Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

catherinetodd

macrumors newbie
Oct 26, 2022
10
5
Good Grief. I have been trying to reach someone (anyone) who will explain to me why I am blocked from writing reviews. I have written to two different email addresses, without any luck. I ask what I did and all they parrot is to read the community guidelines. I said that doesn't tell me what happened. I have written several emails and haven't received a response. It's been over a year.
Chrissy, I can understand why you are still trying to reach Amazon, even after a year. It's terrible to be accused and banned when you don't even know "what you did wrong" or when you didn't do anything wrong!

Here is another forum where people have found actual results on occasion, with different emails to try and even a telephone number. Check it out and good luck. Myself, I probably will never get a response from Amazon but I am trying.

AMAZON & THE WRONGFULLY ACCUSED
 

ScreenSavers

macrumors 68020
Feb 26, 2016
2,115
1,688
Bloomingdale, GA
I got banned from leaving Amazon reviews over a year ago. I left a rating for a book my sister wrote, and they must’ve somehow realized we were related. I’ve emailed and chatted a hundred times. They keep ignoring.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Banned and Baffled

catherinetodd

macrumors newbie
Oct 26, 2022
10
5
I got banned from leaving Amazon reviews over a year ago. I left a rating for a book my sister wrote, and they must’ve somehow realized we were related. I’ve emailed and chatted a hundred times. They keep ignoring.
How in the world could "being related" to the author get someone banned from leaving any and all reviews on Amazon? Is that written in their many vague "rules and regs?"
 

Mc10s

macrumors newbie
Jan 11, 2023
1
0
I left a review which mentioned a scammer seller by seller name and I was notified that the review was removed with a warning.

Then I asked a random question on ann unrelated item a week or so later and a few hours after, I was banned. So it was my very next public contact that did it. Guess it could have been either a review or a question - anything that could potentially violate the terms.

So here’s what they are doing, I think I just figured it out:

They are going thru the legal motions to ban by giving you the warning letter, then the very next public question or review you make, you’re gone and so are all your business-killing reviews.

Since all the reviews are deleted, you’ve got no way to find out what you did - and they can conveniently shrug and say they don’t know what you did wrong. This is a perfect strategy to covertly get rid of huge amounts of negative reviews.

I find it impossible for a company like Amazon to be making this many “mistakes.” Note Rep Nicole M state in the email that the commenter had already been given a warning.

Clearly instead of immediate banning they are doing this one extra step disingenuously. I think it’s class action time.
 
Last edited:

swhicker

macrumors newbie
Apr 24, 2023
1
2
Whoa… I didn’t expect to receive a response this quickly, but lets see if it’s true since it seems to be automated.

View attachment 1955456

ETA: Yep, looks like my reviewing capabilities are back! Going to not review anything again at this point.. ?
Will you please let me know the secret email you used? I have been trying to get mine restored for a long time using the email they gave me to no avail. It's infuriating.
 

catherinetodd

macrumors newbie
Oct 26, 2022
10
5
Whoa… I didn’t expect to receive a response this quickly, but lets see if it’s true since it seems to be automated.

View attachment 1955456

ETA: Yep, looks like my reviewing capabilities are back! Going to not review anything again at this point.. ?
Yes, I too would like to know the secret email you used? I'm surr we all would. Do you still have your reviewing ability?
 

catherinetodd

macrumors newbie
Oct 26, 2022
10
5
I left a review which mentioned a scammer seller by seller name and I was notified that the review was removed with a warning.

Then I asked a random question on ann unrelated item a week or so later and a few hours after, I was banned. So it was my very next public contact that did it. Guess it could have been either a review or a question - anything that could potentially violate the terms.

So here’s what they are doing, I think I just figured it out:

They are going thru the legal motions to ban by giving you the warning letter, then the very next public question or review you make, you’re gone and so are all your business-killing reviews.

Since all the reviews are deleted, you’ve got no way to find out what you did - and they can conveniently shrug and say they don’t know what you did wrong. This is a perfect strategy to covertly get rid of huge amounts of negative reviews.

I find it impossible for a company like Amazon to be making this many “mistakes.” Note Rep Nicole M state in the email that the commenter had already been given a warning.

Clearly instead of immediate banning they are doing this one extra step disingenuously. I think it’s class action time.

You wrote " I think it’s class action time." I agree, and I would pay good money to a lawyer to look into this.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ScreenSavers

Banned and Baffled

macrumors newbie
May 30, 2023
3
0
Over a period of ten years I wrote about 240 Amazon reviews. These were book reviews of books I already owned, but which Amazon sold, books I bought from Amazon, and other consumer goods I bought from Amazon. Most of my reviews were favorable. None of them were rejected. I never received any warning.

As long as I could submit reviews of books I read I felt like I was more than an old man waiting to die.

Several weeks after my last review was accepted I received the following message:

"We apologize but Amazon has noticed some unusual reviewing activity on this account. As a result, all reviews submitted by this account have been removed and this account will no longer be able to contribute reviews and other content on Amazon. If you would like to learn more, please see our community guidelines. To contact us about this decision, please email community-help@amazon.com."

My blood pressure spiked up to 220 over 110. My pulse, which is usually between 60 and 70 beats a minute rose to 105. I have already had one stroke. I thought I was going to die.

After reading the community guidelines I could not see how I violated them. I emailed community-help@amazon.com, and got no response.

I called Amazon customer service. The person I talked to was sympathetic, took my information, and told me I would receive a response in two business days. I received no response.

As long as I could write reviews for Amazon I thought that when I was dead my reviews would live after me, encouraging potential customers to buy Amazon products. That thought has been taken away from me.
 

Phil77354

macrumors 68000
Jun 22, 2014
1,918
2,006
Pacific Northwest, U.S.
Over a period of ten years I wrote about 240 Amazon reviews. These were book reviews of books I already owned, but which Amazon sold, books I bought from Amazon, and other consumer goods I bought from Amazon. Most of my reviews were favorable. None of them were rejected. I never received any warning.

As long as I could submit reviews of books I read I felt like I was more than an old man waiting to die.

Several weeks after my last review was accepted I received the following message:

"We apologize but Amazon has noticed some unusual reviewing activity on this account. As a result, all reviews submitted by this account have been removed and this account will no longer be able to contribute reviews and other content on Amazon. If you would like to learn more, please see our community guidelines. To contact us about this decision, please email community-help@amazon.com."

My blood pressure spiked up to 220 over 110. My pulse, which is usually between 60 and 70 beats a minute rose to 105. I have already had one stroke. I thought I was going to die.

After reading the community guidelines I could not see how I violated them. I emailed community-help@amazon.com, and got no response.

I called Amazon customer service. The person I talked to was sympathetic, took my information, and told me I would receive a response in two business days. I received no response.

As long as I could write reviews for Amazon I thought that when I was dead my reviews would live after me, encouraging potential customers to buy Amazon products. That thought has been taken away from me.
If your story is as you have stated, then you will be able to get your account established again and the reviews posted again.

I suggest that you go back to the earlier posts in this thread - I have previously given recommendations that will almost certainly result in this being corrected by Amazon, although you will need to be persistent and very likely make multiple requests before it is finally given the necessary attention.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.
 

Banned and Baffled

macrumors newbie
May 30, 2023
3
0
If your story is as you have stated, then you will be able to get your account established again and the reviews posted again.

I suggest that you go back to the earlier posts in this thread - I have previously given recommendations that will almost certainly result in this being corrected by Amazon, although you will need to be persistent and very likely make multiple requests before it is finally given the necessary attention.

Good luck and let us know how it goes.
I have already gone through the usual channels. What else can I do?
 

Banned and Baffled

macrumors newbie
May 30, 2023
3
0
read my earlier posts regarding who to address your emails to, and how to politely argue your case and get the attention of the right people. You will be successful but it will require more than one email in all likelihood.
I will read your posts again. I have read other posts of people who have tried everything, and given up.

If the Community Guideline people did not like any of my reviews, they should have explained why, and rejected the review. They did not need to reject ten years of my work.

I am not sure if I want to risk another stoke trying and failing.

I do not show emotions easily, but I feel them deeply and durably.

Thank you for your advice. I lack your optimism.
 

Monalott

macrumors newbie
Nov 27, 2023
1
0
Oh, the hours and hours I have wasted on this sh*te.

Briefly: been amazon prime member since 2003; had written 5,000 reviews (which I thought was a bit high - but that was a number given to me) and had a pretty decent position in however reviewers are rated. (I’ve been trying to forget all this. Really.)

I have never received a penny or a product from any vendor on amazon (or anywhere else .)

In January or so (not gonna look at my large file on the history of this), I innocently wrote a review for a product that I, of course, had bought and used. I liked writing reviews because I love writing and I always tried to make my reviews entertaining but helpful, since I used to rely so heavily on reviews when I was deciding whether to buy or not.

So, on that fateful day back in January, (or whenever) I got my first “something suspicious in your account…..until we blah blah blah…. you can’t review on amazon anymore.”

I took it very personally. I also began a two or three month journey of emailing or calling whoever I was told to email or call, or whoever I could think of to do the same. In return, I got form letter responses and/or directions to chase my tail down one black hole after another.

I finally got an email “We’ve reviewed your account and there’s nothing fishy going on. Go on, you crazy kid, and go back to your reviewing ways.” I’m paraphrasing of course. Went to post a review and ,of course, same angry red lined box - “no reviews for you, Missy. If you have questions, fill out this form(which you’ve already done two or three times) and send it to amazoncircularfile@hahaha.com.”

Again, I filled out form, wrote emails, made phone calls - nothing.

I also am not allowed to ask questions about products I might be interested in buying. You know what I mean - questions about the fabric of a dress for example. If I try, I get another red lined box telling me that “questions have to conform to community guidelines and your question of “Can you tell me if thie fabric of this dress is blah blah blah…” didn’t adhere to community guidelines so you can’t even ask a question.”

In the meantime, I get many emails weekly from vendors asking me to please post a review of their product that I’ve bought; they’re a small business, reviews mean so much, etc. And I feel like this is where the bots collide. If i’ve been banned from reviewing,why does amazon pass along these requests for me to review by vendors? Don’t they know I’m some sort of nefarious hosebag who can’t be trusted to write five sentences about something I bought for one of my children?

Sorry to be so vague. My father in laws funeral is tomorrow, I feel like our dogs saved up all their shedded hair for months and now have dumped it on our bed and I don’t want to go back and relive all the pointless black holes I’ve been sent down and the continuous trashing of what I thought was a little more then a minor contribution to other potential buyers, as I was a very passionate review reader, myself.

So even though I’ve been cleared - I haven’t been and even though I receive weekly requests from vendors to review a product Ive purchased - I can’t help them because I can no longer review anyones product on amazon.

Sorry to sound so stupid. It’s the dog hair.

It's a shame, I would have loved to have read your reviews, if this post is anything to go by, I bet they are a good read!

I totally get everything you say, I was hit the 'big ban' about 5 years ago!
Getting the emails asking us to review products is like twisting the knife they've already put in your back!
And blocking us from asking questions? I mean come on! I don't even understand that one.
5 years on and it still hurts, yet I still spend every penny on Scamazon!

I have a theory though, I mean I was super honest, If I thought a product was bad I said so, obviously that is bad for Amazon! They don't want too many honest reviewers, bad for business.

Thank you for a good read, I have no idea what site I'm on, I found this thread randomly after trying to win Amazon over yet again! Ha ha. Only signed up to reply! 😆
 

Rileyuk

macrumors newbie
Nov 25, 2023
3
0
If you spam with something you got pennality of ban. Maybe you face this....
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.