Amazon reimbursement policy: eligibility, timing and valuation

Amazon’s FBA inventory reimbursement policy governs eligible inventory losses and damage. A customer refund is a different event: it does not, by itself, prove that Amazon owes the seller a reimbursement. Start by identifying what happened to the inventory and which rule applies.

This guide helps you organize that review. The policy and eligibility displayed in your Seller Central account govern the claim; public announcements provide context. Open Amazon’s FBA inventory reimbursement policy in the marketplace where the event occurred.

Identify the event before checking eligibility

Separate shipment discrepancies, fulfillment-center loss or damage, customer-return issues and removal-order issues. Record the SKU or FNSKU, affected quantity, event date and the shipment, order or removal identifier. Each category can require different evidence and use a different date to start the filing clock.

Check the window in the correct marketplace

Do not apply one deadline to every discrepancy. Capture both the earliest eligible date and the final submission date shown for the claim type. A shipment date, delivery date, refund date and reported inventory-loss date are different starting points.

Amazon’s October 2025 claim-window announcement illustrates that submission windows depend on the event. Public Amazon pages also show differing return windows across contexts. We have not independently verified the signed-in policy for every marketplace, so this guide does not present those announcement figures as universal current deadlines.

Keep a dated copy or note of the rule you used, name the person responsible for submission and set a reminder before the final date. Review new discrepancies regularly rather than relying on an occasional historic audit.

Understand the valuation basis

Amazon’s manufacturing-cost announcement explains the valuation change for inventory lost or damaged before a customer order. The sourcing or production cost is distinct from retail price and can exclude logistics and other expenses. Verify the current definition and evidence requirements in your account before submitting a cost.

A pre-order loss rule should not be copied onto every post-order or return case. Record the valuation rule for the specific event and compare the issued reimbursement with that basis, rather than assuming the selling price is the amount due.

Reconcile before filing

Check whether inventory was found, a case is already in progress or a reimbursement was issued. Reconcile by identifier and quantity; a changed inventory balance alone does not explain the resolution. Keep the existing case ID if someone on your team or an external provider has already investigated.

A tool flag is a prompt to review evidence. Amazon decides eligibility and the outcome. The Rivet Rocket reimbursement preview shows how case records can be organized; confirm supported claim types and account access with the team.

Choose the next step

If the event is eligible and unresolved, use the claim-filing checklist. If you are choosing between self-filing and a service, review reimbursement fee models alongside the work each option includes.

Follow the claim-specific review

For order and return timelines, read the FBA returns reimbursement guide. For warehouse inventory events and restoration records, use the lost-inventory reimbursement guide.

Save a case log before you submit

Download the blank reimbursement case log (CSV). Keep one row per investigated event. It includes fields for identifiers, policy dates, evidence, prior resolutions, the filing owner and the outcome. It contains column headers only and does not determine eligibility or calculate deadlines.

Use your current Seller Central account to fill the route, required documents and claim window. Leave a field unverified until a source supports it. A tool-generated record and this checklist do not replace Amazon’s eligibility decision.