Amazon's liability
insurance rule
Short answer. From 2 November 2026, Amazon.com requires commercial liability insurance for products in enhanced safety categories, such as children's products, cosmetics, ingestible products and lithium batteries, at any sales volume. The policy needs at least US$1 million per occurrence and in aggregate, a deductible of US$10,000 or less, and Amazon named as an additional insured. Every other product still triggers the requirement at US$10,000 a month in Amazon.com sales.
What changes on
2 November 2026?
Until now, Amazon.com asked for commercial liability insurance once a seller passed a sales line. Under section 9 of the Business Solutions Agreement, you need a policy within 30 days of any month in which your Amazon.com gross proceeds exceed US$10,000. Below that, most sellers never uploaded a certificate.
Amazon announced on 3 September that from 2 November 2026 a second trigger applies. If you sell products in a category with enhanced safety listing requirements, you need a policy covering those products whatever your sales volume, on new and existing listings. The US$10,000 rule stays in place for everything else.
That moves the requirement from revenue to product. A supplement brand doing US$3,000 a month on Amazon.com used to sit outside the rule. From 2 November it sits inside it.
Which products count as
enhanced safety categories?
Amazon's notice gives three examples and says the categories include, but are not limited to, them:
- Children's products
- Cosmetic and ingestible products
- Lithium battery products
The full list sits on a Seller Central page that needs a sign-in. A copy reproduced by SellerEssentials and reported by PPC Land lists eleven groups: children's products; consumable and ingestible products; fire-related products; general household devices, including small kitchen appliances; home medical devices; lithium battery products; outdoor power and heating equipment; personal safety equipment; sleep products such as mattresses; transport-related products such as tires; and water and marine safety products.
For the brands we work with, the second group is the one that matters. Food, drink, supplements and skin care fall under the cosmetic and ingestible examples Amazon names. Check each ASIN against the list in your own Seller Central account before you decide you are outside it.
What does the policy
have to include?
The new trigger uses the same policy standard Amazon already sets for sellers over US$10,000 a month.
| Requirement | What Amazon asks for |
|---|---|
| Limit | At least US$1 million per occurrence and US$1 million in the aggregate |
| Policy type | Commercial general, umbrella or excess liability, written on an occurrence basis except for certain product categories |
| Scope | Covers your products sold on Amazon.com |
| Additional insured | Amazon.com Services LLC and its affiliates and assignees |
| Deductible | No more than US$10,000, shown on the certificate of insurance |
| Insurer | Global claims handling, with an S&P rating of A- or an AM Best rating of A- or better (or a local equivalent) |
| Named insured | Matches the legal entity name on your seller account |
Upload the certificate in Seller Central under Settings, then Account Info, then Business Insurance. Sellers based in Mainland China have a separate change: from 2 November they must buy through the Amazon Insurance Accelerator, and Amazon will reject other newly submitted policies.
Does this apply to
Canadian brands?
Amazon's notice is about sales on Amazon.com. I could not find an Amazon.ca announcement of the same change, so I would not assume the rule applies to Canadian sales. I would not assume it never will either.
A Canadian brand selling into the US through Amazon.com is covered for those US sales. A Canadian food or supplement brand in its first months on Amazon.com, still under US$10,000 a month while it builds reviews, sat outside the old rule. It sits inside the new one.
The practical issue is the policy you already hold. A Canadian commercial general liability policy written for domestic retail may not meet every line in the table above. Two questions settle it, and your broker can answer both:
- Does my policy cover product liability claims from US customers, with a limit of at least US$1 million per occurrence and in aggregate, and a deductible of US$10,000 or less?
- Can you add Amazon.com Services LLC and its affiliates and assignees as an additional insured and issue a certificate showing all of it?
If either answer is no, you need a new or extended policy before 2 November. We are not an insurance broker, and this is general information. Confirm your own position with a licensed broker.
What happens if you
don't have it?
Amazon's notice does not say. Sellers on Amazon's forum have asked whether Amazon will notify affected accounts or whether they should watch Account Health, and no answer has been posted.
Seller reports describe an email asking for proof, a 45-day window to supply it, and then deactivation of listings in the enhanced safety categories, with listings in other categories left alone. Amazon has not confirmed it, but it is the path I would plan for.
A deactivated listing stops selling and stops your Sponsored Products ads on that ASIN at the same moment. For a brand whose hero SKU is a supplement or a snack, that can be most of the account. Weigh that against what the policy costs.
What to do
before 2 November
Check 01
List your Amazon.com ASINs by category
Export your active Amazon.com listings and mark any that fall into the enhanced safety categories. Use the list in your own Seller Central account, since Amazon says its published examples are not complete.
Check 02
Open Business Insurance in Seller Central
Go to Settings, then Account Info, then Business Insurance, and see what Amazon has on file. If there is no certificate, or it has expired, start there.
Check 03
Send your broker the two questions
Ask about US product liability cover, the US$1 million limits, the deductible cap and the additional insured wording. Ask for the certificate in the format Amazon checks.
Check 04
Match the names
Amazon asks for the named insured on the certificate to match the legal entity on your seller account. Check the spelling and the entity type before you upload.
Check 05
Watch Account Health after you upload
Look for the status to move from Submitted to Verified Successfully, and keep an eye on Account Health and your email for an insurance request through November.
If you sell only on Amazon.ca, none of this applies to you today. Watch Seller Central news for an Amazon.ca notice.
Common questions
Do I need liability insurance to sell on Amazon.com if I sell less than $10,000 a month?
From 2 November 2026, yes, if any of your products sit in a category with enhanced safety listing requirements, such as children's products, cosmetics, ingestible products or lithium battery products. Outside those categories, the existing rule still applies: you need cover within 30 days of a month in which your Amazon.com gross proceeds pass US$10,000.
Are supplements and food covered by the new rule?
Amazon's notice names cosmetic and ingestible products as examples of enhanced safety categories, and food, drink and supplements are ingested. Check your own ASINs against the category list in Seller Central, because Amazon says its examples are not the full list.
Does the rule apply to Amazon.ca?
Amazon's notice covers sales on Amazon.com. I could not find an Amazon.ca announcement of the same change. A Canadian brand selling on Amazon.com is covered by the rule for those US sales.
Where do I upload my certificate of insurance?
In Seller Central, go to Settings, then Account Info, then Business Insurance. The status reads Submitted after upload and Verified Successfully once Amazon has checked it.
What happens if I don't have the insurance by 2 November?
Amazon's notice does not say. Seller reports describe an email asking for proof, a 45-day window, and then deactivation of listings in the affected categories. Plan as if listings in the affected categories could be deactivated, and get the certificate in before the date.
- Amazon Seller Forums (News_Amazon): New Commercial Liability Insurance Requirements effective November 2, 2026
- PPC Land: Amazon forces $1M insurance on safety-category sellers regardless of sales (category list and enforcement reports)
- Helium 10: Amazon seller insurance requirements (policy terms and upload path)
- EcomCrew: Amazon's new insurance rules hit small sellers in 11 categories
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