Hi! I need some help. Wayfarer denied my PokéStop nomination, saying it was a duplicate, but there’s no existing PokéStop that matches the one I submitted. What can I do?
Option 1 is to appeal.
Option 2 is to give the details here and hopefully a member of staff will see it.
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Welcome to the forums 
It’s possible for something to be correctly marked as duplicate if there is an existing wayspot that represents the same object. An easy example would be playground equipment. If someone submits a slide then a roundabout, these both represent the playground, so the second will be marked as a duplicate of the first.
It’s also possible your exact submission is already a wayspot, but isn’t appearing as a pokestop/gym due to inclusion/density rules
If you cannot tell what your submission might have been marked as a duplicate of, you could go to the physical location and see what is showing. If you can’t see it on the Pokemon Go screen, go into the submission screen and check the map for what is hidden. This might help you find it.
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If you give the location (gps coordinates are best) and a screenshot of the title and main photo from your contributions page, someone here may be able to check for you if there is indeed an existing Wayspot for the point of interest. But this server is public if you would rather not reveal your location.
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Hi @MsMandyB
Welcome to the forum from me aswell 
I wanted to detail @salixsorbus suggestion a bit in case you’re not familiar with it.
If you start a nomination in Pokémon Go than your first screen will be the location map. Be sure to turn the toggle “show duplicates” on. Than in your near surrounding (100m?) any existing wayspot is shown as an orange exclamation point or a blue poke symbol. You can click on each to look what it represents. But be aware that this only works on side and not remote! You have to be there in person.
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Please note that you will also see imported powerspots on this location map. These are not relevant and will not cause a wayspot submission to be marked as duplicate, since they are not shown to reviewers.
The safest way to know something is an imported powerspot is if it has no photograph and no description. This isn’t 100% accurate, but generally good enough.
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Thanks for all the tips! 
I’ll try submitting it again. But my boyfriend mentioned that some people on Reddit said they got banned for suggesting PokéStops. I’ll look into it… I really don’t want to risk getting banned just for a nomination.
There is always more to the story than what you see on Reddit.
If you have any concerns about your nomination, you can post it in Nomination Support
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You won’t.
You might get banned for abusing the system. Examples would be using AI to create fake wayspots, submitting wayspots at the wrong location because the real location is blocked by an existing wayspot, using a voting ring to get garbage approved, spamming the same junk submission again and again and again and again.
When people say on reddit they got banned for suggesting Pokestops and don’t provide any more information (or even if they do), they are lying by omission. They are failing to own up to the abuse they attempted. This is the internet and it is to be expected that people are not honest on social media. (off-topic: Sorry Reddit, but you are, regarding the U16 ban in Oz)
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Yes, I read about it on Reddit too. Someone started a discussion claiming they got a suspension notice based on an image showing their license plate, but the suspension notice email they later shared stated it was due to misplaced of the submission. It seems that person had misplaced of the submission before as well. They just got what they deserved for being dishonest.
Submit honestly and always double-check after submission. Then you won’t have anything to worry about.
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@salixsorbus thank you, guys!
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Did you check if there is unused wayspot that doesnt appear as pokestop?
That’ll not work. If it’s already rejected as a duplicate, nominating it again won’t change the result.
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Only after its verified that it isn’t an actual duplicate. We don’t need to exhaust a limited resource and employees time when it could very well be user error.
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Unless it was an incorrect decision. Either way it needs to be verified first.
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If we read the same thread they’d also provided false information on their submissions
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I didn’t read it, my boyfriend did. And I guess he only told me half of it, because he told me just the account getting blocked for trying to suggest a PokéStop
I probably should have put them the other way round and worded better. Meant it more as…
One option is to give the details here and hopefully a member of staff will see it.
Another is to appeal.
I will. thank you
You should not get bans for legitimate attempts. If you do, there is a course of action to discuss those privately with staff. Using faked photos, misplacing nominations, or spamming ineligible candidates are common things people get in trouble for.
I hate jumping in to an ongoing discussion, but just wanted to make sure you understand what could be the duplicate situation. There is a sort of “behind the scenes” map that everything approved goes to and then PoGO may pull PokéStops and Gyms from after applying a proximity filter.
During the submission process through Pokémon GO, make sure you look at nearby Wayspots:
You can select some of the “!” to see if any of them match your nomination:
As mentioned earlier, if you feel comfortable sharing the location, we can check the online map for you and help understand why it might not be showing up for you.
Cheers!
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