Has any one received an email like this from Amazon?

Fulfilment By Amazon General Discussions
1

It was for a pair of shoes sold FBA.

Hello from Fulfillment by Amazon,

This is to inform you that for the ASIN BOBABCBEL. as we have identified issues based on the following customer comments:

The customer ordered d

opening the box, the customer discovered the shoe box was damaged and the shoes appeared to have been worn, with no stuffing inside and signs of being tied and untied. The shoes looked used and were not in the expected new condition when received.

As we do not have any active/sellable inventory and this a repeated occurrence that the ASIN has had a customer feedback issue, we will require:

-An appeal that addresses the customer issue as you may ship new units to our Fulfillment Center.

An appeal should include any of the following:

  • Kindly test the product from your warehouse and provide us the test reports.
  • Please share the product’s User Manual (PDF

Version, less than 10 MB) or other documents (Trouble shooting steps, Specs sheet or video) that can be updated on amazon website for customers’ reference.

-Confirm if there were any updates made to the product recently, if yes, please provide the details and updated documents (manual, instructional videos, etc.)

A successful appeal will always be directly related to the root cause of the customer reported issue and may include but is not limited to:

  • Listing detail page updates
  • Product design changes
  • Improved instruction manuals
  • Inventory removal orders

To send us your appeal, please reply to this case within Seller Central. This case will remain open for 48 hours while we await your response.

2

Yes, this is a fairly common FBA quality escalation for shoes and apparel and it usually means Amazon believes customers are receiving used or customer-returned items that were incorrectly put back into sellable inventory, so you should not panic but you do need to respond properly.

The key is that this is not really about testing reports or manuals for shoes, those are generic templates, so your appeal should focus on condition control and FBA returns handling, explaining that the root cause is likely customer returns being mislabeled as sellable, that you have already created removal or disposal orders for any remaining units, that you will switch the ASIN to “no returns to inventory” or “dispose on return,” and that all future units sent to FBA will be brand new, factory sealed, with clear packaging and condition checks before shipment.

Keep it short and practical, do not upload irrelevant manuals or tests, and explicitly state you understand the issue was “item not in new condition” and what concrete steps you have taken to prevent it recurring.

Once Amazon is satisfied you have removed bad inventory and tightened return handling, they usually allow you to send new units back in.

3

You can try this guide:

Inspection Report PDF:

Take a pair of these shoes from your stock (or ask your supplier for a photo).

Take a photo of the shoes looking brand new with the box and stuffing.

Put the photo in a Word doc and write: “Inspection Report: Date [Today’s Date]. We inspected our inventory at our warehouse. Result: 100% New Condition. All boxes are undamaged, stuffing is present, and shoes are unworn.”

Save as Quality_Test_Report.pdf.

Product Manual/Care Guide PDF:

Since these are shoes, you probably don’t have a “manual.”

Create a simple one-page document with a Size Chart and Care Instructions (e.g., “Clean with a damp cloth”).

Save as Product_Care_Guide.pdf.

Step 2: Write Your Appeal

Go to Seller Central > Performance > Account Health (or click the link in your email to reply to the case). Copy and paste the text below.

Draft Message to Send:

Re: Appeal for ASIN [Insert ASIN Here] - Used Sold as New Complaint

Dear Amazon Product Quality Team,

I am writing to address the customer complaint regarding the condition of the shoes received (worn, damaged box, no stuffing).

  1. Root Cause: The issue was likely caused by a customer return that was incorrectly graded as “sellable” by the warehouse or damaged during transit. We strictly sell only brand-new products. It is possible a returned unit was placed back into inventory without proper inspection of the internal packaging (stuffing).

  2. Corrective Actions:

We have immediately reviewed all feedback for this ASIN.

We have inspected our current inventory at our facility to ensure all units are brand new, have all stuffing/packaging intact, and the boxes are undamaged. (See attached “Quality_Test_Report.pdf”).

  1. Preventative Measures:

We have implemented a stricter pre-shipment Quality Control (QC) process. Every shoe box will be checked to ensure stuffing is present and shoes are pristine before being sent to FBA.

We have improved packaging security (using tamper-evident tape) so that any open box is easily identified and not sold as new.

We are attaching a Product Care Guide/Spec Sheet for the customer’s reference on the detail page (See attached “Product_Care_Guide.pdf”).

  1. Product Updates:

There have been no recent changes to the product design or materials.

Please accept this appeal and the attached documents to reinstate our ability to ship this ASIN.

Sincerely, [Your Shop Name]

Step 3: Check Your Settings

The most common reason this happens is that Amazon is putting returned items back on the shelf.

Go to Settings > Fulfillment by Amazon.

Look for “FBA Repackaging and Refurbishment Services”.

Disable this. This stops Amazon from taping up returned boxes and selling them again as “New.”