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Over the past twelve months, Amazon UK sellers have experienced a significant increase in verification reviews, compliance investigations, listing restrictions and disbursement holds. These developments sit against a backdrop of expanding regulatory pressure on online marketplaces, including product safety reform, environmental compliance obligations and anti-fraud expectations.
Stronger enforcement itself is not controversial. Platforms operating at Amazon’s scale are expected to prevent unsafe goods, counterfeiting and financial abuse.
However, a growing number of sellers are not challenging enforcement decisions as such — they are challenging how those decisions are communicated and administered.
From prolonged verification processes to automated appeal responses and extended payment holds, questions are increasingly being raised about whether platform governance practices align with the transparency requirements imposed by the UK Platform-to-Business (P2B) Regulation.
For businesses heavily dependent on marketplace sales channels, the consequences are not theoretical. They are operational and financial.
The Purpose of the Platform-to-Business Regulation
The Platform-to-Business Regulation (EU Regulation 2019/1150), retained within UK law following Brexit, was introduced specifically to address power imbalance between dominant digital platforms and business users.
Marketplaces such as Amazon provide access to millions of consumers but also act as gatekeepers to that access. The Regulation therefore imposes obligations designed to ensure procedural fairness when sellers are restricted or removed from trading.
Key principles include:
- transparency of enforcement decisions;
- effective complaint handling systems;
- clear explanation when access to services is limited.
The intention is not to prevent enforcement action. Rather, it ensures businesses are not subjected to opaque or arbitrary decision-making where their commercial survival may depend on platform access.
Verification Reviews and Disbursement Holds
One of the most disruptive developments reported by sellers since late 2025 involves extended identity or business verification reviews.
Commonly reported issues include:
- accounts locked in ongoing “verification in progress” states;
- repeated requests for documentation already submitted;
- funds withheld for prolonged periods while reviews continue.
Amazon’s position is understandable from a regulatory standpoint. Identity verification and fraud prevention obligations have expanded internationally, and marketplaces face pressure to demonstrate strong controls.
However, the P2B Regulation does not exempt platforms from transparency obligations simply because enforcement relates to compliance or fraud risk.
Where access to core services — including payment disbursement — is restricted, sellers must receive meaningful explanations and access to functioning complaint mechanisms.
For small and medium-sized businesses operating on tight cashflow cycles, withheld disbursements can quickly escalate into existential risk.
Automation vs Explanation
At the centre of many seller complaints is the perception that enforcement decisions are increasingly automated.
Sellers frequently describe receiving:
- template responses referencing policies without factual detail;
- inconsistent instructions across different support cases;
- repeated deadlines with no identifiable escalation pathway.
Automation undoubtedly allows platforms to manage large volumes of enforcement activity efficiently.
However, automation also creates risk where communication becomes formulaic rather than informative.
Under P2B principles, a “statement of reasons” should allow a business to understand:
- what behaviour triggered enforcement;
- what evidence was relied upon;
- and what corrective action is realistically required.
Without this clarity, appeals may become repetitive exercises rather than meaningful review processes.
Complaint Handling Systems Under Scrutiny
Article 11 of the P2B Regulation requires platforms to maintain internal complaint-handling systems that are:
- easily accessible;
- transparent;
- free of charge.
The system must also process complaints within a reasonable timeframe.
In practice, sellers often rely entirely on Seller Central case submissions as their only communication channel. Where responses are delayed or appear contradictory, businesses may struggle to determine whether complaints have genuinely been reviewed.
This is particularly challenging when enforcement overlaps with new compliance demands such as:
- product safety documentation requests;
- environmental reporting obligations;
- or identity verification checks.
The Regulation anticipates precisely this scenario — where complex compliance enforcement increases the risk of procedural opacity.
Confidentiality and Investigations
Amazon frequently emphasises confidentiality obligations when conducting investigations or enforcing policy breaches.
Protecting investigative integrity and preventing manipulation of enforcement systems is legitimate.
However, confidentiality does not remove the requirement to provide meaningful reasoning.
The balance required under P2B is delicate:
platforms must protect sensitive processes while still providing sufficient information for sellers to understand how to remedy issues affecting their accounts.
Where explanations remain limited or absent, disputes can escalate unnecessarily and prolong operational disruption.
Increasing Regulatory Pressure — and Increased Risk for Sellers
Recent UK regulatory developments have encouraged marketplaces to take a more proactive enforcement stance.
These include:
- stronger product safety oversight;
- expanding environmental compliance responsibilities such as Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR);
- wider expectations around fraud prevention and marketplace accountability.
As enforcement intensifies, sellers increasingly find themselves navigating multiple simultaneous compliance demands.
The risk is not simply suspension or listing removal.
It is uncertainty.
Businesses cannot correct problems they do not fully understand.
Where Legal Questions Arise
Whether individual cases amount to breaches of the P2B Regulation will depend on facts and evidence.
However, recurring concerns raised by sellers include:
- delayed or unclear statements of reasons;
- ineffective escalation procedures;
- prolonged verification processes without defined timelines;
- withheld funds combined with limited communication.
Where complaint handling systems fail to provide clear outcomes or explanations, platforms may face scrutiny as to whether procedural fairness obligations are being met.
For affected businesses, early legal advice can be critical in determining available remedies.
How Lawdit Solicitors Can Assist Amazon Sellers
Lawdit Solicitors has extensive experience advising online retailers, ecommerce businesses and digital entrepreneurs navigating disputes with online marketplaces.
Our commercial and intellectual property teams regularly assist clients with:
- Amazon account suspensions and reinstatement strategies;
- P2B Regulation complaints and escalation procedures;
- unfair marketplace enforcement disputes;
- brand protection and intellectual property claims;
- online trading compliance and contractual disputes.
Where necessary, we can assist with formal complaints, negotiation strategies and litigation preparation.
If your Amazon account has been restricted, payments withheld or listings removed without clear explanation, early intervention may significantly improve outcomes.
At Lawdit Solicitors, our e-commerce specialists are on hand to assist with issues arising on online marketplaces and other e-commerce platforms. We offer a free 30-minute initial consultation, which you can request via our “Book a Consultation” link. Once submitted, a member of our e-commerce team will review the details and get in touch with you to discuss next steps.
