Wrongfully flagged as counterfeit. What to do?

[cozyconsignments]

I had an item get flagged as counterfeit, but it was not. I’m not planning to re-list the item, in case it gets flagged again. 

But, is there a way to petition the flag? I don’t want to receive another one wrongfully and be banned. 

[rfmtm]

Do not relist until the matter is resolved.

If a VeRO take down you can fight it, as you have a legal right to resell an authentic legally obtained item as long as you don't otherwise infringe on the owner's rights, or have a contract with the company agreeing not to. Companies can not legally have ebay remove an item just because the don't want you selling it on ebay. Unfortunately some abuse VeRO and do it anyway.

However, if this wasn't a VeRO complaint, but an ebay take down, you have a problem. Ebay appears to be doing more and more of this sort of thing against sellers of various products without giving them any recourse whatsoever to appeal it. The best you could do is have your attorney send a letter to ebay's legal department, but hardly worth it for a single item.

Obviously ebay is trying to protect against counterfeits, but at times seems to not be applying the take downs fairly to all sellers. I suspect if this practice continues to escalate, some public advocate or news group is going to call them out on it.

[titipeo]

Once an item is flagged for counterfeit, is best not to relist. As for preventing it from happening, is very difficult. Typically sellers that offer branded items tend to be scrutinized more for this, more so if the item has a lower value than what it retails for. Also, sometimes other sellers issue claims in order to minimize competitors. I looked at you listings for sale and nothing out of the ordinary on them. Not sure what you had. 

If you feel item is authentic, perhaps communicating with eBay for business via social media on Facebook could help, however, you should submit good proof. Don't go around saying that you bought the item at the branded store. 

Good luck.  

[mybigsale]

eBay defines its own rules.  If eBay determines an item is counterfeit on eBay, the item is counterfeit on eBay. Reality does not come into play.

I once sold a purse on eBay. The buyer determined the purse was counterfeit and filed an item not as described case. I accepted the return.

eBay notified me my account was being flagged for selling counterfeit items.

I received an eBay message from the buyer notifying me the case was being closed. The purse was verified as authentic by an expert in her area. The buyer was keeping the purse.

About a month later eBay sent me a message that as a "courtesy" for a valued seller they were removing the counterfeit selling flag from my account. Thank you, eBay? 

If eBay tells you an item is counterfeit, do no list it again. You can be permanently banned without further communication from eBay. eBay's interpretation of reality is all that matters on eBay.

[albertabrightalberta]

@cozyconsignments 

What was the item? Is it possible that it is counterfeit? Unless you bought it directly from an authorized retailer and unless you're expert in authenticating the brand, you could have been mistaken.

[cozyconsignments]

Perfume in the original bottle. There is about 50% left. I wouldn’t have even tried to sell it, but I saw multiple other listings like it. 

I read the policy and it says that cologne/perfume can be sold as long as it’s in original packaging?

[albertabrightalberta]

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@cozyconsignments wrote:

Perfume in the original bottle. There is about 50% left. I wouldn’t have even tried to sell it, but I saw multiple other listings like it. 

I read the policy and it says that cologne/perfume can be sold as long as it’s in original packaging?

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Thank you for replying. 

Over the years, here and on other forums, I've read posts from people complaining that their perfume was altered, diluted, reproduced/copied or otherwise not original. I think it would be taking a huge risk selling any other than brand new, sealed and clearly unused. 

But I did look up the policy and it appears that the sale of used perfume is prohibited. (Link below) I believe the "original container" portion of the policy applies to NEW perfume.

What is the policy?

• Listings for used cosmetics, sponges, or applicators are not allowed. This includes products such as skin moisturizers, sunscreens, perfumes, lipsticks, fingernail polishes, eye and facial makeup preparations, shampoos, permanent waves, hair colors, toothpastes, and deodorants
• Used cosmetic brushes can be sold but must be thoroughly cleaned
• Cosmetics, colognes, perfumes, and lotions must come in the original container
• Homemade cosmetics must comply with government regulations

https://www.ebay.com/help/policies/prohibited-restricted-items/cosmetics-policy?id=4290&st=3&pos=1&q...

[cozyconsignments]

Thank you for such a complete and speedy reply! I did miss the word “perfume” in the first bullet point and maybe misinterpreted the “original container” part?

Weird that mine got taken down and there are other listing just like it. I used the “list similar item” link to list my item in the first place!

Is there a way to remove my flag since I was just following other posts? And, It is not counterfeit! I bought it right from the Clinique counter myself!

[rfmtm]

No, not if you got flagged for a listing policy violation for a prohibited item.  Others just weren't caught yet, but you are free to use the Report button on the listings to do so.

[kabilab]

In almost nine yrs. selling through my current account and approx. 3,500 sales, I have experienced two removals, neither of which were counterfeit. I did not re-list either DVD nor did I attempt to appeal the e-Bay decision. I absolutely knew they were genuine, but the time did not justify any action on my end.

As to having an attorney send a letter, it cost me $125 for one to post a single page to my son's school.

[rfmtm]

It is not a matter of whether to relist, which usually is best not to.  But it is worth to appeal if possible if these type of items are your main business, or to just remove the strikes on your account so they do not accumulate to the point of getting restricted or worse suspended in the future.  However, this all still depends on whether you are just occasionally selling a particular item, or have an entire inventory that you know is legit, but is often a target of ebay or a VeRO member.  So each case is different as to whether it is worth pursuing.

[mamabearsdealz]

I dont have any help except to say this has happened to me multiple times and I know the products isn't fake because it came from the manufacturer. I called ebay and they just say they have an authentication team that knows what to look for but cannot tell me what was wrong with the item and why they think it was a fake. I didn't know there was something such as fake makeup until this last month and I keep getting kicked off listing and have no idea because none of the flagged items have anything in common. 

[therapy_dragon]

eBay won't help. eBay loves making up draconian rules and suspending loyal sellers for breaking their made-up rules. It's part of their CEO's business plan to shrink eBay's market share. 

[derekc1]

How do you appeal a VeRO complaint?  I don't  see a way.  My item is definitely authentic.

[mintsfmintsf]

I got one of those when I first started selling even though the item was not and I later tried to relist and it got flagged again because I assume that the person that flagged it was likely selling the same item and did not want the competition.  I never listed it again, and instead sold it in a private transaction with one of my non-eBay customers which is actually 3/4 of my business anyway.  Don't risk losing your account because it simply is not worth it.