Hello all,

I am requesting advice on an appeal letter. I’m appealing the removal of my selling privileges. The removal happened as a result of two automated safety complaints involving expired items. Both were picked up via buyer seller messaging.

I am 100% sure about the source of the complaints mentioned (as they occurred just recently).
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Other than seeking advice on my appeal letter, I’m also curious if anyone has experienceh the type of link that I was provided on the line that starts with, "We’re here to help ". When I clicked on the link, I was presented with a captcha verification. I hadn’t seen anything like this when dealing with Seller Support before and I wasn’t sure where it would take me. Therefore I did not proceed further.

Any information, opinions, edits… will be much appreciated.

Thank you

Performance Notification I received :

Hello,

We’ve received complaints about the safety of your products. As a result of these safety complaints, your account has been temporarily deactivated. At this time, funds will not be transferred to you but will stay in your account while we work with you to address this issue.

Please see the list of complaints below.

ASIN:B008QEYQ70
Title:Burt’s Bees Lip Balm Four Pack Assorted (Beeswax, Pomegranate, Acai Berry, Mango Butter)
Complaint: Expired

ASIN:B06Y2JP8TG
Title: Similac Alimentum Hypoallergenic Baby Formula, Value Size Powder, 19.8 Ounce ( Pack of 4 )
Complaint: Expired

What’s next?
To reactivate your selling account, please submit a plan of action that describes:
– The root causes of the safety complaints
– The actions you have taken to resolve each of those complaints
– The steps you have taken to prevent safety complaints going forward

Here are a few things to consider as you create your plan:
– Sourcing: Source your products from trusted suppliers.
– Listing: Confirm your listings accurately describe the product.
– Product testing: Establish product safety testing to ensure products are safe to use.
– Labeling: Make sure the product has appropriate warning labels for usage.
– Condition: Ensure the product is shipped in the described condition.
– Shipping: Implement a quality assurance process so products are stored, packed, and shipped appropriately.
– Expiration date: Confirm that your products are not shipped close to or past the expiration date.

When you are ready to send us your plan, please submit your plan of action to safety-policy@amazon.com. If your plan adequately addresses the safety complaints, your selling privileges may be restored.

We’re here to help. Use this link (https://sellercentral.amazon.com/cu/contact-us/cmn/SAFETY) to speak with an Account Health Specialist if you need assistance drafting your plan of action or have questions about the safety complaints.

You can learn more about our policies in Seller Central Help:
– Condition Guidelines (https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/200339950)
– Product Detail Page Rules (https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/200390640)
– Prohibited Seller Activities and Actions (https://sellercentral.amazon.com/gp/help/200386250)

You can see the health of your account in the Performance section of Seller Central: https://sellercentral.amazon.com/performance/dashboard

We look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Product Safety Team

This is my Appeal Letter:

Dear Product Safety Team,

Thank you for allowing us the chance to appeal the removal of our selling privileges.

After a thorough review of our seller account, we discovered an underlying issue that had severely impacted several areas of our business. Just like any Amazon seller, we always strive to achieve 100% positive feedback along with a 0.0% Order Defect rate. However, it wasn’t long after we achieved this goal that we became complacent and the buyer’s experience was no longer our #1 priority. This will never happen again.

Having our listings deactivated this past week has allowed us the time to reexamine our business practices and implement the changes we felt necessary.

ASIN: B06Y2JP8TG
Complaint: Expired

What happened:

• Our customer contacted Amazon, concerned that his order may have passed it’s expiration date.

What we did to fix it:

• Upon communicating with the buyer we determined that he had simply mistaken the Copyright date for an actual Date of Expiration.

• We explained this to the buyer, as well as how to return the item if he so desired. The buyer thanked us for the explanation and chose not to return the item.

What we have done to prevent it:

• Included with every cosmetics order is a printed insert that explains how the buyer can verify their item’s “Best by” date using the lot number printed on the side. (See example attached)

ASIN: B008QEYQ70
Complaint: Expired

What happened:

• Our customer contacted Amazon, concerned that his order may have passed it’s expiration date and was requesting a refund.

What we did to fix it:

• We immediately contacted the buyer and apologized for the inconvenience. We let him know that he could return the item for a full refund.

• We followed up with a few questions for the buyer regarding his experience. His input helped us in deciding what steps needed to be taken in order to avoid such problems in the future.

What we have done to prevent it:

• We removed any inventory with less than 180 days to expiration.

• We moved all expirable inventory to a separate area in the warehouse. This inventory was then shelved according to expiration date.

• Similar to Amazon’s FBA policy, we have labeled all items with expiration data in MM/DD/YYYY format using a bold red 36 point font. This makes it easy for staff to know an items expiration date quickly, aiding in major decisions such as which items need to be shipped first…

• Aligning our policy with Amazon’s provides the buyer a much more consistent experience, regardless of fulfillment method.

Thank you again for allowing us the chance to evaluate our business practices. We hope you feel this plan is acceptable and will allow us the opportunity to continue selling and growing as a business on Amazon.

We look forward to hearing any suggestions you may have.

Sincerely,
XXXX XXXXX
XXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXX@XXXXX.com
XXX-XXX-XXXX