Unclaimed

Unclaimed #26: Google Reviews Disappearing? Two Bugs Hit GBP in July 2026. Here's What to Do.

Your Google reviews are disappearing. Your replies have vanished. Your review count is wrong.

It's not just you. In July 2026, Google Business Profiles were hit by two separate bugs — and a third issue is still active as I write this.

One bug removed thousands of reviews overnight. Another made reviews invisible in dashboards. The latest makes your replies disappear — so prospects think you never responded.

If you run an accounting or bookkeeping firm, this hits you harder than most. You have fewer reviews. Each one took years to earn. And the silence makes you look unresponsive at exactly the moment prospects are checking.

Here's what's happening, why it matters, and exactly what to do — before you lose proof of what existed.

This month has been brutal for businesses that rely on Google reviews. I've been tracking the reports across the GBP community, industry experts, and search publications. The pattern is clear: Google's review systems are glitching, and business owners are paying the price.

For accounting firms, the damage is amplified. You don't have hundreds of casual reviews like a restaurant. You have a handful — each one representing a years-long professional relationship. Lose five reviews? That could be half your social proof. Gone overnight.

The three issues — what's actually happening

Bug 1: Reviews deleted by spam filters (Early July 2026)

In early July, businesses started reporting reviews vanishing from their profiles. Not one or two. Hundreds. Thousands.

One business dropped from over 4,600 reviews to 63 in a single day.

Google confirmed their automated spam-detection systems had removed reviews and paused new ones on affected profiles. Incorrectly removed reviews would be restored — but no timeline was given.

This is not a display glitch. If your reviews were caught in this sweep, they are gone until Google restores them.

Bug 2: Dashboard shows "No reviews" (Around July 9, 2026)

A second bug hit shortly after. Business owners logging into their dashboards saw "You have no reviews yet" — even on profiles with dozens of verified reviews.

For most, the reviews still appeared on the public listing. The dashboard simply wasn't displaying them. A display-layer bug. Frustrating, but not permanent.

Bug 3: Review replies invisible (Late July — STILL ACTIVE)

The third issue is still active. Business owners can't see their own replies to reviews.

Old replies — published months or years ago — are gone from the dashboard. New replies aren't publishing. But here's the strange part: the replies are often visible when you're NOT logged into Google.

Incognito window? Replies show. Logged in? They vanish.

Google Product Experts have confirmed this is a known bug. Google is working on a fix. No timeline.

For accounting firms, this creates a specific problem. You may have replied to every review — and now prospects see silence. They don't know you responded. They don't know Google broke it. They just see a firm that looks like it doesn't care.

An example from my audits

I audited a three-partner accounting firm earlier this year. They had 17 Google reviews. Not a huge number — but genuine. Clients of 8, 12, 15 years. Detailed testimonials naming partners and describing specific ways the firm helped.

Every single review had a personal reply from the partner who handled that client.

During a routine check this month, six of those replies were gone. The reviews were still there. The replies had vanished. A prospect scrolling through would see six clients pouring their hearts out — and complete silence from the firm.

The partner who wrote those replies had no idea. He only found out because I checked.

Most accounting firms don't check their GBP dashboard weekly. By the time you notice something is wrong, you've already lost days or weeks of social proof.

What this means for accounting firms

After auditing over 300 firms, here's why these bugs hit you harder:

Smaller review counts. Lose 50 reviews on 500? A 10% drop. Lose 5 on 10? A 50% drop. Most accounting firms have 0-10 reviews. Every single one is proportionally enormous.

Harder to replace. A restaurant can ask every diner for a review. You can't ask every client. Your reviews represent years of trust. You can't rebuild that in a week.

Responses are part of the product. Prospects read your replies. They're looking for evidence you're responsive, professional, and engaged. When Google hides your replies, it hides exactly what prospects want to see.

You probably won't notice. Partners check the dashboard rarely — if at all. The bug could be active for weeks before anyone spots it.

What to do right now — today

1. Check your PUBLIC listing immediately.

Open an incognito window. Search your firm name. Look at your profile the way a prospect would.

Are your reviews visible? Are your replies there? If yes — it's a dashboard-only bug. Your prospects can still see everything.

If reviews or replies are missing from the public view — document it now.

2. Screenshot everything. Right now. Today.

Capture your review count. Your star rating. Your most recent reviews. Every reply you've written. Save them with dates.

If reviews are permanently removed and you need to appeal, dated proof is what wins. If you wait, you lose the evidence.

3. Do not re-respond to reviews.

If your replies disappeared, do not post new ones. When Google restores the originals, you'll have duplicates. It looks unprofessional and confuses prospects.

4. Pause review requests.

If you're actively asking clients for reviews, stop until the bugs are confirmed fixed. New reviews may not publish. Asking a client to leave a review that vanishes is worse than not asking.

5. Export your reviews via Google Takeout.

Go to takeout.google.com. Select Google Business Profile. Export your data. This creates an offline backup. If anything is permanently lost, you have a record of what existed.

6. Check the Maps mobile app.

During earlier bugs, replies were sometimes visible in the Google Maps app even when hidden on desktop. Worth checking.

What not to do

Don't contact Google Support unless reviews are permanently deleted. If it's a display bug, Support can't help. The fix is on Google's end. Wait.

Don't delete old replies and repost. You'll create duplicates when the originals are restored.

Don't stop engaging with new reviews. The bug affects existing replies. New replies may or may not publish. Keep responding — when the bug resolves, your history will be intact.

Don't assume it's permanent. Google has acknowledged the issues. They will be fixed.

The bigger lesson

Your Google Business Profile sits on Google's ground, not yours. Google can break it, pause it, or wipe the display overnight. Your website and your own data are what you actually control.

The firms I've audited that handle reviews well don't just reply — they document. Monthly screenshots. Regular exports. They treat reviews as business assets that need protection, not content that lives on someone else's platform.

The bugs will pass. The systems you build now will protect you during the next one.

And there will be a next one.

Once the bugs are fixed

When Google confirms the issues are resolved:

If reviews were permanently removed and not restored, file an appeal with Google Support using your screenshots as evidence. Reference the July 2026 bugs.

This is Unclaimed #26 — a field guide to the July 2026 GBP review bugs, written specifically for accounting and bookkeeping firms. Built from official Google statements, industry reports, and patterns observed across 300+ accounting firm audits.

Unclaimed is written by the founder of VindMyBusiness. I audit Google Business Profiles for accounting and bookkeeping firms. I find the gap between excellent reputations and invisible Google profiles — and write about what I discover. No firm names. Just patterns.

Not sure if your reviews are actually gone or just hidden? Get a free GBP Scorecard — I'll personally check your profile and tell you exactly what prospects are seeing right now. Takes 2 minutes. No cost. No pitch.

Prefer to handle everything yourself? Everything I know is in the free GBP Masterclass — 25 lessons built from 300+ real audits. No signup. No email capture. Just the exact steps.

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