How should sellers respond to Amazon inbound performance alerts?
Open the affected shipment’s Problems or Problem Summary view, identify every cited problem type, and match it to the shipment, box, SKU, label, prep, quantity, safety, or tracking evidence. Correct the underlying process before acknowledging the alert or submitting a dispute.
Amazon’s current guidance explains that notifications can be generated by problem type and may be issued at product or shipment level. A product-level alert can concern shipment creation for the affected product, while a shipment-level alert can affect broader shipment capability, so classify the scope before planning the response.
Build an inbound alert case record
- Record store, shipment ID, shipment name, receipt date, alert date, problem type, affected SKU or box, and quantity.
- Save the packing plan, box-content records, measurements, labels, prep photos, tracking, carrier documents, and warehouse handoff evidence.
- Compare Amazon’s captured details with the shipment version that physically left the warehouse.
- Assign each defect to supplier packing, warehouse prep, labeling, carrier data, shipment creation, or catalog ownership.
- Choose acknowledge only when the cited problem occurred; choose dispute only when evidence supports a factual disagreement.
- Record the corrective action, owner, effective date, retraining evidence, and next shipments selected for verification.
Correct, acknowledge, or dispute with evidence
Use the Inbound Performance dashboard, report, Shipping Queue, and shipment Problems tab to understand the pattern before responding. Fix the operational cause—such as missing tracking, incorrect box labels, unplanned prep, quantity differences, safety problems, or invalid carton data—across every open shipment that shares the process.
If the finding is correct, document and acknowledge it through the available workflow after the control is changed. If it is factually incorrect, submit the specific shipment evidence requested and track the resulting case. Do not acknowledge solely to clear a screen or dispute every defect without unit-level evidence.
Use an inbound-alert checklist
- The alert is tied to the correct shipment, product, box, problem type, and receipt event.
- The physical shipment evidence is preserved before systems, labels, or supplier records change.
- The root cause and correction owner are identified beyond the immediate alert response.
- Acknowledgement and dispute decisions match the facts and the current workflow.
- Notification preferences and responsible inboxes are monitored for inbound problem alerts.
- Subsequent shipments are checked to confirm the same defect does not recur.
Scope and exceptions
Amazon lists multiple inbound problem groups, including tracking, delivery timing, product and box labels, prep, quantity, safety, placement, damage, expiration, listing, restricted-item, and routing issues. Available acknowledgement, dispute, coaching, and restriction steps can differ by problem type, account, program, and marketplace.
Review Amazon’s current [Inbound performance notifications](https://sellercentral.amazon.com/help/hub/reference/external/GKHEKK2WJN9KABZQ?locale=en-US) and [Inbound problem summary](https://sellercentral.amazon.com/help/hub/reference/external/G200893760?locale=en-US). Do not confuse receiving delays with a seller defect, and do not use shipment-reconciliation evidence to answer a different prep, labeling, tracking, or safety finding.
Related Amazon seller guides
- [Audit Send to Amazon packing templates before replenishing](https://amazonmargincalculator.cloud/blog/amazon-send-to-amazon-packing-template-audit)
- [Audit an Amazon Partner Carrier shipment before pickup](https://amazonmargincalculator.cloud/blog/amazon-partner-carrier-inbound-shipment-audit)
- [Reconcile Amazon FBA inbound shipment discrepancies](https://amazonmargincalculator.cloud/blog/amazon-fba-inbound-discrepancy-check)