On August 13 Mr Fryer was found to have sold an electric scooter for £485.99, just one week after posting a review of the same item on Amazon in which he described it as 'hands down my favourite toy'. While some of Mr Fryer's reviews were removed, no other action was taken. However, the company was told of Mr Fryer's suspicious activity since early August when one user emailed CEO Jeff Bezos directly when his initial complaints were ignored. The company's chief executive, Saoud Khalifah, told the FT: 'The scale of this fraud is amazing and Amazon UK has a much higher percentage of fake reviews than other platforms.'Īmazon has said it will investigate the recent findings and that is suspends, bans and sues people who flout its rules.Ī spokesman said: 'We want Amazon customers to shop with confidence, knowing that the reviews they read are authentic and relevant.' Online review analysis group, Fakespot, estimates that 58 per cent of products on the UK site had seemingly fake reviews in May. The UK watchdog estimates that such reviews influence £23billion worth of shopping in the country every year.Ī spokesman told the FT: 'We will not hesitate to take further action if we find evidence that the stores aren't doing what's required under the law.'

The Competition and Markets Authority launched a probe into suspicious online store reviews in May.

Amazon has said it will investigate the recent findings and that is suspends, bans and sues people who flout its rules (file photo)

Amazon fake reviews