How to Get Reimbursed for an Amazon FBA Error

In this guest article, Christina Passmore of GETIDA explains why Amazon might owe you money and what you can do about it.

If you’re an Amazon seller, Amazon FBA error reimbursements will become a critical element to the growth of your business. You also know that using Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) helps you manage your inventory, handles your shipping, and manages any damages or losses incurred throughout the shipping process.

This can be very beneficial for sellers, but what happens when Amazon makes an error? What if any of your products get lost or become damaged? How do you know if you are owed any money? How do you ensure you get paid?

Amazon FBA reimbursement can be a time-consuming process, but it can bring many rewards. You can do this on your own, hire a team member to work on this task, or work with an FBA reimbursement service that searches for errors and discrepancies on your behalf and submits and manages your Amazon claims. Let’s take a look at what’s involved in Amazon FBA reimbursements so you can make the best choice for your business!

What to Look for in All That Amazon FBA Data

First step: dig through the data. What type of refunds are eligible under Amazon’s FBA reimbursement policy? According to the marketplace, for an item to be covered by FBA reimbursement, it must meet ALL of the following criteria:

• The item is registered in FBA at the time it is lost or damaged.
• The item complies with FBA product requirements and restrictions as well as with FBA inventory requirements.
• You’ve submitted the exact items and quantities stated in your shipping plan.
• The item is not pending disposal or was not disposed of at your request or because Amazon FBA exercised a right to do so.
• The item is not defective and was not damaged by a customer.
• Your selling account is in normal status when you file a claim for a lost or damaged item.

Once you ensure that your missing or damaged items meet the criteria and know that you haven’t already been reimbursed for them, you can file a claim with the correct department.

You’ll need to choose between the following: Shipment to Amazon, Fulfillment Center Operations, FBA Customer Returns, or Removals. Each department represents a different part of the fulfillment process, so you’ll need to know where/when your item was damaged to make the correct claim. Each department also has its own submission process, so you’ll need to read through them to ensure that you have all of the accurate information.

How to Verify What You're Owed Following an Amazon FBA Error

If you’ve been selling through FBA for any amount of time, you’ll know that they send you A LOT of information. You might find that keeping up with the reams of discrepancy data that Amazon sends sellers is very difficult. However, it's essential to keep up with your Amazon audits and claims because, on average, most sellers end up with a 1-3% discrepancy in what they are owed vs. what they are paid. No matter what volume you sell, this can have a significant effect on your bottom line.

...on average, most sellers end up with a 1-3% discrepancy in what they are owed vs. what they are paid.

In order to make sure you weren’t leaving any money on the table following an Amazon FBA error, you’ll need to cross-reference these different data sets to find any discrepancies. Once complete, you’ll need to double-check for issues and bring in any additional relevant information. After all of this, you’ll have to work with Amazon to ensure you receive the correct reimbursements.

It’s important not to make any errors yourself during this process because if Amazon finds out that it has wrongly reimbursed you, they will reverse the Amazon claim. Also, note that Amazon uses sales data to decide on the amount of reimbursement you are entitled to for a single item. It does not reimburse more than $5,000 for a single item. If you’re selling products with a higher price point, it’s recommended to have third-party insurance.

Finishing your analysis and submitting your claim to Amazon isn’t the end. In fact, this part of the process can be even more time-consuming. Amazon typically requires additional information and may even initially reject your claim.

Finding Help for Your FBA Reimbursement

So now you might be thinking, maybe I can do that kind of analysis for myself to mitigate my own Amazon seller refunds and discrepancies? This might be the case, but the truth of the matter is this type of analysis is very time-consuming detail-oriented work.

It’s easy to make a mistake, which can mean the difference between finding what you’re owed and wasting your time. It is certainly possible for you to do it, but it will take you away from more important aspects of running your Amazon FBA business.

One option available to you is hiring a virtual assistant to help you out with your analysis. You will have to ensure that your VA is detail-oriented and knows exactly how to perform an analysis specific to Amazon. Finding the right person and training them to understand your eCommerce business to perform a proper analysis might end up costing you more than you are owed. Granting a VA access to your seller account can also be a risk. Always perform due diligence when hiring anyone to manage any portion of your Amazon Seller Central account.

Why Use an FBA Reimbursements Solution or Service?

Having a dedicated Amazon FBA reimbursement solution or service has its benefits. Companies who specialize in making your claims and handling your reimbursements work on your behalf to ensure your Amazon claims are created appropriately, and they can generally handle most of the transaction until the claim is approved. However, not every service is equal, and you should be doing some research to find the best option to serve your Amazon FBA business. Every service will have different fee structures or subscriptions, so be mindful of these factors when choosing which product will work best for you.

One solution to consider is GETIDA. GETIDA is an Amazon FBA reimbursement solution that searches for errors and discrepancies on your behalf and submits and manages your Amazon claims. There is no upfront cost; GETIDA only charges a fee from your successful FBA reimbursements.

GETIDA looks back through the last 18 months of your FBA account activity to find any discrepancies to ensure you receive the maximum reimbursement that you are eligible to receive. The solution frees up your time and your money to help you scale your business as efficiently as possible.

Save $500 Today!

Amazon FBA reimbursements are a crucial point of the growth of your business. Once recovered, this money can be reinvested into your business to help you grow and expand on and off of Amazon.

Don’t be intimidated by the reimbursement process. Check out GETIDA’s free Amazon reimbursements tools to get you and your Amazon business on the right track to a healthy financial position. You can also save $500 thanks to this special offer from GETIDA and eComEngine!