I have an amazon FBM customer that purchased an expensive item ($1,800) and asked to return it. We made the mistake of processing the refund before it was returned and the customer would not return it after the refund. As karma would have it they had a warranty issue and reached out to us and we negotiated that upon fixing (which only necessitated sending a replacement part) they would pay. I am pointing this out as we have it in writing that they owe us which to me makes it fairly straight forward legally.
I am inclined to file in small claims court against them, they are in another state but it is not that far of a drive, but my question is what could be the possible repercussions with Amazon? It is not worth it if it would jeopardize my account in any manner.
So, to summarize, can suing an FBM Amazon customer in small claims court cause any health related issues with my Amazon account.
While a third-party seller can technically sue an Amazon customer, doing so is extremely likely to violate Amazon’s policies and result in the suspension or termination of the seller’s account. Amazon maintains a “zero-tolerance” policy regarding harassment of customers and improper communication, generally requiring all disputes to be handled through their internal systems.
Here is a breakdown of the risks and rules:
Violation of Amazon Policies
Customer Communication Policies: Sellers are only permitted to contact customers via the Buyer-Seller Messaging service for reasons necessary to complete an order or handle a return. Initiating legal action or threatening a customer directly is considered “inappropriate communication”.
Seller Code of Conduct: Sellers must not “misuse Amazon’s features or services” or “attempt to influence customers’ ratings, feedback, and reviews”.
Suspension Risk: Filing a lawsuit against a buyer often involves obtaining their private contact information off-platform, which violates Amazon’s rules and will almost certainly result in a permanent ban, particularly if the buyer reports the seller.
Legal Realities
Contractual Limitation: The buyer has a contract with Amazon, not with the third-party seller. The buyer’s “customer” for all legal and service purposes is Amazon, not the seller whose products they bought.
Cost vs. Reward: Filing a lawsuit, especially over a fraudulent return or negative review, is rarely worth the legal costs involved.
Recommended Actions Instead of Suing
SAFE-T Claims: For fraudulent returns, use Amazon’s SAFE-T Claim system (Seller Action and Forum for Trusted Returns) to request reimbursement.
Report the Buyer: Report the buyer’s behavior within Seller Central to Amazon to prevent them from exploiting other sellers.
Document Everything: Keep all records (photos, serial numbers, messages) to submit to Amazon for review.
Summary: Suing a customer is viewed by Amazon as an abuse of their customer base, regardless of the merit of your claim, making it a high-risk, low-reward option that often results in losing your selling privileges.
So yes. I believe there is language in the tos that forbids you from using customer data in any way other then directly fulfilling the order. Filing a small claims case is technically using said data outside of fulfilling an order.
On another note, the customer saying they will pay after a part has been sent, I fear you will be out in the cold again. Amazon messages are not a legal binding contract and there is no function within amazon to just “charge” a customer. In addition accepting any payment outside of Amazon is a major violation of the tos.
Greetings and Welcome! You may not like the answers for this particular question…
Any competent lawyer or judge would ask why you refunded in the first place, and that this was your responsibility in the transaction. You failed to get Amazon to reverse your action, and that was your role in the transaction. That is a you and Amazon problem, not a you and customer problem.
Uh the ASBSA is very very clear.
“If we find that any claim, chargeback, or dispute is your responsibility, (i) you will not take recourse against the customer, and (ii) if Amazon resolves the claim directly with the customer and does not waive its right of indemnification, you will reimburse us in accordance with Section 2 of this Agreement to the extent of your responsibility (not to exceed the amount paid by Amazon to resolve the claim), including taxes and shipping and handling charges (but excluding any Referral Fees that we retained as defined in Section S-4), and all other fees and expenses associated with the original transaction (such as credit card, bank, payment processing, re-presentment, or penalty fees) and any related chargebacks or refunds.”
I second this. Amazon can be many expensive lessons unfortunately. Some of us have learned via expense. Please ask as much as you want, we do like to help!
If it’s of any consolation, as @Pepper_Thine_Angus just said, we’ve all made expensive mistakes, and have learned from them. It sucks that the customer has gotten away with such an expensive order, but it’s certainly not worth risking your whole seller account, and this will certainly not happen to you again!
Hi and welcome @mldw! I am also very sorry that this happened to you and that this customer wouldn’t do the right thing, even if you made a mistake as the Seller.
Amazon doesn’t really back us up, even when we do everything right–if that is any consolation
There may be a way to go after the scammer. Your agreement with Amazon basically forbids civil action against the customer. But it does not - and cannot - in any way whatsoever restrict your ability to file criminal complaints against the scammer. [mod edit: comments deleted]
The scammer very possibly already has a criminal record. They may be on probation or parole. Like most people, their offline life is similar to their online life. They are simply that type of person.
So file complaints with the USPS, FBI, and their local police. 1,800 USD is too large for most law enforcement agencies to dismiss. It takes just a few seconds of your time and may put tremendous pressure on him.
At worst, the scammer may not have a record yet. But you can get him on law enforcement radar, and the next seller might get him.
I think that which I remember reading (which was broader and lengthier than the quote above) may have been removed by legal. Because it did infringe on our legal rights – it was a blanket warning forbidding anything.
I would definitely assert this is abuse of the legal/justice system. The seller clearly made a mistake and should be getting Amazon to cancel the refund for THEIR DECISON TO PREMATURELY REFUND.
I am no lawyer like your spouse, but if I was on a jury and someone said that “the seller refunded me before I even sent it back” I would wonder why and who is responsible for doing that, but not assert it was theft. There was not fake tracking, a brick in a box, fake chargeback, or any other form of deception or coercion… The seller clearly made a mistake and Amazon is saying “that makes our customer happy and you agreed to it in your TOS”. That does not make the buyer a criminal. A POS definately, but not a criminal IMO.
Means someone screwed up a civil transaction.
A large percentage of people do have experience with police saying “This is a civil matter”. I assert finding a LE agency who actually looks at the details of this transaction, that still proceeds with a criminal investigation, the seller is more likely to win the lottery.
You are also leaving out the fact that Amazon has the ability to reverse the charges/refunds to the customer as part of the customer agreement and chooses not to as part of the transaction, making Amazon a party to the “criminal” transaction.
