Guest post from Amazon Sellers’ Lawyers
Amazon sellers do not have to rely on Amazon to reinstate their suspended account. Amazon sellers in the US have the right to take Amazon to Arbitration to try and get an order compelling Amazon to reinstate their suspended Amazon account.
Pursuant to the agreement between Amazon sellers and Amazon:
“each party consents that any dispute or claim relating in any way to this Participation Agreement or your use of the Services or Transaction Processing Services will be resolved by binding arbitration as described in this paragraph, rather than in court …”
Suspended Sellers Should Submit Plans of Action and Appeals First
Amazon should only consider arbitration after first trying Amazon’s internal system of getting suspended accounts reinstated. That means you should first provide a Plan of Action, respond to Amazon’s requests for more information, appeal to policy teams and use the Jeff Bezos Escalation mechanism to obtain reinstatement.
Amazon’s internal methods for sellers to obtain reinstatement are faster and cheaper than arbitration. Suspended sellers should try these methods before filing for arbitration. Hopefully, arbitration is never needed.
Filing for Arbitration if Your Plans of Action Fail
If you’re unable to obtain reinstatement of your suspended Amazon account through Plans of Action, etc., then you can file for arbitration. At arbitration, the arbitrator will have the power to order Amazon to reinstate your suspended Amazon account.
Filing for arbitration is not difficult. When a suspended Amazon seller needs to file for arbitration, she drafts a Demand for Arbitration. That document is filed with the American Arbitration Association and also “served” on Amazon. “Served” is legal ease for providing a copy of the Demand for Arbitration to Amazon. The copy to Amazon has to be provided to a specific address that Amazon has identified for the service of this document.
When a suspended Amazon seller files for arbitration, there are costs. The minimum a suspended Amazon seller can expect to pay in fees will likely be approximately $2,500.00. The minimum fee for the least expensive arbitration with the American Arbitration Association is $1,550.00. In addition to the $1,550.00,a suspended Amazon seller can anticipate an additional $500.00 to $1,000.00 in fees to the individual arbitrator. The fees are not set in stone because arbitrators may seek additional fees for time to get up to speed on Amazon or other issues.
The process for a suspended Amazon seller to complete her arbitration has several steps including:
- Selection of an arbitrator
- Preliminary conference with arbitrator and Amazon’s attorneys;
- Minimal discovery where both sides exchange information, and;
- The arbitration hearing.
Arbitration as Last Attempt to Obtain Reinstatement of a Suspended Amazon Account
When a suspended Amazon seller is suspended and cannot obtain her account back, the suspended Amazon seller does not have to accept Amazon’s decision. For a fairly minimal cost, Amazon sellers can seek an order from an arbitrator and take the decision of reinstatement out of Amazon’s hands.
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