Policy & process

What to do when Google keeps a policy-breaching review up

Sometimes the policy route runs out. That is not the end of your options, it is a change of strategy.

A refused report can feel like being told the review is fair. It is not. It means the reviewer who assessed the content did not find that it broke a rule they enforce.

Where a case genuinely cannot be won, the useful question becomes what to do with the rest of the profile, because the review will be read alongside everything else on it.

Send us the review and get an honest answer.

From £99 a removal, priced per review. No charge for the eligibility check.

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Give the review an answer

A calm, short reply is the single highest-value thing you can do, because future customers read the business response more carefully than the complaint.

Acknowledge, state what you have done, and invite a private conversation
Never argue the facts in public, and never name the reviewer
Keep it to two or three sentences: long replies read as defensive

Change the average, not the review

One review in twenty has far less effect than one in four. The most durable protection against an unremovable review is a steady flow of genuine ones.

Ask at the natural moment: at completion, at check-in, at renewal, not weeks later
Ask everyone rather than only happy customers, so the flow stays believable
Reply to positive reviews too: it shows the profile is active and engaged

Know when to stop

Repeatedly filing the same complaint helps nobody and can be treated as abuse. There is a point where the honest answer is that the review stays.

Re-report only when a new argument or new evidence genuinely exists
Where the review is a false statement from a real customer, take legal advice rather than filing again
Keep the evidence on file: a later change in the review or the account can reopen the case

Official Google documentation

Questions we get asked

Yes, where something changes: new records disprove a claim, the reviewer's account is actioned, or the same person posts again in a way that reveals a pattern.

No. Trading a refund or a discount for the removal of a review can be read as an incentivised review arrangement, which is itself against Google's policies.

It matters in proportion. The effect depends on how much other feedback you have, which is why a consistent review flow is the practical defence.

Review problemsGoogle refused to remove itGoogle refused your review report? Here is what a rejection actually means, how a second attempt should differ, and when to stop pursuing a removal.Read more Review problemsReplying to a reviewHow to answer a negative Google review, including while a removal request is pending: a structure that works, what never to say, and how replies are read.Read more Review problemsWhy Google keeps a reviewWhy Google refuses to remove negative reviews: opinion is protected, policy is narrow, and most complaints are not breaches. Understand the line before you spend money.Read more Policy & processProhibited review contentWhat Google prohibits and restricts in reviews, in plain English: the named policy categories, what each covers, and why a merely negative review is not a breach.Read more

Tell us about the review

Send the review or your Google Maps link on WhatsApp. We will tell you whether it breaks Google's rules, what a removal costs, and whether it is worth filing at all. The decision is always Google's, and the eligibility check is free.

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