Overview

Error 990103 is a listing compliance error that Amazon triggers when your product listing contains prohibited phrases in attributes such as titles, bullet points, or descriptions. Understanding this error is essential for sellers who want to keep their listings active and avoid suppression due to policy-violating language.

Key Points / What Sellers Need to Know

• Promotional language is flagged — Phrases like "best quality," "number one seller," and "best value" are considered unverifiable marketing claims and will trigger this error.
• Time-sensitive wording is prohibited — Terms such as "on sale," "limited time offer," and "special discount" are not allowed because they reference temporary conditions rather than permanent product attributes.
• Restricted claims cause rejections — Warranty claims, medical claims, and comparative advertising statements like "better than" or "superior to" will be caught by Amazon's compliance filters.
• Competitor references are banned — Mentioning competitor brands or products in a comparative context violates Amazon's listing policies.
• The error specifies the exact violation — The error message itself tells you which attribute contains the issue and identifies the specific prohibited phrase, making remediation straightforward.

How This Error Works

When Amazon processes your product feed or listing update, its compliance system scans each attribute field for language that violates content policy. If a prohibited phrase is detected, the system returns Error 990103 along with details about which attribute triggered the flag and which specific phrase caused the problem. The error message follows a standard format: it names the attribute, lists the offending phrase or phrases, and references the policy that was violated. This means sellers don't need to guess what went wrong — the error output provides a clear roadmap for fixing the issue.

How to Fix Error 990103

The first step is to check your feed processing summary report, which will identify exactly which attributes received the error and which prohibited phrases were detected. Once you know the specific violations, replace the flagged language with objective, factual product descriptions. For example, instead of writing "best quality shirt," you should use something like "cotton T-shirt with double stitching" — language that describes verifiable product features rather than subjective claims. All time-sensitive language should be removed entirely and replaced with permanent product features and benefits that don't reference temporary sales or promotional conditions.