Enforcement: what actually happens, and when
An honest map of Wehoz's enforcement actions (listing blocks, strikes, suspension) and how to appeal any of them from your dashboard.
title: "Enforcement: what actually happens, and when" description: An honest map of Wehoz's enforcement actions (listing blocks, strikes, suspension) and how to appeal any of them from your dashboard. topic: seller-help order: 52 updated_at: "2026-08-07" phase: live tags: [seller, enforcement, suspension, strikes, appeals] related: [code-of-conduct, performance-standards, listing-review-and-blocked-listings]
Marketplaces are usually vague about enforcement. We'd rather publish exactly what exists, including what doesn't exist yet, than let you find out the hard way.
Listing-level actions
These are automated and happen at publish time:
- Blocks. Restricted category, missing license, unauthorized reseller, MAP violation, retailer-hosted images. Each block carries a specific code and message; see Why a listing gets blocked or queued.
- Review queue. New sellers, low trust scores, flagged content, and review-tier categories get human review. A reviewer can approve, reject with a reason, or request changes.
- Rejections lower your trust score (−5 each), which makes future auto-approval less likely.
Strikes: the automated ladder
The one fully automated account-level penalty is the repeat-infringer policy: each DMCA notice upheld against you is a strike (and −25 trust score). At three strikes, your account is suspended permanently. Strikes do not currently expire or age off an account, so any three upheld notices meet the threshold. This is written into the seller agreement and executed by the platform without discretion. The full mechanics are published in the repeat-infringer policy.
Account suspension
Outside the DMCA ladder, suspension is a staff decision, not an algorithm. The agreement lists the grounds: agreement violations, illegal activity, repeated complaints, poor fulfillment record, fraud. A suspended account loses dashboard selling functions; obligations for orders already placed survive suspension.
Poor performance standing does not auto-suspend anything today. "Restricted" standing is a signal that gets staff attention, not a tripwire.
What we tell you
Application decisions, listing rejections and change requests, and dispute outcomes each generate notifications to your account email. Suspensions state a reason.
If you think we got it wrong: appeals
Wehoz now has a formal appeals process, built into the seller dashboard at /seller/appeals. It works even while your account is suspended. That is deliberate, because a suspension is exactly the decision you most need to be able to contest.
What can be appealed:
- A listing blocked at publish (restricted category, license, reseller authorization, MAP, image checks)
- A listing rejected in the review queue
- A product removed by staff. (If the removal was a DMCA copyright takedown, the legal route is a §512(g) counter-notice under our DMCA policy, not this appeal.)
- An account suspension or permanent ban
- A rejected seller application
- A DMCA strike you believe was recorded in error
- Your published performance standing
- Anything else, under "Something else"
How it works:
- File at /seller/appeals, pick the decision type and
state your case in your own words. You get a reference number (
WHA-…). - One open appeal per decision. You can withdraw an appeal at any time and refile later.
- A person, not the system that made the original call, reviews it. We may ask you for more information; appeals left waiting on an unanswered information request can expire.
- You get the outcome with the reasoning in writing, on the appeal page:
- Decision reversed in your favor. The enforcement is undone. An overturned suspension reinstates your account, including your listings and search placement.
- Decision stands. The reasoning tells you why.
On timing: we don't publish a committed turnaround, because we won't promise a clock we haven't built the machinery to guarantee. Every appeal lands in a staff queue that is worked continuously; the status on your appeal page is live and every status change is timestamped there.
Email still works, help@wehoz.com with your seller ID, but the dashboard appeal is the tracked route and the one we commit to answering with written reasons.