By Bernardo Campelo — Forbes Business Council E-Commerce Leader, Amazon SPN Certified provider, Amazon SP-API authorized partner, and Founder of PrepVia.
I have a running line with every seller I talk to. Amazon owes you money right now, and you are not going to ask for it. Most of them laugh. Then they go check. Then they stop laughing. The money is real, it hides in the gap between what you shipped and what Amazon actually checked in, and the window to claim it is shorter than most sellers think.
I have watched sellers leave thousands of dollars on the table on inbound shipments alone, not because the claims were hard, but because nobody reconciled the shipment and the clock ran out. So let me lay out where the money actually is, the deadlines that kill claims, and the one thing that decides whether you win a lost-inbound claim or lose it.
The 60-second version
When Amazon receives fewer units than you shipped, or loses and damages units inside a fulfillment center, you are owed a reimbursement. But you generally have to find it, document it, and file it before a window closes — and in 2026 the windows tightened and the payout math changed. Lost-and-damaged claims run on a roughly 60-day clock; inbound shipment discrepancies run longer. The seller who reconciles shipped-versus-received gets paid. The seller who trusts Amazon to catch everything does not.
The 2026 policy change that shrinks your refund
Per Amazon’s 2026 updates, reimbursements for lost and damaged inventory are now valued at your manufacturing cost rather than the retail price, which can cut a refund by half or more compared with the old method. The practical defense is to keep an accurate cost of goods on every SKU in Seller Central, because that number now drives what Amazon pays back. Confirm the current policy and values in Seller Central, because Amazon keeps adjusting them.
The deadlines that quietly kill claims
Most lost reimbursement money is not denied. It is never filed in time.
| Claim type | Typical window | What triggers it |
|---|---|---|
| Lost or damaged in a fulfillment center | About 60 days from the event | Amazon loses or damages a unit it was holding |
| Inbound shipment discrepancy | Longer — months from check-in | Amazon received fewer units than you shipped |
Treat those as approximate and confirm the exact current windows in Seller Central. The point is the same either way: file early, not at the deadline.
The one thing that wins a lost-inbound claim
Amazon does not reimburse a story. It reimburses evidence. For an inbound shipment that arrived short, a winning claim needs the bill of lading, carrier proof of delivery, the packing list, and an item-level record of exactly what shipped versus what Amazon checked in. That last piece is where a prep center matters. PrepVia’s scan-to-receive captures a per-unit record of what physically arrived, and the reimbursement view compares units shipped against units Amazon received and values the gap at the listing’s sale price — so the documentation is already built before there is a claim to file. How that receiving record works is in FBA inbound shipment tracking, and it is one of the thirteen tools every Amazon seller should expect from a prep center.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Amazon automatically reimburse lost or damaged inventory, or do I have to file?
Amazon auto-detects and reimburses some cases, but a large share of what you are owed requires you, or a service, to file a documented claim before the window closes. Relying only on auto-reimbursement leaves money on the table, so reconcile shipped-versus-received yourself and file the gaps.
How long do I have to file an FBA reimbursement claim?
It depends on the claim type. Lost or damaged in a fulfillment center is roughly a 60-day window, while inbound shipment discrepancies run longer. The windows have tightened, so confirm the current deadlines in Seller Central and file early rather than at the cutoff.
How does the 2026 manufacturing-cost policy change my reimbursement?
Amazon now values lost-and-damaged reimbursements at your manufacturing cost instead of retail price, which can reduce a payout by half or more. Keeping an accurate cost of goods on each SKU in Seller Central is now the difference between a fair reimbursement and a low one.
What documents do I need for a lost inbound shipment claim?
Typically the bill of lading, carrier proof of delivery, the packing list, and an item-level record of what you shipped versus what Amazon checked in. The item-level reconciliation is the piece sellers most often lack, and it is what turns a short-received shipment into a paid claim.
