Google Merchant The URL is Unavailable for Claiming

In this article we cover two scenarios related to unavailable for claiming issue.

These are:

• URL Claimed At A Higher Level
• Domain Already Claimed By A Different Account

In both scenarios be very careful which steps you take to avoid potential loss of data, performance ora suspension.

URL Claimed At A Higher Level: Sometimes, you might encounter a message that reads, “The URL has been claimed at a higher level.” 

What does this mean? If, for instance, you have registered www.example.com in one account and are trying to register example.com (without the “www”) in another, you’ll run into this issue. Google sees www.example.com as sudomain for example.com. And all subdomains should belong to 1 account.

To rectify this:

1. First try to log in to the original account, and change the URL here (if needed). If you want to claim in another account, proceed with the below.
2. Ensure you genuinely want to claim the website under the new account.
3.  Proceed to claim example.com, exclusive of the ‘www’ prefix.
4.  During this process, Google will alert you that the URL is already associated with another Merchant Account. Now, press ‘continue’ and then select ‘verify’ again.

Caution! Switching your claim will result in the original account relinquishing its rights to the website. Consequently, all connected data feeds will cease to function. Furthermore, to maintain the website’s integrity, it’s advisable to operate only one Google Merchant Center account. Using several might lead to account suspension.

Domain Already Claimed By A Different Account: For Shopify users, you might be familiar with the prompt: “Your domain is already claimed by a different account.” If faced with this:

1. Try accessing the Google Merchant Center with every email address you possess here.
2.  If Google indicates no account exists, repeat the process for each email address.
3.  If you can not access Google Merchant Center with any account, then the account is likely registered under an @googleservices.com email, which can’t be used for direct login. Instead, you’d typically access this via the Google Shopping & YouTube app. Disconnecting the app might result in losing access to this email.
4.  In such a scenario, setting up a new Google Merchant Center account is the best way forward. Ensure you do this manually and not via Shopify. This proactive measure will prevent similar issues down the road.

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