Google can't say when it will rule on your review appeal. Answer the review now.

A med spa gets a one-star review from someone who was never a client. The owner reports it, waits, then files an appeal. And then nothing happens.

This week Google said that is how it is going to be for a while. If you are waiting on Google to take down a review, plan for it to stay up, and act like it.

What happened

On October 20, Search Engine Roundtable reported that review appeals on Google Business Profiles are delayed again. In a post on Google's Business Profile help forum, Dan Boguslavsky from Google's team wrote, as reported by Search Engine Roundtable:

• "Due to high volume of review related appeals, processing times are currently extended."
• "As of this time, we cannot provide a specific response timeframe for pending cases."

The same post, as reported, asks owners not to file a duplicate appeal. Once you have submitted one, no further action is needed. Search Engine Roundtable notes Google delayed review appeals before, in March 2025 and December 2025.

For context, here is how the process works on Google's own help page, "Report inappropriate reviews on your Business Profile." Only reviews that break Google's policies can be removed, and Google says: "Do not report a review just because you disagree with it or dislike it." You report a review, and if it is not removed, "submit a one-time appeal." The page says, "Review evaluation typically takes several days." Right now, by Google's own account, it takes longer, and nobody can say how long.

A second item this week is a test, not a launch. On October 23, Search Engine Roundtable reported that some Google sponsored results show a scrolling marquee that loads ratings and reviews, number of visits and a visit site link. It was spotted by Alex Greenland, who said he saw it on "about 5% of searches." Google has not confirmed it.

Source: Search Engine Roundtable, October 20, 2026; Google Business Profile Help, "Report inappropriate reviews"; Search Engine Roundtable, October 23, 2026

What it means for your business

A review you think is fake or unfair is not gone because you reported it. It is on your profile, next to your stars, for every person who looks you up this week and next.

Those people do not know you appealed. They see the review, and they see whether you answered. Silence reads like you did not notice or did not care. A calm, factual reply reads like a business that pays attention.

Customers read your reply long before Google reads your appeal.

Now add the test. If Google keeps putting ratings and reviews inside sponsored results, your star rating stops being something people find after they search. It becomes part of the ad. The reviews you have, and how you answered them, travel with your ad spend.

We wrote about this from another angle: an AI assistant reads your reviews alongside your website and listings and lines them up. People and software are both reading the same page.

What to do this week

None of this needs a new tool. It needs an hour and a calm head.

1. Do not file the appeal twice

   If you already appealed a review, leave it. Google asks owners not to file duplicates. Check its status in Google's Reviews Management Tool instead.

2. Reply to the review now

   Keep it short. State the facts without arguing. If you have no record of the person, say so plainly and invite them to contact you directly. Google's tips say "Never share a reviewer's private information or engage in personal attacks."

3. Reply to the good ones too

   A profile where the owner answers reviews looks cared for. Keep replies "conversational, not promotional," as Google puts it.

4. Ask happy customers for a review

   Google lets you share a review link or QR code. Ask everyone, not only the ones you expect to be kind, and never offer anything in return. Google's policy calls incentives for reviews "strictly prohibited."

5. Only report real policy violations

   Google only removes reviews that break its policies. A fair complaint you dislike will stay up, and reporting it only adds to the pile Google is already behind on.

A note on the rules, as background. The FTC's rule on fake reviews and testimonials went into effect on October 21, 2024. According to the FTC, it bars buying reviews that must say something positive or negative, posting fake ones, and using groundless legal threats or intimidation to get a review taken down. This is not legal advice. If a review situation turns legal, talk to a lawyer, and read the FTC's own questions and answers page.

This is part of What You Missed, our weekly read on the marketing news that matters to business owners. See the full week: /blog/what-you-missed-week-of-october-19-2026

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Sources

• Search Engine Roundtable, "Google Business Profiles Review Appeals Are Delayed Again," Barry Schwartz, October 20, 2026. seroundtable.com
• Search Engine Roundtable, "Google Ads Tests Scrolling Marquee Style For Ratings/Reviews & Underlines," Barry Schwartz, October 23, 2026. seroundtable.com
• Google Business Profile Help, "Report inappropriate reviews on your Business Profile," undated help page, accessed October 25, 2026. support.google.com
• Google Business Profile Help, "Tips to get more reviews," undated help page, accessed October 25, 2026. support.google.com
• Federal Trade Commission, "The Consumer Reviews and Testimonials Rule: Questions and Answers," November 2024 (background). ftc.gov
• Federal Trade Commission, "Federal Trade Commission Announces Final Rule Banning Fake Reviews and Testimonials," August 14, 2024 (background). ftc.gov