Counterfeit Policy

Policy
Counterfeit items are illegal, deceive buyers, and degrade community trust across the platform. Given this, we do not permit the listing, sale, or giveaway of counterfeit items on Whatnot. Sellers are responsible for ensuring the authenticity of the items they sell on Whatnot, and they must be prepared to provide proof of authentication for items sold, given away, or listed

Counterfeit items include:

• Any item that intentionally deceives a buyer into believing it is an original item, typically by using a brand’s name, logo, or other intellectual property without the brand owner’s consent
• Replicas that imitate an authentic item by using a brand’s name or logo when the item doesn’t originate from that brand (or a manufacturer on their behalf)
• Any item with intentionally falsified features (e.g. fake signatures)
• Branded items with the branding hidden or obfuscated to intentionally circumvent detection (e.g., blurring an item’s trademark)

What to do if you think you’ve received a counterfeit item

If you believe you have received a counterfeit item, you can report the item in-app under your Purchases tab. To ensure we handle counterfeit claims quickly, we require buyers to submit their refund request for an item suspected of being inauthentic within 30 days of receiving their order (regardless of category or item). For more on this, check out our Buyer Protection Policy.

You may be asked to provide additional information, including photos. In many cases, we ask for the item to be returned to our warehouse for further review. If we are unable to confirm authenticity, you will receive a full refund for your item. If we find that the item is authentic, we will send it back to you at no cost.

In cases where we cannot confirm authenticity, you will still receive a full refund. Unfortunately, the determination of authenticity is not always straightforward, but we are always working to enhance our authentication expertise, using both human expertise and technology.

What does this mean for sellers?

Counterfeit items that are sent to our warehouse will not be returned to the seller, and sellers will be billed back for the total cost of these items to refund buyers, including order value, tax, and shipping. In addition, Whatnot will issue enforcement actions to sellers identified listing, giving away, or as selling counterfeit items. See What Actions We Take for more.

Whatnot will work to provide any information properly requested by law enforcement to prosecute sellers who sell counterfeit items on Whatnot. Selling items that do not comply with our IP policy is also strictly prohibited. If you are a brand or rights owner concerned about copyright or trademark infringement or counterfeit items, please review our IP policy page.