The Little Auks (in the plural) do seem quite exceptional and certainly at this time of year young Auks and Puffins can be a confusion species, I remember last year a 'Little Auk' being reported at Cley in close company of a Razorbill. Also Great Shear is an extremely rarity off Norfolk and i would think a comprehensive description will need to be submitted to get it accepted - black cap, oil stain, flight action, rump pattern etc.
However at the end of the day what does it matter if reports of seabirds come through on the pager that people don't believe even if they are only a few miles along the coast. When birding i'm firmly of the belief that 'the birds i see are the birds i see' and everything else should be irrelevant. If there is a rare seabird being reported along the coast flying towards me, but which I don't see myself, i can think one of a number of things, the bird was misIDed, the bird was strung, the bird flew out to sea so i wouldn't have seen it flying past or i missed it flying past. Ive contended with all these views at one time or another but finally got into a headspace where i'm quite happy with what i see and don't really care whats going on around me - 'ok i missed a Cory's past Sheringham - (good vantage point, multiple observers) but I saw a few Sooties and a Pom instead'. Being cynical/critical/objective whatever you want to call it and dwelling on birds that others are claiming is simply going to get you down in the dumps.
So what does it matter if a few dodgy seabirds are reported and even slip into the bird report, with seabirds once they are gone you're never going to know if they were genuine or not even if you interrogate the person who saw them. Surely the main concern is being thorough and honest with yourself and making sure you don't fall into the same trap. Its easy to disbelieve reports from other the people but if you claim something good you can quickly be put in the same position.