Good News! A-z claims require prior 48h contact per Amazon policy, what's the best way to appeal?
Customers are always (100% of the time) required to contact you before filing an A-Z Claim. Either through Buyer-Seller messaging or a return request, all valid claims require a 48h window for you to correct their issue.
Per Amazon:
- Customers are "always" required to contact you
- You can request an A-to-z Guarantee refund if "the seller doesn't resolve your problem" 48h following your contact
With this policy in mind, what is an effective appeal-response when this policy is not followed? Simply informing Amazon you have not been contacted is sufficient to debase the claim, as we are entitled to 48h to solve the problem. This doesn't discriminate against which type of A-to-z claim, the language definitely states it is required always.
Has anyone had success appealing on this basis?
Good News! A-z claims require prior 48h contact per Amazon policy, what's the best way to appeal?
Customers are always (100% of the time) required to contact you before filing an A-Z Claim. Either through Buyer-Seller messaging or a return request, all valid claims require a 48h window for you to correct their issue.
Per Amazon:
- Customers are "always" required to contact you
- You can request an A-to-z Guarantee refund if "the seller doesn't resolve your problem" 48h following your contact
With this policy in mind, what is an effective appeal-response when this policy is not followed? Simply informing Amazon you have not been contacted is sufficient to debase the claim, as we are entitled to 48h to solve the problem. This doesn't discriminate against which type of A-to-z claim, the language definitely states it is required always.
Has anyone had success appealing on this basis?
5 replies
Seller_kNAboD6kRgVt7
Sadly, there are posts from sellers for almost a year now, that Amazon is NOT enforcing this requirement. Sellers are getting notices that refunds have been issued, or A-Z has been granted, all without the seller hearing about it until it's over.
Seller_LTv2zrpA8Qcn1
Unfortunately, this policy has been there for at least 15 years. As stated above, it is not enforced by Amazon; especially if the buyer calls in the 'complaint' to Amazons' customer service.
I'm not sure if CS is just clueless of the policy, or are just reluctant to 'force' an unhappy buyer to take yet another step before reaching a resolution.
I've often wondered if it depends on the complaint. For example I've had an A-Z resolved by Amazon funding it, didn't affect my ODR and importantly I was totally unaware of any of it until I noticed it a month later. (In this case, the buyer first claim it was damaged then later said it was not received).
Maybe if a buyer calls in and says an item wasn't received and is not interested in a replacement, then AZ chooses to immediately let the claim through, since contacting the seller would not make much difference; except the seller would refund as well. (This sucks for us sellers).
This is my intuition of how Amazon handles A-Z claims.
If you are going to appeal, try include the link to the policy, also quote the specific clause about being contacted, and state you were not contacted as per Amazons' policy.
Good luck! Let us know how it turns out.
Seller_h9QOaVOLGItxO
im not sure about that as many a-z claims were opened automatically and closed instantly favoring the buyer.
Daryl_Amazon
Hi @Seller_zKzU6ewFNhNe0,
Daryl here from our Forums team providing a bit of clarity and acknowledging this issue on behalf of all the sellers that created engagement through this post.
Great piece of feedback on our policies, reading through a see here a lot of collaborators going through the same experience and thus, giving @Seller_kNAboD6kRgVt7, @Seller_LTv2zrpA8Qcn1, @Seller_VWH3L8aWpXh3dand @Seller_h9QOaVOLGItxOa sentiment of leaving you as our sellers on the last step of visibility when it comes to our A-Z claim process.
I will provide clarity on the experience I have endured helping and assisting fellow selling partners with their business, the process involves the following:
(1) For A-to-z Guarantee claims covering timely delivery and condition of the items, buyers must first contact the seller and give an opportunity to resolve the issue. Depending on buyer issue type, Amazon directs the Buyer to use Buyer-Seller Messages or Return Request to alert the Seller to a buyer issue.
(2) The seller has 48 hours to respond to any issues raised by the buyer in regard to A to Z claims, however, buyer messages should be answered within 24 hours. Resolving issues directly with the buyer protects the account health or Order defect rate (ODR).
(3) If the Seller doesn’t agree on a resolution, buyers are then allowed to file a claim under the A-to-Z Guarantee. If the claim is granted in favor of the buyer after Amazon investigates the claim, then the claim amount will be debited from the Seller account and reflected in the account health or ODR.
(4) If Amazon grants a claim in favor of a buyer, the seller has 30 days to appeal and request a further investigation. Based on the results of the appeals' investigation, Amazon will make a final decision on whether to reverse the initial decision and reimburse the seller for the claim incurred.
(5) There might be certain situations in which a buyer is granted an A to Z claim but for some reason, if the buyer after being refunded the money wants to be charged again (for example, an item that arrived significantly late after the order being refunded – the buyer would want to be charged again since the item actually arrived). This is called a retrocharge, and buyers can request a retrocharge by contacting regular customer service or going to the “problem with an order” page. Additionally, buyers can always withdraw if they no longer wish to pursue the A to Z claim.
Here are our resources related to this topic:
Amazon’s A-to-Z Guarantee Claims
Respond to an A-to-z Guarantee Claim
What if a buyer says they didn't receive their order?
Investigate and appeal an A-to-Z Guarantee Claim
I am sorry to hear that in the past other members of our Seller Support Team didn't include vital evidence such as the "contacting the seller and waiting 48 hours for a response" policy, we do take these points into consideration when creating an appeal case and reuniting relevant evidence to ensure the best possible outcome to both parties.
Other points besides the already mentioned ones above that we ask ourselves when conducting the investigation are:
a- Standard path Exhausted or not: Did the Seller reach out to the regular channels?
b- Order ID: Did the Seller provide Order ID pertaining to the issue?
c- Order received date (Purchase date): When was Order purchased by Buyer?
d- Order shipped date (Ship by): When did Seller ship the order?
e- Order delivery date (Deliver by:) When did Seller deliver the order?
f- Tracking information: Did Seller provide a valid Tracking ID?
g- Signature POD: Does the tracking have a signature confirmation? Any Proof Of Delivery (POD) provided?
I offer my assistance to any selling partner having difficulties with A-Z claims, our main purpose here within our forums is to gather evidence and make your experience better, more structured and professional since our target audience our you, our selling partners.
Leaving my comment here in case these scenarios happens in the future and will be sure to pass along this visibility on our policies, just tag my name and I will be sure to look into it.
Happy Holidays! I wish you all great success on your future sales and businesses!
Daryl
