I am a professional seller on Vinted and I am among the top sellers in France (this is just to provide context, not to brag) on the platform.
Two days ago, my account was suspended for 30 days following a report of non-authentic product. I want to clarify that all my products are authentic.
The origin of this problem seems to be the use of artificial intelligence by the brand VEJA to identify and report listings, which leads Vinted to suspend accounts immediately.
Two major problems arise here:
1. Management of large accounts by Vinted
Immediate suspension without analysis: How can Vinted suspend an account with a significant performance history (like mine) without prior consultation, explanation, or in-depth analysis of the case?
Lack of dedicated Pro support: It is regrettable that as a major seller (and a significant source of revenue for the platform), we do not have access to dedicated and direct professional customer service. We could, however, provide valuable assistance in the platform’s development.
2. The power of brands and unfair competition
Abuse of reporting: Can brands eliminate second-hand sellers so easily, potentially to protect their market share on new items (thinking that Vinted sellers take market share even if, for me, Vinted consumers and boutique consumers are not the same)? It’s as if a craftsman would shut down their competitor without valid reason, simply through an automated report and reclaim the market. This process is too simple and allows for unfair competition.
Consequences for professional sellers:
This type of suspension is an existential threat for those for whom it is their main activity. In my case, the SARL (limited liability company) still runs in terms of expenses but no longer in terms of revenue (2 people to pay, company costs, and the entire business) overnight, based solely on an automated report.
The purpose of this message is twofold:
Inform the community about what is really happening on the platform and the risks, even when you are irreproachable.
Seek feedback: If anyone has already faced this situation, your feedback on how you managed to get out of it would be extremely valuable.
Thank you all for reading and for your help. Have a great day!
First of all, good luck to you. I went through the same thing as you about a year ago (automatic report on two branded items, Patagonia in this case); and, although I wasn’t at the same stage of development as you, it affected me quite a bit both financially and emotionally.
Two of my items of this brand were deemed to be counterfeits; by the time I sent the inner label demonstrating that these items were authentic, I was permanently banned. I later understood that this ban was not due to a human report, but to recognition by an algorithm, an AI, like you. After some research, I thought I understood that it was more active on weekends (employees being off). This brings me to my question; were the items that led to your ban posted during the weekend?
Regarding the lack of dedicated support, I agree with you 100%. Nothing is done to support professional sellers; in my case, I had all the elements to demonstrate that their decision was unfounded (if not abusive); but despite everything, it was impossible to make myself heard (I tried email, support contact, registered letter to headquarters… nothing worked). I imagine that unless you have a contact there, it is very difficult to be heard. I find Vinted’s moderation policy very problematic because it punishes sellers in good faith with arbitrary and unfair decisions.
To get out of this situation, having exhausted all avenues of appeal (except recourse to a justice of the peace/mediator; I now think that’s the best avenue to explore, but I had abandoned this path after a few unanswered emails), I had no choice but to wait for them to delete my banned professional account (about 3-4 months) to create a new one with the same SIRET as the old one. But your situation seems more urgent than mine; perhaps you could close your company and reopen it to have a different SIRET; but again, I don’t know if that will work at the national identity card level. In the meantime, I had started selling through my personal account; that allowed me to continue working for a while.
Good luck to you. A fine illustration of what we already know, even if it always hurts when it happens: any professional activity relying on the goodwill of a platform is extremely risky.
Solutions: be multi-platform; develop your own site… Which requires thinking about your business differently, as @anon90966608 regularly points out.
In the meantime, a stopgap measure is to sell via a personal account. With two employees, not to mention spouses, that makes a few personal accounts to manage.
How did you manage to be certain? Indeed, if we want the community to be able to react to an « exceptional » attack, solid proof is needed.
I don’t have the experience of the PRO sellers here, but if your accusations are solid, it would be worth contacting the FEVAD ( Federation of E-commerce and Distance Selling) because this would be a conflict between sellers (VEJA and you) that potentially concerns other resellers on Vinted (possibly many).
Uniting to defend your rights would be a good way to combat these practices if they are proven.
my statements are unfortunately very true since Vinted sent me a message saying I was blocked, mentioning « the entity owning the VEJA trademark rights has reported your listing via our services etc… » found in the attachment
The core of the problem lies primarily in Vinted’s TOTAL lack of verification and the impossibility for sellers to defend themselves. This is alarming…
Given the financial impact on your business, and especially if you are 100% certain you are in the right, I think you need to reach out to parties who can offer legal advice: a lawyer, FEVAD. And prepare for a potentially long battle…
You can always try emailing legal@vinted.fr or sending appeal messages, but well… we know Vinted
Another possibility would be to try to alert Vinted employees via LinkedIn. We know the power of social networks, and I have 1-2 examples in mind of people who managed to get an error escalated high enough at Vinted for them to correct it (unfortunately, I cannot name them here).
I hope this post will help bring together others in your situation. We are stronger together.
Hi, I saw your answer and wanted to know when you talk about deleting your account, is it account information or the full account? And following a request or not? Thanks
Hello! When I talk about account deletion after a ban, I mean the complete deletion of my banned account. This means that when I wanted to log in, I would no longer find myself on my banned account in question; instead, I would get a message indicating that my account did not exist. I was then able to recreate a pro account (I assume that, along with the deletion of my account, they also deleted the SIRET - pro account association from their database).
Interesting, did you explicitly request this account deletion from support (as we see happening on other threads, often with a refusal)?
Also, did you reconnect to the banned account during these four months? Did you reuse the same email to reopen an account with your previous SIRET? Where did you switch your personal account used during this period?
Finally, did you take any precautions regarding the device used to connect or your IP address?
I apologize in advance for this barrage of questions, but testimonials from users who have reused their SIRET number are almost non-existent
For once, it was really burnt, Kiss Comix issues (original Spanish version) and a small Elvifrance format I’ve already had items removed on eBay, but they at least have the good sense to go about it gradually.
No, yes (to transfer my current funds, for example; then other times to check that I was still banned, so regularly), yes (same email and same SIRET, even the same name and same profile picture hahaha), I kept it for personal use just in case, no
I’m joining the discussion. If I understand correctly, you recreated your professional account after the 4 months, using the same device and IP address as your previously banned pro account?
If so, that’s interesting to know as a pro seller, in case we face this kind of situation one day. Reading all the comments on this subject, I get the impression that Vinted is heavy-handed when it comes to bans…
That’s right. Same email, same IP, same name, same profile picture; I guess my old account was completely erased from their database. I’m not sure about the exact duration between deletion and recreation, but I could find it if needed.
Vinted isn’t lenient with bans, yes. But I feel like it’s gotten better since.
It’s the same for me, I’m a Vinted pro seller and I’ve been banned too. I don’t get a say either. I was blocked by stüssy.ipr@zeal.corsearch.com. I appealed and provided all proof of authenticity (I’ve been selling this brand for 4 years, I could spot a fake among 1000 authentic items, so I’m sure my item is authentic). But because it’s the brand in question, Vinted doesn’t listen to anything; they side with the brand.
I think the same, given that I’m a pro seller and I only sell Stüssy, I’ve become one of the biggest accounts on the platform selling this brand, which directly competes with the brand in question. So, it’s easier for them to get me banned.
@ev45@Dripped_vintage is there any update on your situations? Have you taken any legal action? I am not in the same context as you both but I might be soon I’ve done quite a lot of research and I am quite sure some of these practices by vinted are illegal…
Many sellers tend to think they have rights on Vinted…
Hey there… you’re forgetting one essential thing… and it’s not at all negligible…
**Vinted is a private platform!
It therefore has the right to do whatever it wants as long as it’s legal.**
Who says private… it can let in and out whom it wants, when it wants, and without having to give an explanation.
So… you have to realize that one day or another, a seller or buyer can be banned and there will be no recourse to force the platform to accept you back.
(Ok, unless you have money in your wallet, to get it back)
But in principle, Vinted or any other platform could refuse you access.
A platform is not obligated to accept you!
So… if a seller bases their business activity SOLELY on 1 single platform, they are taking a huge risk… their business could even stop overnight.
It’s like a service company that only has one (large) client.
From one day to the next, the client stops the contract… How will the company survive?
So, it’s better to have several small clients than one big one that ultimately controls your activity…
It is a private company but that doesn’t mean they can act illegally.. of course they can shut the platform and they can do as they wish but not without consequences if then challenged in tribunal. Vinted have already lost several tribunals in Europe. Competition laws exist to avoid bad practice, monopoly on the market, price fixing etc. There are also laws around the use of AI and practices like shadow banning…
I’ve already had items removed on eBay, but they at least have the good sense to go about it gradually.
I’ve done quite a lot of research and I am quite sure some of these practices by vinted are illegal…