eBay Account Suspended: Funds Held for 170 Days – What to Do Next?

When an eBay account is locked, all transactions will be suspended and the funds in the account may be held by eBay for up to 170 days. So what should you do in this situation? In this article, Hidemium will help you understand why your account was suspended, as well as how to prevent this situation in the future.

1. Why is my eBay account suspended?

eBay accounts are suspended primarily due to policy violations or unusual activity. To effectively resolve the issue, you need to understand the common causes of this situation:

• Policy violation: Selling prohibited items, making false descriptions, or failing to meet seller standards may result in account suspension.

• Abnormal activity: Using multiple accounts with the same IP address or having sudden unusual behavior will be flagged by the eBay system.

• Payment issues: Mismatched billing information, frequent refunds or late payments are also common causes.

• High dispute rate: Multiple negative feedback, returns or unresolved complaints will affect sales performance and lead to suspension risk.

Identifying these risk factors early is an important step in helping you address the problem at its root and prevent future risks.

>>> Learn more: Tips for managing multiple eBay accounts effectively and safely

2. eBay Holds Money for 170 Days – What Does That Mean?

After your account is suspended, eBay may hold all funds in your account for up to 170 days. This period of time helps eBay ensure:

• All disputes and complaints are fully handled.

• Buyers are entitled to a refund or reimbursement if necessary.

However, holding money for a long time will significantly affect the seller:

• Cannot withdraw money: Cash flow is interrupted, affecting the import of goods, advertising or maintaining business operations.

• Stop selling: Processing of pending orders or daily operations may be delayed due to lack of funds.

• Reputation impact: Prolonged disputes can reduce trust with buyers and partners.

Understanding why eBay holds funds for 170 days is key to effectively planning for your response and business recovery.

>>> Learn more: How to Increase Your eBay Selling Limit: A Safe and Effective Guide

3. Instructions for handling when eBay account is locked: Steps to take

When your eBay account is suspended, you need to stay calm and follow a structured process to increase your chances of getting access restored and protecting your account balance. Here are some important steps you should take:

Step 1: Read the suspension notice from eBay carefully

First, check your email or eBay account notification to understand why your account was locked. This notification will usually detail the reason for the lock and what you need to do to resolve the issue.

Step 2: Contact eBay support

Next, you should contact eBay customer service via Dispute Resolution Centeror official support channels. Be prepared:

• Request specific information about why the account was locked.

• Submit verification documents if requested.

• Ask for details on next steps to recover your account.

Step 3: Provide verification documents

Depending on the reason for your account suspension, eBay may ask you to provide some documentation to prove the legitimacy of your account activity. Some commonly requested documents include:

• Government issued identification (ID card/CCCD, passport...).

• Business registration certificate (if the account belongs to a business).

• Import invoice, receipt proving origin of goods.

Step 4: Fix the root cause

To ensure your account doesn't get locked again, you should identify and address the root cause of the suspension, such as:

• Edit product descriptions or content that violate eBay policies.

• Improve seller performance by improving customer experience, handling complaints and negative feedback.

• Increase account security, especially if you're using multiple eBay accounts. Combine that with tools like Hidemium helps you stay anonymous, avoid eBay detection, and manage multiple stealth accounts more efficiently and securely.

4. How to withdraw money before 170 days on eBay?

In some special cases, sellers may be able to get paid by eBay sooner than the 170-day mark. To increase your chances of success, keep in mind:

• Proactive dispute resolution: Be quick to resolve any issues that arise with buyers, such as refunds, complaints, or negative reviews. Maintaining a high satisfaction rate will help build your reputation with eBay.

• Contact eBay directly: You can submit a support request and clearly explain your situation. While approval is not guaranteed, being cooperative and following the policy may help eBay consider an exception.

• Timely feedback: Regularly check your email and eBay account notifications to make sure you don't miss any verification requests or system updates.

Demonstrating professionalism, transparency and initiative is always an important factor in helping you build trust with eBay – thereby increasing the chance of withdrawing money earlier than the regulations.

5. How to reduce the risk of your eBay account being locked in the future

Prevention is always the best strategy to protect your account and keep your revenue safe. Here are some effective ways to keep your business running smoothly and avoid eBay account suspension:

5.1. Compliance with eBay policies

Take the time to familiarize yourself with eBay's policies and guidelines. Make sure your listings don't violate policies — avoid prohibited items, misleading descriptions, or behavior that could get your account flagged.

5.2. Maintain excellent sales performance

A healthy account starts with customer satisfaction:

• Always provide clear, honest descriptions with high quality images.

• On-time delivery with transparent tracking code.

• Handle customer inquiries and complaints promptly and professionally.

5.3. Manage separate working environments for each account

Operating multiple eBay accounts can expand your business opportunities, but it is against eBay policy. To avoid the risk of being banned, you need to ensure that each account operates in a separate environment, including:

• Use clean IP, never linked to old eBay accounts.

• Set up a separate browser fingerprint for each account.

Note:

• Proxy should be preferred over VPN due to the ability to assign individual IPs to each profile, and more flexibility in changing location.

• As for fingerprinting, you can't fully customize it with the free extensions available. Instead, use dedicated anti-detection browsers like Hidemium.

With Hidemium, each profile created has its own set of browser and IP parameters via proxy, allowing you to manage multiple eBay accounts more efficiently, minimizing the risk of being locked out. This method also supports creating eBay stealth account– ideal backup solution when main account is suspended for 170 days.

5.4. Proactively handle problems

Quickly resolve any disputes, complaints or refund requests from customers to maintain seller ratings, thereby limiting the situation of accounts being monitored or suddenly locked.

6. Conclusion

Having your account locked and your funds held for 170 days is a big challenge, but it is completely possible to overcome it if you understand how eBay works, apply the right procedures, and take early precautions. With the right strategy, you can not only protect your account but also grow your business sustainably on eBay.

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