Then, create a plan to fix the issue and appeal. If Amazon rejects your appeal, contact Seller Support.
You can sell your products on Amazon in different countries. First, you will need to consider shipping, language, and laws carefully. Look at Amazon’s Global Selling program and tools, such as the currency converter and translation services.
One crucial thing for international selling on Amazon is that the items may not be restricted in the US but can be restricted in CA, the EU, or the UK, so you need to look out for that.
Amazon doesn’t allow sellers to sell counterfeit products. Sellers with counterfeit items risk legal trouble and losing their accounts.
If Amazon wrongly marks your product as prohibited, immediately contact Seller Support. Give them all the details and proof that your product follows Amazon’s rules.
Check Amazon’s policy updates often, at least once a week. You can also sign up to get updates directly from Amazon.
You must respond quickly and correctly if you receive a warning about an Amazon listing policy violation. But it's even better to avoid these violations in the first place by being proactive.
Ensure you know Amazon's rules for creating and updating product details pages. It's really important to get this right because Amazon might not give you many chances to fix mistakes.
You can check how well you follow the rules on the Account Health page in Seller Central under the "Performance" menu. If Amazon sends you a warning, try to fix the problem fast.
If you need help, we are here to provide you with all the support you need. Our team has years of experience helping Amazon FBA sellers avoid and handle policy violations at all levels.
If you have questions about our services or about selling on Amazon, feel free to contact us today.