Absolute nightmare with Etsy Trust & Safety and their support

[ScottishWoodDesign]

On Monday I was asked to update some details to do with my tax information, I have a registered business incorporated and my accountant provided me with all the correct information which I uploaded to Etsy. 

I gave them my company number which in Scotland has an SC in front of it, my confirmation statement, my passport ID, my UTR number, my NI number, and even more documents that prove I own the business, that its registered and everything is legal. 

They put my account in holiday mode on Monday night and have sent me 3 emails telling me to send them my company number again, each time I send it they ask me to resend it. 

You only have to type in my company number in google and all the same information comes up on companies house. I do not see why Etsy is having such an issue with this or why they have to lock my shop while they figure it out. 

My main concerns are that they have said in 24 hours they will withdraw my selling privileges, when they have already withdrawn them, they have asked for information which I gave them on Monday, Tuesday and today. 

There seems to be no actual human dealing with this and I no longer have access to the help centre or to call back so I can not have someone look at the error and correct it. I had access to the help centre, but as soon as they put me in holiday mode I lost access. 

If Etsy is going to keep doing these types of IT things which cause accounts to be locked indefinitely they should at least make sure they have the staff to deal with it and some way of allowing a customer to speak directly to them when there are urgent matters. 

By my estimation I have lost £800 while Etsy has repeatedly asked me to send my business name and company number. It hasn't changed, it was the same each time I sent it, it works, if they have some issue with it and spoke to me in person I could instantly put them right, from my end everything is correct. 

I haven't been able to sleep for 2 days worried about this as I just want to speak to someone at Etsy and get them to unlock my store, I have done nothing wrong. 

Now I have to worry that they will permanently close my store because they perhaps don't understand the paperwork they were given or don't have someone who can just action it and make a decision, 

It should not take 4 days to type in a company number in a search and verify my business. 

I cant believe that Etsy can just do this to someone's livelihood, they could at least let me carry on selling why they find someone to verify my paperwork, I had 10 days anyhow. 

This is mad

[DaysLongGone]

I hope you get the help you need and get your shop reopened soon!  I have no faith in support any longer.  I am still waiting for my issues to be resolved after sending all the security info they requested on Sept. 29th.  I have tried to get a response a couple of times since then and I have not heard anything. Oh, I did have a message on October 14th stating they were aware I may not have received a response and to let them know if I still have an issue.  I replied the issues have never been addressed.  I am still waiting for a response!  

There are some major issues I see daily where sellers are not receiving the support needed and are left hanging.  This could be one reason sales are down because sellers are buyers, too.  If a seller/buyer has this much trouble getting support, they are most likely telling friends, family and other sellers what a mess Etsy’s support has become and it could be causing people to shop elsewhere.  Buyers could be afraid if they have an issue with an order, they will have no support getting it handled.  

[ScottishWoodDesign]

If they don't fix it soon I will be doing a youtube video about this to show my 500,000 subscribers, 

Every detail I gave them is correct, 

Are you saying your shop has been closed since September?

[Amaradorn]

I can't offer any advice but just wanted to say I'm sorry this is happening to you. I live in fear of something similar happening to my shop. Every time I visit the forums I just get frustrated by the apparent incompetence of the support system and lack of effective communication. I hope you get a resolution soon.

[ScottishWoodDesign]

@Amaradorn If they just spoke to me I would clear it up in 5 seconds, 

They email me each night at 1am asking me the same question as the night before, 

"can you send your business name and company number"

Each night I reply with the business name and company number and then they do the same again the next day. 

The most frustrating part is that they think my shop is still running and aren't fixing it - they actually give you time to give them the information before putting the shop in holiday mode (10 Days) - I uploaded the info they asked for, they could not understand the format even though it is the exact format they asked for, so they locked my shop. 

Now I am in Limbo, I cant even access the AI help desk which as a star seller I have access to usually. 

[DaysLongGone]

@ScottishWoodDesign  My shop is not closed.  I am just not getting my issues resolved.  I have spent way too much time back and forth with support and each time it is a different person and each one has different questions they want me to answer.  The last time (Sept 29th) I had Trust and Safety asking numerous security questions and I am still waiting for them to reply and take care of my issues.  

[LeLightFantastique]

I'm really sorry about your situation which is totally unacceptable by any standards. 

Sadly, this is just one of the results when badly programmed/cost-cutting/inferior quality/untested/unverified AI is given free reign to run a business with little human intervention. 

[thatregina · Accepted solution]

Hello @ScottishWoodDesign and @DaysLongGone, I've escalated your respective issues to the correct teams. Please keep an eye out for a follow up on your most recent open tickets. Account and support issues can only be resolved directly and privately, so I'll close this up in the meantime. Best wishes to you both, and thank you @Amaradorn and @LeLightFantastique for offering support here.