Reimbursements (Lost & Found)
Detect lost, damaged, or overcharged FBA inventory and recover money from Amazon with SellerMagnet's automated reimbursement tracking system.
Difficulty: 🟡 Intermediate · Reading time: ~15 min
Open this page in your dashboard: Go to Reimbursements (Lost & Found) →
📋 Overview
Amazon's FBA warehouses occasionally lose, damage, or incorrectly charge your inventory. The Reimbursements tool (also called Lost & Found) automatically scans your FBA account for these discrepancies and helps you file claims to recover the money Amazon owes you.
FBA only: This feature is available exclusively for products fulfilled by Amazon (FBA). FBM sellers will see an informational overlay.
The opportunity is bigger than you think: Industry data suggests that 1-3% of all FBA inventory experiences some form of discrepancy : lost units, damaged goods, incorrect fees, or missing customer returns. For a seller doing EUR 500,000 in annual FBA revenue, that represents EUR 5,000 to EUR 15,000 in potential recoveries every year.
📊 Key Performance Indicators
Total Detected
Count and value of all detected discrepancies
Action Needed
Issues ready for you to file a claim
Claims Filed
Claims submitted to Amazon (pending resolution)
Total Recovered
Amount Amazon has reimbursed so far
Missed / Expired
Claims that were not filed before the deadline
Watch your "Missed / Expired" number. If this is growing, you are leaving money on the table. Set a weekly calendar reminder to review and file all "Action Needed" claims.
ROI / Impact Calculator
Use these benchmarks to estimate your potential recovery:
EUR 100,000
1-3%
EUR 1,000 - EUR 3,000
EUR 250,000
1-3%
EUR 2,500 - EUR 7,500
EUR 500,000
1-3%
EUR 5,000 - EUR 15,000
EUR 1,000,000
1-3%
EUR 10,000 - EUR 30,000
EUR 5,000,000
1-3%
EUR 50,000 - EUR 150,000
Real-world example: A mid-size seller doing EUR 800,000/year discovered that Amazon had lost 312 units across 47 ASINs over a 12-month period. Total recovered: EUR 8,740, money that would have been completely lost without automated detection.
📈 Charts
Recovery Trend
A line chart showing your recovery amounts over time (toggleable: monthly, weekly, daily).
Best practice: Review the Recovery Trend chart monthly. An upward trend in detections might indicate a problem with a specific warehouse or product category. A flat line at zero might mean your claim process needs attention.
Issue Distribution
A pie chart breaking down detected issues by type:
Lost Inbound
Lost in Warehouse
Damaged in Warehouse
Damaged Inbound
Customer Return
Overcharged Fees
Destroyed Without Permission
Quantity Discrepancy
Reimbursement Reversal
👣 Step-by-Step Example: Filing a Lost Inventory Claim
Scenario: Amazon lost 50 units of your top-selling yoga mat (ASIN: B09YOGA001) during a warehouse transfer from FBA Frankfurt (FRA3) to FBA Wroclaw (WRO2).
What you see in SellerMagnet:
Issue Type
Lost in Warehouse
Product
Premium Yoga Mat - 6mm, Purple
ASIN (Amazon Standard Identification Number)
B09YOGA001
Quantity
50 units
Unit Value
EUR 24.99
Total Value
EUR 1,249.50
Status
Action Needed
Detected Date
2026-03-15
Claim Deadline
2026-05-14 (60 days)
Steps to recover:
Click File Claim on the row.
The modal opens with pre-filled details (product, quantity, value).
Optionally add an Amazon Case ID if you have already opened a case in Seller Central.
Add Notes: "50 units lost during transfer FRA3 to WRO2, shipment ID FBA16XXXXX."
Click Submit.
SellerMagnet updates the status to "Claim Filed" and begins tracking the resolution.
Amazon typically responds within 5-10 business days.
Once Amazon reimburses, the status changes to "Reimbursed" and the amount appears in your Total Recovered KPI.
Pro tip: Include specific details in your notes, shipment IDs, transfer dates, warehouse codes. Claims with supporting details have higher approval rates and faster resolution times.
Claims Table
Checkbox
Select for bulk actions
Marketplace
Country flag
Issue Type
Color-coded badge (Lost, Damaged, Overcharged, etc.)
Product
Product name, ASIN, SKU (Stock Keeping Unit)
Actual Fee
Amount Amazon charged
Expected Fee
Correct amount (calculated)
Overcharge / Unit
Per-unit discrepancy
Occurrences
How many times this issue occurred
Total Overcharge
Total amount owed
Status
Status badge (see below)
Detected Date
When SellerMagnet detected the issue
Actions
File Claim, Dismiss
Status Badges
Detected
Blue
Issue found, pending review
Action Needed
Orange
Ready for you to file a claim
Claim Filed
Yellow
Claim submitted, awaiting Amazon response
Reimbursed
Green
Amazon has paid out the claim
Denied
Red
Amazon rejected the claim
Under Review
Purple
Amazon is reviewing the claim
Dismissed
Gray
You chose to ignore this issue
Expired
Dark Red
Claim deadline passed without filing
Tabs
All
Count
All detected issues
Action Needed
Count
Issues ready for claim filing
Claim Filed
Count
Claims submitted to Amazon
Reimbursed
Count
Successfully recovered claims
Dismissed
---
Issues you chose to ignore
Expired
---
Claims past the filing deadline
Filing a Claim
Click File Claim on any actionable issue
In the modal, optionally enter:
Amazon Case ID: If you have already opened a case
Notes: Additional context for your records
Click Submit to file the claim
Bulk Claims
Select multiple rows using checkboxes and click Bulk File Claims to submit them all at once.
Pro tip: Use bulk claims during your weekly review session. Select all "Action Needed" items, file them in one batch, and move on. This turns a 30-minute manual process into a 2-minute task.
Claim Filing Checklist
Use this checklist every time you file a claim to maximize your approval rate:
🔍 Filters
Marketplace
All Marketplaces, or select specific
Timeframe
L7D, L30D, L90D, MTD, YTD, L6M, L12M, ALL, Custom
Issue Type
Lost Inbound, Lost Warehouse, Damaged, Customer Return, Overcharged, etc.
Status
Detected, Action Needed, Claim Filed, Reimbursed, Denied, Dismissed, Expired
📤 Export & Reports
Export CSV: Download all claims data with filters applied
Generate Report: Create a PDF/Excel summary of all claims and recoveries
Best practice: Generate a monthly reimbursement report and include it in your P&L review. Recovered funds are often overlooked in financial planning but can meaningfully impact your margins.
🔄 Before & After: Impact of Automated Reimbursement Tracking
Issues detected per month
2-5 (manual spot checks)
15-40+ (automated scanning)
Claim filing time
20-30 min per claim (manual)
2 min per claim (pre-filled)
Recovery rate
10-20% of eligible claims
80-95% of eligible claims
Expired/missed claims
60-80% of eligible issues
Under 5%
Monthly time investment
4-8 hours
30-60 minutes
Annual recovery (EUR 500K seller)
EUR 500 - EUR 1,500
EUR 5,000 - EUR 12,000
Seasonal & Timing Advice
Q4 (October-January): Amazon warehouses process dramatically higher volumes during peak season. This means more transfers, more receiving errors, and more lost/damaged inventory. Expect a 2-3x increase in detected issues during Q4. Check your Reimbursements page twice per week during this period.
Post-Prime Day (July): The weeks after Prime Day often show a spike in customer return discrepancies. Customers return items but Amazon may not properly restock them to your inventory. Monitor "Customer Return" issue types closely in the 30 days after major sale events.
January: Run a complete review at the start of each year. Filter by "ALL" timeframe and look for any "Action Needed" items from the previous year that might be approaching their 60-day claim deadline.
⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid
Mistake 1: Dismissing issues without investigation. When you see a small discrepancy (e.g., 2 units lost), it is tempting to dismiss it. But these small issues add up. A seller with 500 SKUs might have hundreds of small discrepancies that total thousands of euros.
Mistake 2: Filing claims without checking the details first. Always verify the issue before filing. Occasionally, Amazon corrects a discrepancy on their own (e.g., units found during a warehouse audit). Filing a claim for an already-resolved issue wastes your time and may flag your account for excessive claims.
Mistake 3: Not following up on "Claim Filed" items. A claim sitting in "Claim Filed" status for 60+ days may have fallen through the cracks on Amazon's end. Open a follow-up case in Seller Central referencing your original case ID.
Mistake 4: Letting claims expire. Amazon has a strict filing deadline (typically 60 days). Once expired, there is no recovery possible. Use the "Expired" tab as a learning metric, if you see items expiring, increase your review frequency.
Mistake 5: Not including your reimbursements in financial reporting. Recovered funds should appear in your P&L. Many sellers treat reimbursements as "bonus income" when they are actually cost recovery that directly impacts your gross margin.
## 🔧 Troubleshooting
My claim was denied: what now?
Read the denial reason carefully. Amazon provides a reason code. Common reasons include: "No discrepancy found," "Already reimbursed," or "Outside claim window."
Check for partial reimbursement. Sometimes Amazon reimburses a portion of the claim. Compare the reimbursed amount to the original detected value.
Gather additional evidence. If you have shipping receipts, BOLs, or photos that prove the discrepancy, open a new case in Seller Central with this evidence attached.
Re-file with more detail. Some sellers successfully recover denied claims by re-filing with specific shipment IDs, FBA receiving records, or third-party shipping confirmations.
Escalate if necessary. For high-value denied claims (EUR 500+), consider escalating through Amazon's Seller Support management chain.
Why am I seeing "No issues detected"?
Your account may be clean. Not all accounts have discrepancies at all times.
Check your marketplace filter. You may be viewing a marketplace where you have no FBA inventory.
Allow initial scan time. After first connecting your account, the initial scan can take 1-2 hours to complete.
Check your date range. If you are filtering by "L7D" (last 7 days), there may be no new issues in that window. Try "L90D" or "ALL."
The detected value seems wrong: why?
SellerMagnet calculates the claim value based on your product's average selling price and Amazon's reimbursement policies. If the value seems too high or low:
Check if the product's price has changed recently.
Verify the unit count: one high-value item lost is different from one low-value item.
Amazon may reimburse at a different rate than your selling price (they use their own valuation formula).
I filed a claim but the status has not changed for weeks.
Amazon's response time varies. During peak periods, it can take 30-60 days. If a claim has been in "Claim Filed" for more than 45 days:
Open Seller Central and search for the Case ID you entered when filing.
Add a follow-up message asking for a status update.
If the case is closed without reimbursement and you disagree, re-open it with additional details.
❓ FAQ
How far back does SellerMagnet scan for discrepancies?
SellerMagnet scans your FBA transaction history going back up to 60 days, which aligns with Amazon's maximum claim filing window. Issues older than 60 days cannot be claimed.
Does SellerMagnet file claims automatically, or do I need to approve each one?
You must approve and submit each claim (or use bulk filing). SellerMagnet detects and prepares the claims, but you maintain full control over what gets filed. This protects you from filing erroneous claims that could flag your account.
Can filing too many claims get my account flagged?
Filing legitimate claims based on actual discrepancies is within your rights as a seller. However, filing claims that are later found to be invalid can draw scrutiny. Always verify the issue before filing. SellerMagnet's detection accuracy is high, but a quick sanity check is recommended.
What is a "Reimbursement Reversal"?
A reversal occurs when Amazon initially reimburses you but later claws back the amount, usually because they found the inventory or determined the claim was invalid. SellerMagnet tracks reversals so you can dispute them if you believe the reversal is incorrect.
How does SellerMagnet detect "Destroyed Without Permission" issues?
Amazon occasionally destroys inventory that it deems unsellable (damaged in warehouse). If Amazon destroys your units without explicit authorization from you, SellerMagnet flags this as a claimable event since you are entitled to reimbursement for unauthorized disposals.
Does this work for all Amazon marketplaces?
Yes. Reimbursements work for all Amazon marketplaces where you have FBA inventory. NA (US, CA, MX), EU (DE, FR, IT, ES, UK, NL, SE, PL, BE), and other supported regions.
What is the difference between "Lost Inbound" and "Lost in Warehouse"?
"Lost Inbound" means Amazon received your shipment but some units never appeared in your inventory, they were lost during the receiving/check-in process. "Lost in Warehouse" means units that were already in your FBA inventory went missing, typically during internal transfers between fulfillment centers.
How quickly should I file a claim after it is detected?
File within the same week if possible. While you have up to 60 days, filing quickly has two advantages: (1) the evidence trail is fresh, making approval more likely, and (2) you recover the funds sooner, improving your cash flow.
💡 Tips
Pro tip: Check your Reimbursements page weekly. Amazon has a limited window for filing claims (typically 60 days), and issues detected early are easier to resolve.
Deadline awareness: Pay attention to the expiration badge on action-needed items. Claims approaching their deadline are highlighted with an orange warning.
Pro tip: Set a monthly calendar event titled "SellerMagnet Reimbursement Review." During this 30-minute session, file all pending claims, follow up on claims older than 30 days, and review any denied claims for re-filing potential.
Pro tip: Cross-reference your reimbursements with your inventory management data. If a product frequently shows up in reimbursement claims, it may be stored in a problem warehouse. Consider adjusting your shipping plan to route inventory to different fulfillment centers.
➡️ What's Next?
Fee AuditInventory PlannerLast updated