How To Report Unauthorized Seller On Amazon

How To Report Unauthorized Seller On Amazon – Full Guide

Sellers who list branded items without getting express authorization from the brand owners are tagged ‘unauthorized sellers’. Amazon urges right owners to report such sellers, this ensures the Amazon platform maintains a good level of sanity thereby allowing customers to continue having wonderful online shopping experience at Amazon.

Unauthorized sellers are spoilers of brand image, there is no quality control over what they are selling since they are not being authorized by the brand owners.

If you found out your product(s) are listed on Amazon without your permission and you are thinking of how to report unauthorized seller on Amazon and get the listing removed, this article will give you a complete guide, continue reading.

We have written several articles for Amazon users and employees, see them here.

Who Is An Unauthorized Seller On Amazon?

An unauthorized seller is someone who lists branded products on Amazon without getting approval from the manufacturer or rights owner.
Unfortunately, we have quite a good number of unauthorized sellers on Amazon, this is despite the untiring effort of the company to get rid of these sellers.

These unauthorized resellers keep inventing new tactics to help them escape being detected by Amazon’s system, this is why brand owners have the responsibility of reporting any seller illegally listing their products on Amazon without permission.
As a seller, it’s wrong to list a branded products or VeRO items on Amazon without getting an authorization from rights owners.

One thing a brand owner or manufacturer should note is it isn’t quite easy for Amazon to fish out these sellers. Moreso, Amazon tries not to get too involved with disputes involving brand owners and resellers. This is especially if it centers on violating brand guidelines or company pricing. This tends to make the whole idea of reporting an unauthorized seller unpalatable.

Nevertheless, it’s always worth the try after all, your brand’s image might just be at stake, something has to be done.

How To Report Unauthorized Seller On Amazon

Brand owners can easily report unauthorized sellers by visiting the Brand Registry page. If you’ve spot an unauthorized seller and you want to report the listing for possible sanction and takedown, follow the steps below for guide on how to report unauthorized seller on Amazon.

  • On your browser, visit the Brand Registry page.
  • Look for the option that says ‘I have a question about an issue with my brand’ and click on it.
  • Provide the name of the products or ASIN.
  • Supply relevant information.
  • Once you are done, click ‘submit’.

What Will Happen After I Report An Unauthorized Seller On Amazon?

Truth is, there is no guarantee that Amazon will remove the listing straight away, you have to give Amazon compelling reasons to take action against the seller. Amazon may not react as you would expect since this is merely an issue between a brand owner and a reseller, this doesn’t mean that Amazon is in support of sellers listing branded products without getting permissions.

So it doesn’t really end at reporting the seller to Amazon, you need to show a proof that the seller has violated other Amazon guidelines, the good news here is that there is scarcely an unauthorized seller who hasn’t violated Amazon guidelines. We have also written 7 tricks on how to stop unauthorized sellers on Amazon.

What Will Make Amazon To Remove An Unauthorized Seller’s Listing?

Amazon will generally step in and remove the unauthorized listing if the company is convinced that the listing has intellectual property or copyright infringements, and counterfeit products.

Amazon would only penalize a seller that violates intellectual property rights or you can prove the reseller is defrauding buyers on Amazon one way or the other.
As much as Amazon would want to ensure sellers only list authorized products, they don’t generally get too involved in brand or manufacture’s reseller policies or distribution agreements. If you are also able to show that the seller has violated Amazon’s seller policies, you might get the listing removed and the seller appropriately punished.

In general, Amazon will remove these listings if you establish that the seller has violated other Amazon guidelines, reporting the seller for just listing your product without official approval may not be enough, you’ve got to dig more.

What Violations Should I Show Amazon To Compel Them To Remove Unauthorized Seller

To remove an unauthorized seller on Amazon, you need to establish that the seller has violated any Amazon policy, below are the evidences you can document and present to Amazon.

Seller Having Multiple Accounts

Amazon seller policy prohibits operating and maintaining more than one seller central account. One of the general tricks deployed by unauthorized sellers is to create multiple seller accounts, this will ensure they continue listing products after a manufacturer smokes them out. Figuring out these multiple accounts can be enough to get the seller listing removed.

Seller Listings Having Misleading or Inaccurate Information

It is a violation of Amazon’s seller guidelines for a listing to have misleading or inaccurate information. If you can detect false information or product testimonials in the listings, you can present this as evidence against the seller.
Amazon has almost zero tolerance to misleading product information and will react swiftly if such is discovered. However, you must ensure that your report is true and provable.

Seller Takes Buyers To Sales Pages Outside Amazon

Some unauthorized sellers may try to take their buyers out of Amazon to external sales pages. Some of them include links that leads buyers to sales pages outside Amazon. This act violates Amazon seller’s guidelines and documenting these to Amazon will ensure the seller is kicked out.
Carefully go through this seller’s listing for possible link that takes buyers out of Amazon, if you come across any of such, that is enough to get the listing removed and the buyer sanctioned.

Seller’s Listing Having Fake Reviews

This is quite common with this set of sellers, they would try increasing their product reviews to help their listings possibly overtake authorized resellers. Often times, they create buyer’s accounts and use same to purchase their own products to enable them leave reviews. Truth is, if you give Amazon a hint on this, it’ll be easy for Amazon to detect this from their payment methods.
Carefully go through the listing reviews to notice possible similarities, if you are able to get a hold on them, include same in your evidence and send to Amazon.

How To Remove Unauthorized Sellers On Amazon

Removing unauthorized sellers on Amazon involves a bit of stress, you’ll have to present compelling evidences that the seller has either violated Amazon’s intellectual property rights, sell counterfeit products, or engage in illegal activities with the intention of defrauding buyers on Amazon.
If you are a brand owner or manufacturer, you may successfully get the reseller listings removed if your products are illegally listed under different names, this is a violation of multiple brand names.
Understand that what determines your success in this issue is how much compelling evidences you can present to Amazon, gather as much information as you can.

Amazon Report Infringement Form

The Amazon report infringement form was created to be used by intellectual property rights owners to report alleged infringements on intellectual property rights, this include trademark or copyright concerns. It is important to note that this form can’t be used by other users except owners of intellectual property and their agents.
To report an alleged infringement on your intellectual property, ensure you have tangible proofs to support your report. Once you have these evidences compiled together, you can report the seller by using the Amazon report infringement form.

Can I Retract A Complaint I Submit Before On Amazon?

Amazon recently introduced a feature that allows intellectual property owners to withdraw a complaint they previously submitted. Let’s say you previously report a complaint on a seller’s listing and later discovered you were wrong or you now authorized the use of your intellectual propeerty, you can retract the complaint your previously submitted easily with the retraction form. To know how to retract a complaint you previously submitted on Amazon, read the next paragraph.

How Long Do I Have To Retract A Complaint On Amazon?

Although every registered intellectual property owner is allowed to retract a previously submitted complaint, there is limited number of days you have to retract the complaint.
Amazon allows users to only retract complaints they submitted in the last 180 days. This means complaints submitted more than 180 days can’t be retracted.

How To Retract A Previously Submitted Complaint On Amazon

To retract or withdraw a complaint you previously submitted on Amazon, follow the steps below.

  • On your web browser, visit the Notice Retraction Form.
  • Scroll down and insert the complaint ID in the search box to locate the complaint you want to retract.
  • Under ‘reason for retraction’ select either of the two available options.
  • Tick the acknowledgement box and click ‘Submit’.
How To Report Unauthorized Seller On Amazon

How To Report A Seller On Amazon As A Buyer

Amazon mandates sellers to comply with regulations, policies and laws governing Amazon platform. The company encourages buyers to report any seller who violates any policy or regulation while listing products. If you are a buyer on Amazon and you feel the need to report a seller, follow the steps below to know how to report a seller on Amazon as a buyer.

  • Visit Amazon website or launch Amazon app.
  • Click on the three horizontal lines menu icon located at the top left-hand.
  • Scroll down to ‘Customer Service’ and click on it.
  • Another menu appears, click ‘Contact Us’.
  • Log in to your account if prompted.
  • Select either ‘call’ or chat’ to make your report.
  • Ensure to include the ASIN/ISBN of the product’s detail page, order ID, store and business name. Also include the type of violation, this will help Amazon to track the authenticity of the seller faster.

How To Report An Amazon Seller

Amazon users are urged to report abuse to continually help in sanitizing the platform. Thorough investigations are carried out on every report made on sellers.
You can report any seller that violates activities listed on Amazon’s Selling Polices and Code of Conduct. Follow the steps below to learn how to report an Amazon seller.

  • Visit Amazon website and head to the ‘Report Abuse‘ page.
  • Chose the type of violation.
  • Insert ASIN/ISBN or Order ID.
  • Under the ‘please describe your issue’ field, include ASIN/ISBN of the product’s detail page, product title, order ID, store and business name, marketplace where the violation took place, supporting documents like receipts, related messages, and order IDs. Lastly, provide an explanation of the violation, ensure it is based on Amazon policy and concise.
  • Once you are done, click ‘Submit’. Read our full article on How To Report A Seller On Amazon.

How To Get A Seller Kicked Off Amazon

Amazon won’t just kick a seller off their platform except it is established beyond any reasonable doubt that the seller violated Amazon’s sellers policy or guidelines.
To get a seller kicked off Amazon, you’ll need to report a possible abuse via the Report Abuse page or contact Amazon through the ‘Contact Us’ option in the user’s dashboard menu. You will be required to provide details of your transaction or violation type.

Amazon Report Abuse

Amazon has a feature which allows sellers to report possible abuse by sellers. The Amazon Report Abuse feature can only be used by sellers to report an abuse by another seller.
It is the duty of every seller to ensure that fraudulent activities are erased from Amazon, this will be beneficial to all legitimate sellers. If you’ve found a possible seller violation, you can use of the Report Abuse page to make a report.