What are Amazon reimbursements? A quick guide

If you’re an Amazon FBA seller, you know the platform offers a lot of opportunities. But it also comes with complex logistics that can impact your profits. 

One often-overlooked area is Amazon reimbursements. Basically, you may qualify for this reimbursement under Amazon’s FBA policy due to inventory errors, incorrect fees, or mishandled returns.

Failing to track these errors can cost you thousands in lost revenue. Fortunately, services like Seller 365 Reimbursements make it easy to reclaim what you’re owed and protect your profit margins.

Don’t feel like reading? Listen to this article in our podcast, Commerce Decoded.

What are Amazon reimbursements?

Amazon reimbursements are compensations provided by Amazon to FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) sellers for operational mistakes. These errors can happen at any stage of the fulfillment process and often go unnoticed by sellers. Common issues eligible for reimbursement include:

• Lost inventory: Items lost during transit or within Amazon’s fulfillment centers.
• Damaged inventory: Products damaged in Amazon warehouses or returned by customers in unusable condition.
• Incorrect fees: Overcharges for weight, dimensions, or Amazon’s referral fees.
• Customer return errors: Refunds issued without returns or returned items not added back to inventory.
• Shipment discrepancies: Units missing from inbound shipments or received incorrectly.
• Lost removal orders: Inventory not returned or disposed of as requested.
• Unprocessed reimbursements: Refunded transactions not properly reimbursed to the seller.
• Reimbursement errors: Previously issued reimbursements that were miscalculated or underpaid.

These problems may seem small individually, but over time, they add up. Sometimes to tens of thousands of dollars in lost income per year.

Why Amazon reimbursements matter to FBA sellers

Amazon handles millions of transactions daily. As efficient as the platform is, errors happen. If you don’t regularly audit your FBA account and claim reimbursements, you’re likely leaving money on the table.

Here’s why staying on top of FBA reimbursements is essential:

• You have to protect your profit margins. Even minor fees and inventory issues can impact profitability.
• Maintaining accurate financial records is important. Discrepancies affect your accounting and business valuation.
• You need to recover lost revenue. You’re entitled to reimbursement for Amazon’s errors.

The true cost of DIY reimbursement claims

Many sellers attempt to handle reimbursement claims themselves, not realizing the hidden costs involved:

• Properly auditing your account can take 5-10 hours per week for a mid-sized seller. At an average value of $50/hour for your time, that’s $250-$500 weekly in opportunity cost.
• Amazon’s policies and case filing requirements change frequently. Staying updated requires constant education and adaptation.
• Amazon’s reporting tools aren’t designed for comprehensive reimbursement auditing. This makes it easy to miss eligible cases.
• Manual processes typically result in delayed filings. This pushes you closer to Amazon’s claim window deadline.
• Without systematic tracking, it’s impossible to know if you’re catching all eligible cases or if your approval rate is optimal.

Even sellers who dedicate significant time to the process typically recover less than half of what’s rightfully owed to them.

How Seller 365 Reimbursements can help

Seller 365 Reimbursements is a service that Threecolts offers to help FBA sellers recover every dollar they’re owed. The service includes automatically auditing your account, filing claims on your behalf, and ensuring compliance with Amazon’s reimbursement policies. It’s a service part of each Seller 365 plan, with no revenue threshold to qualify.

Here’s what we offer in detail:

• Automated monitoring: Your FBA account will be continuously scanned for reimbursement opportunities.
• Manual review by experts: A team of specialists handles edge cases and complex claims.
• Higher recovery rate: Most sellers miss claims or file them incorrectly. This workflow is built to improve your odds of approval.
• No upfront cost: You only pay a commission on what’s successfully recovered. That’s 15% on the Standard and Teams tiers, and 5% on Pro.
• Saves time and effort: Focus on scaling your business while the experts handle the paperwork.

Don’t leave money on the table

Amazon’s huge FBA infrastructure is prone to errors. And each one can chip away at your profits. But with a smart reimbursement strategy in place, you can turn these errors into revenue.

Seller 365 Reimbursements gives you the tools and team to ensure you’re getting paid every dollar you deserve. Stop overpaying Amazon for their mistakes and start recovering your rightful earnings today.

Ready to reclaim your lost revenue? Learn more about the Seller 365 plans and take control of your FBA profitability.