Selling Used Books Requires Publisher Invoice?
Hi,
Is it true that in order to sell USED books on Amazon you have to provide an invoice from a supplier, showing you've ordered 10 copies of each title? I knew that was the case to sell new books, but not with used books.
Our book inventory of 10,000 listings was suspended today over one $10 book that was damaged in transit, repackaged by the post office and sent to the customer, and for some reason we received a COUNTERFEIT/INAUTHENTIC claim for this?!We have emailed the seller support address we were given numerous times with a copy of the exact invoice, clearly showing that we ordered 10 new copies of the book on 2/23/23 from a publisher. Yet, the invoice was rejected because it was older than 12 months. The books were purchased in February of 2023. THIS MAKES ABSOLUTELY NO SENSE TO ME?! We've purchased, listed and sold books for 20 years, so many of our legitimately new book listings were bought years ago. How can we speak to a live person who can review our letter of explanation, the invoice, see that we've been selling books here for 20 years, have perfect feedback and account health? An email or a phone number? Otherwise it appears this is in a loop, where whatever we send is rejected by AI.How is it POSSIBLE that because a $10 book was damaged and repackaged by the post office, our seller account is hit with a Counterfeit/Authenticiy complaint?? Why are we as long time sellers with Amazon receiving form letters of rejection repeatedly, when we follow directions, enclose proof that the book was new, ordered from a publisher? Yet the invoice is rejected multiple times?Again, We could not prevent USPS from damaging the package, nor how they responded (repackaged and sent to the customer). The customer received the book within a week, it was still in new condition; we've emailed with her and she is fine. She realizes the delivery delay was not due to Amazon nor us as the 3rd party seller.Yet here we find ourselves, with 10,000 deactivated new and used book listings.
Our only option may be to begin again requesting approval to sell used books.
I appreciate any insight!!
Seller_keSnEDesLFVwv
Seller_Lxv57WhcjmRJQ
Yes, Amazon seller support believes that legitimate books suddenly become counterfeit overnight. They also have imaginary friends ( the teams that they refer you to ), eligibilities which change without any outside action, and other elaborate fantasies.
This set of consensual hallucinations just comes with the territory.
FWIW, a lot of us have been encountering the perverse demand for invoices of 10+ copies, even for used books now. ( I should add this to the list of hallucinations: seller support also appears to believe that we booksellers can order 10+ used copies from publishers. )
The best we sellers can do, IMHO, is pray that the seller support people get professional help. Mental illness is a terrible waste of human potential.
Seller_ygcjnXMvC7GA2
We can not list a new listing of time magazine on Amazon. The old ones has upc Amazon does not accepting because it is old. Go figure
Seller_CRAHk6FHN1cLe
If the violation is for counterfeit or inauthentic it does not matter as far as Amazon is concerned whether it is new or used. In their eyes it could be either. It is still counterfeit (regardless of whether that is true or not)
Seller_HRcJa1gdGHeov
Seller_Lxv57WhcjmRJQ
This is a major problem with Amazon's current inflexible draconian sourcing requirements. Literally 90% of the products being sold on Amazon can not possibly have a valid wholesale vendor invoice dated within the last 180 days. There is no magical warehouse that can supply 10 year old Lego sets, 15 year old out of print Barbie dolls, used books, out of print CD's, ....; yet they are all currently for sale on Amazon.
The hypocrisy of their current sourcing guidelines is staggering; either take down everything that can not meet them (and take the sales hit) or come up with a abetter way to authenticate products.
Seller_pEMNFZqwcL3kD
Amazon is actively purging 3rd party sellers. A friend of mine just lost her account for the same reason. She was able to get a video conference with account health and she asked them how they determined it was counterfeit. They told her that they didn't, just that the book in question is often counterfeited. They told her she needed to supply invoices...for a used book. Like there is an authorized supplier of such. They are keeping thousands of dollars owed to her and disposing of her entire catalog, all without any investigation.
KJ_Amazon
Hello @Seller_Lxv57WhcjmRJQ. Thank you for sharing those details about your recent account and inventory restrictions. Can you please share a recent Case ID so I can ask my team to review the details and determine what additional steps may be available to you?
KJ_Amazon
Seller_HRcJa1gdGHeov
@KJ_Amazon
Wonder is the mods care to comment how ANYONE is supposed to get an invoice for a used book; there are literally no wholesale distributors for used books. Very big systemic issue with the way Amazon currently mandates product be sourced; used books are for sale all over Amazon, yet NONE have a legitimate wholesale invoice.
Seller_HRcJa1gdGHeov
@KJ_Amazon
KJ_Amazon
You really need to say more than this, this is a huge systemic problem right now on Amazon; there are literally millions of products (including used books) that can not possibly adhere to Amazon's current absurd sourcing guidelines of a wholesale vendor invoice dated within the last 180 days. There are no magical warehouses full of 10 year old Lego sets, out of print CD's, OOP video games, ....; these CAN NOT POSSIBLLY have a valid invoice in Amazon's eyes yet they are all for sale here. Literally 90% (actually much higher) of the products for sale on Amazon can not adhere to the 6 month invoice rule.
I again ask you to comment on the elephant in the room, how do you get a wholesale invoice dated within the last 180 days WEHN THERE IS NO WAY THEY CAN EXIST? Might as well ask for a unicorn while you are at it.
I remind you that millions of small business and their employees and families are on the line here! If Amazon is so small business friendly (as you say you are) than address the invoice issue!
Seller_yYmMTCwJZOpvV
Yup and go on YouTube and see amazon advertisement saying become a amazon seller and sell your used items.
Then find out if anything goes wrong you better have invoices on those items bc receipts are not accepted.
Its really poor advertisement to lie to people to draw people to sell on amazon for that reason then if any problems happen say they dont want that kind of seller.
We have invoices for hard goods and invoices for new books but in our store most books dont sell in a year hell our store is 40 years old and we still have some copies from the 80s lol amazon just doesn't care about media any more and were just one mistake of losing everything
Seller_YBfUTeoG971hG
Yes, I was just asked for a recent invoice for at least 10 copies of a book that went out of print in 1902 and for which I and two other sellers hold the only copies available in any marketplace. Yes, some will say, sell this on some other bookselling venue. But why should we be forced away from Amazon after having been here almost since the beginning? And why is Amazon forcing its customers onto other sites to find the books they want?
