Amazon Suspending Sellers for Opening Multiple Accounts

An Amazon policy change has resulted in a spike in the number of Sellers being suspended for having multiple accounts.

What has changed with Amazon multiple account policy?

Before, if a Seller wanted more than one Amazon account they had to request approval and follow a series of rules laid out by the site, the main one being that they could not sell the same inventory.

The policy change means that Amazon has said no advance permission is now necessary, as long as the Seller opening another account has a valid business reason for doing so. But it came with a caveat - Amazon stated that if an account is suspended for any reason, it was reserving the right to suspend all accounts that the Seller runs.

And that is where the problems have started.

What are the consequences of Amazon multiple account policy change?

Thompson and Holt’s managing partner Craig Gedey explained: “Since the policy change has been brought in we’ve seen a spate of accounts being suspended for being related or linked to others. In some case the linkages have been genuine, but we are already seeing cases of accounts being caught up in false positives - there haven't been links there.

“There have also been reports of out-and-out Amazon errors where they have suspended Sellers for having accounts in another marketplace which have turned out to be technology mistakes.

“If Amazon has made a mistake, it is then down to the Seller to prove to them that there is no relation between the accounts. And we’ve found that if accounts have been suspended due to this, it appears that the older account is easier to reinstate than the more recent one.

“It’s also worth noting the following exchange between Amazon’s Seller Partner Support and a Seller.”

Amazon Seller Partner Support exchange Useful Tips

Amazon seller support questions and answers on multiple accounts

1. Can you please grant us permission to open a second Amazon account for the new corporation?

Selling Partners who have a legitimate business need can operate multiple Selling Accounts and do not require Amazon’s approval. This information can be found on the Seller Code of Conduct pages in each marketplace:

You may only maintain one Seller Central account for each region in which you sell unless you have a legitimate business need to open a second account and all of your accounts are in good standing. If any of your accounts are not in good standing, we may deactivate all of your selling accounts until all accounts are in good standing.

Examples of a legitimate business justification include:

You own multiple brands and maintain separate businesses for each

You manufacture products for two distinct and separate companies

You are recruited for an Amazon program that requires separate accounts

2. Once the second account is opened, can FBA inventory in the current account be transferred to the new account? Or does the inventory have to be withdrawn, and then reshipped under the new account?

Please note that you will have to create removal order for the units in your 1st account, and later create a new shipment from your 2nd account. But please note that we will not be transferring the inventory

3. If a second account is opened, there will be a transitional period where both accounts will be selling the same product, but only until our original store runs our of stock in FBA warehouses. Is this acceptable?

No, only the account that has inventory can sell account.

What are the best ways to avoid suspension for having multiple accounts?

Thompson and Holt’s Gedey adds: “While it’s clear that mistakes are being made at present because of this policy change, there are measures you can put in place to help avoid this situation as much as possible.

“Make sure there are no links between your Amazon account and another selling account, including account owners, tax ID numbers, bank accounts, credit cards, IP addresses and warehouse addresses.

“If you do have more than one account, make sure you have a valid reason for it. Some Sellers develop multiple brands on separate accounts, others might be using one for private-label products and others for wholesale ones. You should never sell the same inventory on different accounts.

Also read about - How does Amazon know that I have multiple seller accounts?

“If you do find yourself suspended then get in touch with Thompson and Holt for a live chat and be ready to offer detailed information about the accounts in question to help you get reinstated as quickly as possible.”

If you have found yourself suspended for having multiple accounts on Amazon, contact Thompson and Holt for a free LiveChat to get your Amazon Seller business back online as quickly as possible.

Thompson and Holt are also offering a free months trial of their Monitor and Protect service to help sellers prevent a suspension of ASINs or an their account during the COVID pandemic, more information on how to protect your Amazon seller account from a suspension can be found here.