Google confirmed a bug that wipes customer reviews from Google Business Profile listings once a suspended profile is reinstated. Marketing consultant Amy Toman flagged the pattern on LinkedIn: the listing returns to live status, but its accumulated reviews do not come back with it.
Google has acknowledged the problem and is working on a fix, though it has not given a timeline for resolution. Affected owners are advised to reply directly on their existing support ticket rather than file a new one, so the report stays tied to the original case record.
For a local business, review count and star rating function as ranking signals, not just trust cues. A reinstated pin with a wiped review history effectively resets years of accumulated proof, even though the underlying listing survived the suspension.
Barry Schwartz noted the pattern looks separate from a reviews-vanishing issue reported in July, though he was not certain the two are unrelated. Businesses coming off a suspension should screenshot review counts before requesting reinstatement.
Search Engine Roundtable reported this issue, based on Barry Schwartz’s August 24, 2026 article citing Amy Toman’s LinkedIn post.
