A seller gets a sudden Account Health warning: "Policy Violation — Buyer-Seller Messaging." They scroll back through their message history and find the cause — a well-meaning follow-up email offering a replacement part, with a line at the bottom asking the customer to "leave us 5 stars if you're happy." That one sentence, sent automatically through a review-request tool to thousands of customers, is a textbook policy breach. It happens constantly, and most sellers don't realise how narrow the rules actually are until Amazon flags them.
At StoreStride we see this most often in sellers who are doing the right thing for the wrong reason — chasing reviews and feedback to support a PPC push, using a template that quietly crosses a line Amazon takes very seriously. This guide sets out exactly what you're permitted to send a customer after a sale, what gets flagged, and how to build a messaging flow that stays compliant while still driving reviews and reducing returns.
Why Amazon is strict here: Buyer-Seller Messaging exists so sellers can resolve genuine order issues — not as a marketing channel. Amazon actively scans message content for keywords and patterns associated with manipulated reviews, promotional spam, and off-platform contact. Repeated violations restrict your messaging access entirely and feed directly into your Account Health Rating.
What Is Buyer-Seller Messaging?
Buyer-Seller Messaging is the system that lets third-party sellers contact customers after a purchase — through Seller Central's "Buyer-Seller Messaging" inbox, the Amazon Marketplace Web Service (MWS) messaging API, or its newer Selling Partner API (SP-API) equivalent. It's deliberately limited: messages route through Amazon's platform rather than a buyer's real inbox, Amazon can read and action every message, and there is no visibility into a customer's actual email address or phone number unless they choose to disclose it themselves.
The policy exists because this channel is a direct line to every customer who has ever bought from you — which makes it extremely valuable for legitimate order resolution, and extremely tempting to misuse for marketing. Amazon's stated purpose for the channel is narrow: completing a transaction, providing customer service, and requesting a review or seller feedback through approved means only.
What You're Allowed to Send
Permitted messages fall into a handful of specific categories. If a message doesn't clearly fit one of these, it's a risk.
✓ Order & Shipping Updates
Delivery delays, backorder notices, tracking issues, or a heads-up about a packaging change — anything directly tied to fulfilling that specific order.
✓ Problem Resolution
Responding to a damaged item, missing part, wrong item received, or a customer's product question about the unit they bought.
✓ Warranty & Registration Info
Instructions for registering a warranty, safety information, or how to claim support for a defective unit — factual, not promotional.
✓ The Approved Review Request
Amazon's own "Request a Review" button or template — a single, neutral, non-incentivised request sent once per order.
✓ Confirming Return/Refund Details
Instructions for initiating a return, confirming a refund has been processed, or clarifying a cancellation.
✓ B2B Invoice & Tax Requests
Supplying a VAT invoice or tax document a business customer needs for their own records.
What Gets You Flagged
These are the categories that trigger automated policy warnings — and in StoreStride's experience, the ones sellers trip over most without intending to.
✕ Marketing & Promotional Content
Discount codes, coupons, cross-sell offers for other products, or "check out our other listings" messages. Any promotional intent is prohibited, even if the order itself is resolved.
✕ Incentivised Reviews
Offering a refund, gift card, free product, or discount in exchange for a positive review or in exchange for removing a negative one. This is a severe violation with its own dedicated enforcement team.
✕ Steering to Positive Reviews Only
Messages like "if you're happy, please leave 5 stars" or "if there's a problem, contact us before leaving a review" selectively solicit positive feedback — explicitly banned, regardless of intent.
✕ Off-Platform Contact Requests
Asking a customer to email you directly, join a Facebook group, follow you on Instagram, or scan a QR code that leads off Amazon. This includes most "insert card" language, not just messages.
✕ Repeated or Excessive Messaging
Sending more than the Amazon-permitted review request, plus genuine order correspondence, per order. Multiple follow-ups chasing a response read as spam to Amazon's filters.
✕ Collecting Personal Data
Asking for a customer's email, phone number, or date of birth for your own marketing list, outside of what's needed to resolve a genuine service issue.
The insert card trap: Packaging inserts aren't technically "Buyer-Seller Messaging," but Amazon enforces the same rules against them. A card asking for reviews, offering a discount for one, or directing customers off-platform is treated as a policy violation identical to a prohibited message — and is one of the most common causes of suspension for otherwise compliant sellers.
What Happens When You Violate the Policy
Enforcement typically escalates in stages, though severe or incentivised-review violations can skip straight to the harsher end:
Policy Warning
A notification in Seller Central and an entry against your Account Health Rating. First-time, low-severity issues often land here with no further action required beyond acknowledging it.
Messaging Restriction
Amazon can temporarily or permanently restrict your ability to send Buyer-Seller Messages at all — which also removes your ability to resolve genuine order issues through the channel, hurting your customer service metrics in turn.
Review Removal
Reviews Amazon determines were solicited through a non-compliant message or incentive are removed, sometimes in bulk, which can cause a visible drop in review count and star rating overnight.
Account Suspension
Repeated violations, or a single severe case such as incentivised reviews, can trigger a full account deactivation requiring a formal appeal to reinstate.
Automating Compliant Messages at Scale
You don't have to choose between compliance and volume. Amazon's own "Request a Review" button in Seller Central sends a single neutral, Amazon-approved template per order — the same message every seller is permitted to send, with no custom text to accidentally cross a line. At higher order volumes, tools like Helium 10 Follow-Up, Jungle Scout Review Automation, and FeedbackWhiz connect to the Buyer-Seller Messaging API (or trigger the Request a Review button programmatically) to send that exact same approved template in bulk, rather than writing their own message copy.
The risk appears when sellers build custom automated flows on top of these tools — adding a discount code, a "how did we do?" survey with a 5-star nudge, or cross-sell content layered onto the approved template. The automation itself isn't the problem; the content pushed through it is.
Building a Compliant Post-Purchase Flow
- Separate service messages from review requests. Keep a dedicated, templated response for order issues (damage, delay, missing items) that never mentions reviews at all.
- Use Amazon's own review request mechanism rather than writing custom "please review us" copy, even if it feels less personal — it's the only version Amazon has pre-approved.
- Audit every automated template in your review-request tool quarterly. Marketing teams update copy; compliance doesn't always get a say unless someone checks.
- Remove review-related language from packaging inserts entirely, or limit inserts to warranty registration and support contact details only.
- Train support staff who respond manually to customer messages — a well-intentioned "we'd love it if you left us a review too!" tacked onto a refund confirmation is still a violation.
- Monitor Account Health for messaging-related notifications weekly, so a first warning gets addressed before it repeats.
Had a messaging policy warning land in Seller Central?
StoreStride audits review-request flows, packaging inserts, and post-purchase messaging as part of every account review — so a template written months ago doesn't quietly put your account at risk today. Get in touch today.
Get Free Amazon PPC Audit →Common Questions About Buyer-Seller Messaging
Can I ask a customer for feedback on my seller account, not just a product review?
Yes — seller feedback requests are permitted alongside product review requests, using neutral, non-incentivised language. The same restrictions apply: no selective solicitation of positive feedback, and no incentives offered.
Does this policy apply to messages sent through a CRM or email tool instead of Seller Central?
If a customer's contact details were obtained purely through Buyer-Seller Messaging or an Amazon order, and you message them outside Amazon without their separate, explicit consent, that itself can be treated as an off-platform contact violation. Only message outside Amazon if the customer has independently opted in through your own channel, such as a brand website signup.
Can I message a customer after a negative review to ask them to change it?
No. Contacting a customer specifically because they left a negative review, to request they change or remove it, is a direct policy violation — even without any incentive attached. Respond to the review itself through the public seller comment feature instead, or escalate the matter through Amazon if it misrepresents the product.
How long does a messaging policy warning stay on my account?
There's no fixed published timeframe. Isolated, low-severity warnings typically age out of your Account Health Rating over a period of sustained clean performance. Severe violations, such as confirmed incentivised reviews, can have longer-lasting impact and are more likely to trigger manual review on any future issue.