A lot of us (myself included) have come to depend on the ease and convenience of shopping on Amazon. I’ve just become spoiled by knowing that I can have practically anything shipped to my door within a couple of days, or sometimes even the same day (with Prime Now, which even delivers groceries). Little by little, the company has become important in my life.
That’s why I would be quite distressed if it suddenly stopped doing business with me, with no way to change its mind. Yes, that’s what can happen if you get on its bad side, according to plenty of anecdotal evidence. It can also ban others that live at your address, so you can’t get around the exile. What’s the fastest way to get banned from Amazon for life? Too many returns.
Amazon Can Ban You for Life
Let’s keep something front and center: Amazon is a private company, and as such can refuse to do business with you for practically any reason, and owes you no apology, explanation, or chance to appeal. It could pretty much ban you tomorrow if it decides it no longer wants you as a customer. And the evidence is that it indeed exercises this power, and usually does not reconsider its decision, ever.
How To Get Banned From Amazon
Return Too Many Items
As the articles and blog posts referenced below show, the weight of the internet evidence is that you will get banned for life -with either one warning or no warning- for returning too much stuff. Generally, a return rate of 10% or more of your orders puts you into dangerous territory. This means that for every 100 orders, returning 10 or more can place you at a high risk of getting kicked off the platform. Also, as I said above, this can get your spouse or kids banned as well, if they live at your same address.
What’s more, if you’re lucky enough to get a warning, it may take the form of an innocuous-seeming message like this one:
“We’re writing to apologize for the number of issues you’ve experienced with your shipments. Your correspondences with us indicate you’ve required refunds on a majority of orders for a number of reasons” (source: Techwalls).
So watch out for any return-related correspondence from Amazon, even if it doesn’t say you may get banned.
Engage in Unusual Behavior
Also, as the Wall Street Journal reported, it’s not only about the number of returns you have, but can also be about other questionable behavior:
According to former Amazon managers, the company terminates accounts for behaviors including requesting too many refunds, sending back the wrong items or violating other rules, such as receiving compensation for writing reviews. Cases are typically evaluated by a human after algorithms surface the account as suspicious, they said.
It tends to happen when “you’re creating a lot of headaches for Amazon,” said Chris McCabe, a former policy enforcement investigator at Amazon and now a consultant at EcommerceChris LLC.
Shoppers also are more likely to get flagged if they mark an atypical reason for their returns. For example, an account could get flagged if a customer says an item didn’t arrive as described when the other 99% of customers who made the return did so simply because they didn’t want it.
“If your behavior is consistently outside the norm, you’re not really the kind of customer they want,” said James Thomson, a former senior manager at Amazon and now partner at brand consultancy Buy Box Experts.
How To Avoid Getting Banned from Amazon
Keep Returns Low
Although Amazon can ban you for any reason, if you want to avoid it, keep your return rate low. There seems to be no “hard” rule on how low. Still, to be on the safe side, I would keep it to under 5% of items bought and money spent. You should aggregate this for your entire household’s shopping, even if different people have different accounts.
So say your household spends $1,000 on a hundred items. Then, don’t return more than 2-3 items, or more than $50 of stuff. (Other sites say the threshold is more like 10%, but I’m going with 5% because I’m paranoid like that).
In practical terms, unless you have a spreadsheet or something, it’s hard to keep track of your household return percentage. So, I’d say that, as a rule of thumb, return things very rarely, maybe one or two times per year.
Do not treat it like Zappos, in the sense of ordering a pair of shoes in four sizes and then returning the three that don’t fit. Do that with merchants that encourage it (like Zappos), but not with Amazon.
Avoid Unusual Behavior
Aside from keeping returns low, avoid any unusual or sketchy behavior, especially on a consistent basis. For example:
- Make sure an item is truly defective before returning it for being defective.
- Don’t send back the wrong items.
- Don’t write “incentivized” reviews.
Summing It Up
The anecdotal evidence is that Amazon really will ban you, for life and with or without warning. To avoid it, keep your household’s returns to an absolute minimum. Also, try to stay on Amazon’s good side in general.
Update: How To Download Your Order History
If you would like to do the math on your purchases, one way is to have Amazon generate a spreadsheet. It will contain your order history (including money spent). Here’s how:
1. Go the website and click on “Your account”.
2. Scroll down to the box that says “ordering and shopping preferences”, and click on “Download order reports”.
3. On the next screen, choose any parameters you’d like, and click on “Request Report”.
4. Download and open the report that Amazon will generate.
Credits and further reading:
- The Guardian (UK)
- Techwalls (blog)
- Quora
- MarketWatch
- GizmoSnack
- MacRumors
- The Wall Street Journal
GIF from Giphy
Last updated on May 8, 2019
Interesting! I’ve never returned anything on Amazon because I figured it would be very difficult and quite a hassle. Sometimes I order on Amazon.com and pick up across the border (am in Canada) which makes it even more of a hassle. I would assume Amazon has very stringent rules since it’s creator is Jeff Bezos who is notorious for not taking crap.
Absolutely, the thing is that they won’t really give you reliable guidelines. Thanks for reading!
I didn’t know this was even possible! Returning things to Amazon is always such a pain, so I try to avoid it. I never buy clothes or shoes from there, so I don’t usually have to return things. Thanks for sharing this!
Thank you for reading! Yes, I would think that the things that get returned the most would probably be clothes and shoes. I think Zappos would be a better store for people who prefer to order different sizes so they can try them on and return the ones that don’t fit.
Amazon is an ecommerce juggernaut – who else would even consider breaking up with a customer!?
Yes, I think they’re either the biggest or second biggest retailer in the world (Walmart would be the other). Interestingly, when researching this post, I remember reading that nowadays many big stores track your behavior, either through loyalty program membership or other means. If you have lots of returns, you can get red-flagged.
Really, what troubles me is the lack of clear guidelines. Unless the merchant sets clear norms, we’re left to rely on anecdotal evidence and guesstimates.
Thanks for reading!
Sounds like a good move on Amazon’s side. They really shouldn’t cater to the 1% that cause problems; that only raises the price for all the rest of us. I suspect they are banning people that are absolutely going crazy with returns. Perhaps buying clothes, wearing them, then returning them… that sort of stuff. Having said that it’s good to be aware of this just in case you find yourself in an odd need-to-return-stuff situation
Sure, I agree that stores should not do business with abusive customers. That said, I think it’s alarming that a company (especially someone as big as Amazon, which is so ensconced in people’s lives) would not set out clear guidelines, especially when they’ve reportedly cancelled all of a household’s accounts without recourse.
Thanks for reading!
I’ve bought clothing from Amazon before that says free returns. In that case I think of it like Zappos – I bought a lot of stuff (>$1,000) and returned most of it with no issue. So there are some exceptions on that site.
Yes, Amazon will take practically anything back, with very few questions asked. What worries me is the amount of reports on the internet of people getting banned for life with little or no warning for taking advantage of the free return policy. I can’t say that a particular person will or will not be banned; what I do know is that, putting the evidence together, it seems that a return rate of around 10% can put you in danger of receiving a ban or a warning. (In one of the most-circulated stories (on Techwalls), the writer got banned with a return rate of about 17% of purchased items and over 10% of money spent, though in his case Amazon reconsidered).
My worry is that, without clear guidelines, were are left to “guesstimation”.
Thank you for reading!
Or, alternatively, you could scam Amazon out of about a million bucks before you get caught and then spend some years in prison.
http://fortune.com/2017/10/02/amazon-scam-couple-million/
Crazy! It looks like they got away with it for a good while because they used “hundreds of fake online identities”. Thank you for reading!
Amazon (AMZN) has been a public company since 1997…
Yes, it’s publicly-traded. I meant that it’s part of the private sector.
They want to get rid of Bad customers. And I’m OK with that.
However, I return any item I have a problem with. Amazon is a paid service: I pay them a $49 fee and easy returns is part of the service.
Also, there is a difference between having a problem with an order or just saying no longer wanted / needed.
You have to state the issue.
Interesting reading and topic. Thx.
Yes, that’s my concern. In my research, the reports on people getting banned don’t seem to show a clear correlation between the bans and the reasons for the returns. Maybe Amazon has internal guidelines to that effect – i.e. don’t count defective product returns when considering whether to ban someone.
But that’s the issue: we don’t know. For instance, in the Guardian article, the guy who got banned “insist[ed] there was a genuine reason for all his returns over the past two years – the goods were either faulty, damaged or not as described”.
Given the uncertainty (due to the absence of clear rules), the consensus seems to be that approaching a 10% return rate is risky, regardless of the reasons.
Thank you for reading!
I never heard of Amazon doing this, but I understand the process. I once worked for a large auto parts distribution company that only sold to retailers. If a retailer had a return rate of higher than 10% they would lose their discounts and could be suspended.
Thanks for your insight, Dave! 10% seems to be something of a threshold.
Better yet, why don’t we just ban Amazon?
Haha they just make my life too easy!
Do you know if there is a time limit? Like 10% of all purchases ever? Over the past year?
Hi Ms. Steward,
Unfortunately there doesn’t seem to be any specific guidance; I would keep it to under 10% at any given time. For example, if you open your account and buy 10 items at $100 total, keep returns under 9 items and $9. If you buy 20 items at $200, keep returns under 19 items and $19. That way, the more you buy, the more you can return.
If you want to know you Amazon order history (including money spent), you can download a spreadsheet by going to the website and clicking on “Your Account”. Then, in the “Ordering and shopping preferences” box, click on “Download order reports”. On the next screen, you can automatically generate spreadsheets with detailed order information.
Hope this helps!
Bueno! Anina, leyendo hoy despues de Maria, los mas viejitos no se pueden leer, solo la primera página.
Gracias! Espero que todo ande bien con ustedes 🙂
Amazon should just decline to accept the returns that are in condition unsuitable for resale. What is so hard about that? Make it crystal clear when people return that they will NOT get a refund if the item cannot be resold upon receipt. If the customer lists it as defective to get free shipping and it’s not defective, then again – they will have to charge the customer shipping. Furthermore, they should set a visible limit on the number of returns if they are going to do this. They claim people are violating a policy that isn’t even written anywhere.
There are still items that get damaged in transit or lost – but then the responsibility falls to whoever packaged it or UPS / USPS.
Finally, there are many defective items on Amazon and they need to weed out sellers who have high return rates & bad reviews…not blame customers for it.
Hi Adrienne,
These sound like good ideas. I think that the current policy is too harsh towards customers, and too opaque. Since a ban from Amazon can seriously disrupt someone’s life, I think the process should be much clearer.
Returns are not the only reason – but I can’t say what the other reasons might be – because they won’t tell me!
I was an Amazon Prime member, NEVER returned anything, did not sell on Amazon, and bought frequent audio books which I maintained online because my work entailed almost constant travel. One day I received an email saying I was no longer welcome to do business with Amazon, and that there was no recourse. They had determined I was not worthy of doing business with them.
My brother-in-law has since become an executive with Amazon, and volunteered to find out what was going on. He quickly came back saying there was nothing he could do, and that inquiries seemed to stir something up, so he would not be able to pursue the matter any further.
Bottom line… my Amazon Prime had just renewed so I lost that membership fee, I had earned rewards for some of the things I had purchased – they were lost, and all my audiobooks and kindle files were frozen.
My Amazon Fire became useless.
Amazon is not a good company, and at this point I would not trust them even if I were to be invited back.
Hi Michael,
Sorry to hear about that. I don’t know of any other common reason for bans except the excessive returns.
I appreciate your concern, but that is not the point. Amazon seems to use some sort of algorithm to determine how it handles a situation – and while I have not followed the issue, at the time I found many with similar situations as mine – no obvious trigger, but NO appeal, and NO redress. I honestly suspect they have ventured into AI and no one is monitoring the situation. I just know I will NOT do business with them!
I’ve experienced this problem as well. Cancelled and banned for seemingly no reason in February 2017. I’ve called customer service 30+ times, with the representative always telling me my account is “in review” (this is after I’ve received multiple emails stating that it has been CANCELED) and that they will forward my concern to “the Account Specialist”. When asking who the account specialist is or how to contact them. the representative has no answers. When asking why my account has been canceled, the representative has no answers. I was a student at the time and often rented textbooks. I was unable to return a book by its due date, because i was not able to log into my canceled amazon account and print return label. Customer Service was called well ahead of time to warn of this problem and ask for a solution. I was still charged 2 late fees and eventually the cost of the book because nobody could tell me how to return it (college textbooks aren’t cheap). Months later, I was charged for annual prime membership renewal…even though I do not have an account. Amazon said they would reverse it, but that has yet to happen and I am sure that it wont. My bank was unable to reverse the fee as well. At a loss at this point 🙁
Hi Mag,
You can always try to e-mail Jeff Bezos. You can see how in this article.
It seems reasonable to me that ANY online retailer should realize that returns might be higher than brick-n-mortar since people are buying items they cannot see, and perhaps know nothing about. Over my time on Amazon (since 2007 at least), the majority of the items I have purchased I had never seen before. My reports show a 9% return ratio. I think that is quite low considering the circumstances. My reports show I never returned any item that I was familiar with.
When buyers return items that are not as described, damaged, poor quality, etc., Amazon should first look to the seller, not the buyer. These type returns should never be held against the buyer. Amazon has the capability to add this to its algorithms. There also should be a complete exception for anything that is 100% resaleable. Buyers should be allowed to “not like” the item.
But after reading this, I will cut down the number of “unknown unseen” items I buy.
A lot of brick-n-mortar stores have this policy too. In fact, there is a 3rd party company that helps retailers track “returners.” TJ Maxx will cancel your credit card for too many returns. I care for my handicapped daughter and often the clothing I buy for her does not fit. So I return half of what I buy. But when I told TJ Maxx (Synchrony Bank) what was going on, they reinstated my account. Thankfully, Synchrony has real humans to talk to. I will never buy anything for her on Amazon.
I only reviewed books and nothing else. One day I received an email stating that I had violated Amazon guidelines and enclosed a link to that page. I asked them which review I had posted that violated these guidelines and received a vague answer. Then I emailed Mr. Bezos and received a reply telling me which review it was, however I could find nothing wrong with the review. i emailed Mr. Bezos again and received an email from someone named Ayesha telling me that I had been banned from submitting reviews. I still don’t know what I did wrong.
More people should be banned! So wasteful and thoughtless as well as selfish. Don’t these ignorants understand that their selfish actions raise the price of consumer goods for the rest of us. These folks are leeches! Quit leeching on my dime and get a job, get legitimacy and contribute something positive to the world instead of being so wasteful and a drain on our resources!