This happened to me yesterday. I’m definitely trying to file a lawsuit
Topic summary
Multiple merchants report their Shopify stores being deleted without notice, with customer payments withheld and little explanation.
Shopify cites “risk” or violations of its Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) and says decisions are final, offering no details. Support repeatedly defers to a non-contactable “risk team”; deleted .myshopify.com links cannot be reused.
Reported impacts include undeposited funds (one merchant: $1,500; others: $15,000 and $40,000), lost advertising spend, pending orders, and loss of access to dashboards and domains.
Outcomes vary: one merchant’s store was restored after a carefully worded email; another received funds back after a couple of months but was barred from opening a new account. Others remain suspended with no payouts or customer refunds.
Several participants discuss organizing or joining a class action; a link was shared, and a 2024 update seeks interested parties.
Key terms: AUP = Acceptable Use Policy; “risk team” = Shopify’s internal fraud/compliance reviewers; “payouts” are merchant disbursements; “chargebacks” are bank-initiated reversals.
No clear resolution across cases. Major open questions are why specific stores were flagged, how to expedite funds release or refunds, and whether any formal appeal path exists.