It’s no fun to get kicked out of the world’s largest e-retailer platform. It can mean the end of a thriving business for sellers and create a huge frustration for buyers.
If you ever get banned from Amazon, here’s how to get back on.
Why Do People Get Banned From Amazon?
The Reason Buyers Get Banned
Shoppers typically get banned from Amazon for violating the company’s policy, especially its return policy.
While Amazon offers a free return policy, it may not be in your best interests to take advantage of it at will.
Here’s what that means.
You may get banned from Amazon as a customer or buyer if you return items too many times.
But exactly how many returns are too many?
Unfortunately, Amazon doesn’t say! The company’s return policy doesn’t specify a limit. That means you can be kicked out of the marketplace at Amazon’s sole discretion.
Not to worry though, Amazon doesn’t take these things for granted and bans are not very common.
The Reason Sellers Get Banned
The company takes its over 200 million Amazon Prime subscribers very seriously and would want them to have the best customer experience while shopping on its platform.
That’s why sellers need to be careful not to have too many red flags on their accounts. Sellers with a high order defect rate (ODR) may get banned from Amazon. That’s because a poor ODR indicates that the seller can’t provide a good customer experience – something Amazon wants to avoid at all costs.
Suspension Stages for Sellers Account
Thankfully, Amazon sellers don’t get banned outrightly. Here are the stages a seller’s account goes through before it finally gets banned (if the seller doesn’t take appropriate action).
- Suspension: You will get a notification from Amazon saying their selling privileges on the platform have been removed. You can still plead your case at this suspension stage. All you need to do is send an appeal letter to Amazon.
- Denied: Amazon can deny your appeal, and that’s when you get this notification. Unfortunately, you can’t send another appeal.
- Banned: If your appeal is denied, you can expect to get permanently banned from the largest e-retailer platform.
Can You Open a New Account If You Are Banned as a Seller?
Perhaps a better question would be: should you open a new account if you are banned on Amazon?
While you can open a new Amazon seller account if your old one is banned, it is not a good idea.
First, you would be in direct violation of the company’s legal policies, and that’s not something you want to get caught and sued for.
Any Amazon suspension expert would never recommend opening a new seller account after a ban. It is too risky and simply not worth the hassle.
Why is it risky?
You will have to jump through a lot of hoops. For example:
- You need to create a new legal identity (the new account must have a new name)
- You can’t use your old credit card and old bank account
- You need to set up a new email address, new IP for your computer or use a VPN
You are basically creating a new company, and there is still a chance of getting caught. Take our advice: it is not worth it!
Is It Possible to Get Unbanned
For buyers, maybe!
For sellers, probably not!
Buyers who get banned may be reinstated, and we’ll explain how to get back on Amazon as a buyer in the last section of this post.
But sellers must avoid being banned at all costs.
That’s because getting your seller account reinstated after you’re kicked out of the Amazon marketplace is simply not possible.
Your best bet would be to take appropriate action when you receive a suspension notification from the company. We’ll get into the details in the next section, but whatever you do, make sure your seller account does not go beyond the suspension stage.
How to Retrieve Your Seller Account After Suspension
You should know the difference between “account suspension” and “banned account” by now.
There is a chance for you to retrieve your seller account after it has been suspended. But if the account is banned, you can’t sell on Amazon ever again!
If your seller account is suspended, you need to write a formal appeal. If you don’t do this, you won’t be able to sell your products on the platform. Of course, this is because Amazon has removed your selling privileges and your business will hit rock bottom unless you write an appeal.
Not sure what to write or not confident about writing a formal appeal? No problem. You can ask an Amazon suspension expert to help you out.
But if you want to write the appeal yourself, here’s how to go about it.
1. Stay Calm
Keep in mind that you only have one shot at getting this right, so you need to stay calm and don’t let your emotions get the best of you.
If your Amazon seller account is suspended – your selling privileges removed – there is still hope of getting reinstated.
But it is not as simple as clicking a button to reactivate your account or sending a request to customer service. In fact, getting reinstated once your seller account is suspended is not about sending a request. Instead, it is sending an appeal.
Whatever you do, don’t blame anyone else – take full responsibility and acknowledge the issue at hand.
2. Resolve Pending Support Tickets
Go through your seller account and try to improve things by resolving any pending support tickets.
Amazon will review your account once you send an appeal. Don’t give the company more reasons to question your credibility or worth as a seller.
3. Find out the Reason for the Suspension
Next, try to uncover why your selling privileges were removed. While it all comes down to ODR, you want to dig in to know the exact component that’s causing the problem and take appropriate steps to fix things.
The following are what could cause a restriction on your seller account:
- Order defect rate above 1%
- Late shipment rate above 4%
- Cancellation rate above 2.5%
- Violating Amazon policies (such as not sticking to the Seller Code of Conduct or selling proscribed products).
4. Develop a Brilliant Plan of Action (POA)
Next, you want to compose a POA. To make it effective, make sure it addresses the following:
- The root cause of the problem
- The steps you take or plan to take to address the problem
- Your plans to prevent a reoccurrence
Send Your Appeal Letter to Amazon
Send your appeal letter to Amazon Seller Performance for review. Here’s how:
- Click the “appeal decision” button in the account suspension notification you received from Amazon. The button is at the end of the letter.
- Fill the form correctly and click “Submit appeal”
Wait for Amazon to Get In Touch
Lastly, you need to wait for a reply. And this is where many sellers mess things up.
You won’t likely receive a response immediately. It can take more than 48 hours for Amazon to revert its decision and reinstate your seller account.
If you are not patient and send multiple appeals or forceful emails, you risk making things worse and getting banned.
Banned From Amazon – How to Get Back On As a Buyer
While it is difficult to get back on Amazon after being banned as a buyer, it is not entirely impossible.
Of course, you can attempt to open a new buyer’s account if you change your email address and use a VPN to prevent Amazon’s algorithm from detecting your computer IP.
However, it will be difficult to change your bank or card details. There’s also your shipping address to think about.
Using VPN and changing your email address is simply not worth it. That’s because Amazon will eventually detect it and shut down the new account.
If you are banned from Amazon as a buyer, your best bet to get back is to write to the company to reinstate your account. You can contact the company repeatedly and, who knows, they may reopen your account.
However, the surest thing you can do as a buyer is not to allow your account to get banned in the first place.
In other words, if you ever receive a warning email from Amazon about account activities that can lead to a possible ban, you should pay attention!
Here’s the thing, though. Even if you get banned from Amazon as a customer, it might not be forever.
Of course, when you contact Amazon after your ban, the company will likely tell you that its decision is final. But don’t be disheartened. Some customers have been reinstated after a ban.
If you are lucky and get reinstated, be sure to respect the company’s return policy and don’t return multiple items at once or too frequently.
Conclusion
Both buyers and sellers can get banned from Amazon. With consistent appeal (and a little bit of luck) you may get back in if you are a buyer.
As a seller, it is best to not let your account go beyond the suspension phase. Quickly taking the appropriate actions as outlined in this guide can make Amazon lift the suspension so you’ll be back in business again.
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