CNN: With rising costs and supply chain issues, retailers are considering paying customers to keep unwanted items

[Teh_Lurv]

CNN published an article that retailers, facing rising costs and a crunch of available storage space, are considering adopting "returnless return" to avoid having to deal with the cost and hassle of dealing with returned items.

In recent weeks, some of the biggest store chains, including Target (TGT), Walmart, (WMT) Gap (GPS), American Eagle Outfitters (AEO) and others have reported in their latest earnings calls that they have too much inventory of stuff ranging from workout clothes, spring-time jackets and hoodies to garden furniture and bulky kids' toys. It's costing them tons of money to store it.

Now add on to that glut another category of product that stores have to deal with: returns. So instead of piling returned merchandise onto this growing inventory heap, stores are considering just handing customers their money back and letting them hang onto the stuff they don't want.

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"They're already discounting in stores to clear out products but, when there's heavy discounting, buyer's remorse goes up. People are tempted to buy a lot to only return it later," he said.

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The high cost of retail returns is well documented: Businesses almost always take a loss accepting a return, even if that return is later re-sold. In addition, many returned items can't be re-sold, so they wind up in landfills sometimes half a world away in poorer countries.

While I think this idea is a step in the right direction, it ultimately is putting the burden onto the consumer who is stuck with an unwanted item. While consumers could donate these items to charity, I suspect most people will simply take the money and toss the items into their trash bin.

Just keep your returns: Stores weigh paying you not to bring back unwanted items

www.cnn.com

Void my return ERA if old.

 

[Hollywood Duo]

Amazon has been doing this for years.

 

[TheLastOfPizzaCrUSt]

'Yeah i dont want this PS5-free Ps5 and $$$!'

 

[teruterubozu]

Refunding customers while simultaneously letting them keep their returns isn't a new practice, said Rop. "It started with Amazon several years ago," he said.

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I remember Amazon doing this, but I haven't had that option in a while. They're pretty much return label all the time now.

 

[BassForever]

Amazon has been doing this for years.

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Yep, heck I got the wrong item, they sent me another item... that was also wrong, and then just gave me my money back saying they were out of the thing I wanted.

 

[Yoshimitsu126]

Damn I should have just returned an empty box and kept my second light saber last month.

 

[PanzerKraken]

Yea Amazon has done this for years because it's not worth the costs of returning and having to then get rid of the product or get it to a liquidator.

Online returns is expensive, shipping is ridiculous and most companies take loss on shipping (free shipping, low flat rates). Even negotiated special rates companies get, they are often eating costs to offer cheap shipping options, but to return a package is gonna just be full price shipping hits that are often more than the item returned. Then to get rid of said item which often can't simply be resold? It's all just piles of huge amounts of waste sadly.

 

[mrmoose]

This is better than the alternative, which is tracking returns from multiple merchants and then refusing returns if you've found to be a serial returner (or banning your account like amazon seems to do if you're really bad at it).

 

[ThatCrazyGuy]

Amazon and Walmart have been doing this for years. They have just told me to keep lower cost items and gave me the refund, lol. Not all the time, but sometimes, I want to be clear.

I usually just donated the item or it got chucked into the closet.

 

[Otheradam]

I've never had the option to keep anything from Amazon if I try to return. Not even a cheapo $10 phone case.

 

[Kensation]

I don't want an 16" MacBook Pro

 

[Kemal86]

Wayfair has done this to me with some damaged items in the last 2 years. It's actually obnoxious because there is frequently no option to just get a replacement part, which was not the case ~2018. "Here's $72.21, fuck off" Ok cool, my shelf still has a giant dent in it??

 

[a Master Ninja]

This is better than the alternative, which is tracking returns from multiple merchants and then refusing returns if you've found to be a serial returner (or banning your account like amazon seems to do if you're really bad at it).

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The article says that this will only increase because retailers want to protect themselves from people abusing this.

 

[t26]

This is better than the alternative, which is tracking returns from multiple merchants and then refusing returns if you've found to be a serial returner (or banning your account like amazon seems to do if you're really bad at it).

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They are probably still doing that, they don't want customers who are costing them money.

 

[Deleted member 2802]

Amazon has been doing this for years.

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Yea Amazon has done this for years because it's not worth the costs of returning and having to then get rid of the product or get it to a liquidator.

Online returns is expensive, shipping is ridiculous and most companies take loss on shipping (free shipping, low flat rates). Even negotiated special rates companies get, they are often eating costs to offer cheap shipping options, but to return a package is gonna just be full price shipping hits that are often more than the item returned. Then to get rid of said item which often can't simply be resold? It's all just piles of huge amounts of waste sadly.

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They do? In Canada they just take the returns and throw them out or sell them en masse by palette or shipping container.

 

[Hollywood Duo]

They do? In Canada they just take the returns and throw them out or sell them en masse by palette or shipping container.

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Depends on the item but yeah

 

[ParanormalFupa]

I like how this is the solution over them simply buying less shit to alleviate storage issues. It's like a giant garbage racket.

 

[Deleted member 93062]

Supply shock 🙏

 

[Devilgunman]

There's gotta be price threshold for this policy, otherwise people will exploit the heck out of this.

The offer makes sense for some types of products -- lower price-tier bulky items like furniture, kitchen appliances, home decor, baby chairs, walkers, strollers where it's costly for the retailer to cover the shipping cost for the return.

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I'm looking for an airfryer right now. If I'm an asshole, I would just order one then request a return to get it for free.

I've never had the option to keep anything from Amazon if I try to return. Not even a cheapo $10 phone case.

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This. I just returned a $10 picture frame and they still have the policy that they wouldn't refund until item is received. Took me 3 week after dropping off to get my money back.

 

[Teh_Lurv]

I like how this is the solution over them simply buying less shit to alleviate storage issues. It's like a giant garbage racket.

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TBF, part of the problem is retailers are having a hard time keeping up with changes in consumer spending due to the pandemic. IIRC, Target is currently deep discounting a lot of stuff they bought that sold well during the height of the pandemic that are now sitting on shelves.

 

[Perkin_Warbeck]

I've only had this happen once with amazon. It was an a $10 or so item. It's since sat in a cupboard because I don't have any use for it.

 

[Hollywood Duo]

There's gotta be price threshold for this policy, otherwise people will exploit the heck out of this.



I'm looking for an airfryer right now. If I'm an asshole, I would just order one then request a return to get it for free.

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I think its more than price. My wife ordered a wooden planting box/trellis thing for our back yard. It came with the box split open and a chunk taken out of one of the wood supports. Cost almost $100. They said keep it, probably because of the expense of return shipping something so heavy.

 

[Aske]

They do? In Canada they just take the returns and throw them out or sell them en masse by palette or shipping container.

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I've been told to keep things and not bother returning them several times.

One would hope that rather than ban serial returners, they'd just switch to asking those people to return items rather than keep them. I really hope returns don't become like "unlimited" data for cellphones, which is really just 15-20 GB at normal speeds, then throttling for the rest of the month.

 

[Deleted member 2802]

I've been told to keep things and not bother returning them several times.

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What's an example of something?
In Canada they will not allow food returns anymore I think

 

[PanzerKraken]

I like how this is the solution over them simply buying less shit to alleviate storage issues. It's like a giant garbage racket.

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They are buying less. The problem is they got too much too get rid of right now. You got target stores with 18 wheeler containers sitting back unloaded cause they got no room to stock stuff in store. Warehouses are packed, they got old unwanted product everywhere they need to get rid of now before they can bring in more. Orders for lots of products are being cancelled left and right, taking losses as well on many contracts at the sametime.

 

[LewieP]

Citation needed on shops taking a loss on returns.

Unless the calculation is being done deliberately ignoring that net spending decreases without the peace of mind of a reasonable returns policy.

People are more likely to spend money in the first place if they know a refund will be an option if they change their mind.

This is why so many retailers offer refund policies that go beyond legal requirements in the first place. Many stores even explicitly market themselves around their refund policies.

 

[Otheradam]

I think its more than price. My wife ordered a wooden planting box/trellis thing for our back yard. It came with the box split open and a chunk taken out of one of the wood supports. Cost almost $100. They said keep it, probably because of the expense of return shipping something so heavy.

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Yeah, it usually has more to do with weight than anything. I bought a wine fridge that was around $130 and hand leakage problems. The company just told me to cut the power cord and send them a photo of it. They just sent me a whole new fridge because it would have cost the same amount to ship the bad one back to them.

 

[Aske]

What's an example of something?
In Canada they will not allow food returns anymore I think

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Last thing I remember was a screwdriver - it was listed as being one size but was actually another, ~$10 I think, and they told me to keep it. Quite a few books that have arrived in bad condition due to stupid packaging, although that was several years ago.

 

[PanzerKraken]

TBF, part of the problem is retailers are having a hard time keeping up with changes in consumer spending due to the pandemic. IIRC, Target is currently deep discounting a lot of stuff they bought that sold well during the height of the pandemic that are now sitting on shelves.

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Lot of it is fears of supply issues, big retailers spent big on ordering large amounts of product in fear of not having enough for holidays, having trouble getting restocks, and so on. Huge orders and surplus of items ordered, many chartering their own vessels to bring product to make sure they would have inventory and no shortages. But with how muted sales have been and the downturn in the economy, stores are dealing with the huge amounts of unsold goods. Lot of this all goes back to the panic buying during the holidays last year, which screwed over so many smaller companies as these big retailers went hog wild on ordering and stuffing the supply channels with orders and shipping containers.

 

[The Albatross]

This is fairly common especially with apparel. A ton of returned apparel is sent to the dump because:

a) It's too costly to verify, sort, clean, and re-list at a reduced/used price
b) Brands don't want to flood discount/2nd hand/rack/outlet stores, cheapening the perceived value of their newest items

I think it was PlanetMoney that had a good episode about the return phenomenon and fashion.

No such thing as a free return : Planet Money

Lenient policies have shoppers making more returns than ever — around half a trillion dollars worth of products. Today, we find out the fate of some of those returned goods.

www.npr.org

My friend bought a fishing kayak + pedal drive on Amazon like 18mos ago or so, he bought the warranty through whoever Amazon's warranty insurance company is. About a year later, the pedal drive stopped working... not from damage, but something happened, something in the gears broke, he couldn't fix it, and when trying to take it apart to fix it a bolt sheered straight off (probably from some underlying rust). This was a ~$2000 kayak + pedal drive, the pedal drive is very hard to get a replacement for, and so he filed a warranty return. Kayaks are in short supply since the pandemic and replacement pedal drives, most don't even exist because they're made for a specific model to fit a specific plastic molding. So, instead, they refunded him $2000+, he got to keep the kayak which was in perfect condition, and buy a new one entirely w/ a new pedal drive.

So now he's probably going to add a trawling motor to the old(er) kayak, and probably scrap the broken pedal drive or sell it on Craigslist. People buy those things and try to repair them because they're so hard to get.

 

[louiedog]

A friend of mine was told by Amazon to keep a $2500 item. I was shocked but it's something really big and heavy, the box was more or less destroyed during the delivery, and would probably cost many hundreds of dollars to ship back, check over, store, repackage, and ship to another customer that would buy it at a greatly reduced price on Amazon Warehouse. However, they didn't finalize the refund at that step and the next time they called back Amazon said it would need to be returned.

 

[Real]

This is why I've been using VIPOutlet to buy Walmart returns at liquidation pricing. I bought a brand new Apple Watch at like $150 below MSRP because someone opened it and returned it (but never used it).

 

[RedNalgene]

Why can't the consumer just gift the item to someone in need? I run a local Buy Nothing group and I'll say that I haven't thrown out a usable item in A LONG TIME. There's almost always someone who will take something off your hands. People are willing to take open jars of pickles and used underwear. You've just got to try.

 

[SRG01]

They do? In Canada they just take the returns and throw them out or sell them en masse by palette or shipping container.

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It used to be the case about three years ago for Canada. I'd want to return something and they would credit my account instead.

 

[CatAssTrophy]

It's been astronomically rare for this to happen to me with Amazon, so I'm envious of everyone saying they've been doing that for them. On the flipside, Amazon has historically been consistent about sending me an immediate replacement for stuff that never arrived but was marked delivered, sometimes resulting in me getting multiple items once the carrier finally delivered the original shipment. Haven't needed to do this in a while though.

My only recent victory was with Manscaped, telling me to just keep the trimmer I bought when I requested a return/refund.

Some companies though are STILL doing things the slowest and most painful way: "we'll send you a replacement once we RECEIVE the return". Reebok did this one to me twice. BYLT was a little better about it, but they deduct restocking fees from your refund unless you opt for a specific means of getting a store credit.

 

[Tavernade]

Citation needed on shops taking a loss on returns.

Unless the calculation is being done deliberately ignoring that net spending decreases without the peace of mind of a reasonable returns policy.

People are more likely to spend money in the first place if they know a refund will be an option if they change their mind.

This is why so many retailers offer refund policies that go beyond legal requirements in the first place. Many stores even explicitly market themselves around their refund policies.

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A lot of things get returned used or damaged, so if someone returns a storage box that's now full of hair or a used Tupperware container that hadn't been washed or melted plastic that wasn't dishwasher safe, the store isn't getting anything back at all from that purchase. It's getting tossed right out. People might be more willing to purchase if they can return, but returns in general are pound for pound a loss over anyone who might buy a bit more because they can return it.

 

[Lakeside]

It's been astronomically rare for this to happen to me with Amazon, so I'm envious of everyone saying they've been doing that for them. On the flipside, Amazon has historically been consistent about sending me an immediate replacement for stuff that never arrived but was marked delivered, sometimes resulting in me getting multiple items once the carrier finally delivered the original shipment. Haven't needed to do this in a while though.

My only recent victory was with Manscaped, telling me to just keep the trimmer I bought when I requested a return/refund.

Some companies though are STILL doing things the slowest and most painful way: "we'll send you a replacement once we RECEIVE the return". Reebok did this one to me twice.

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I have had Amazon do this, but it was on VERY trivial items. Think felt feet stickers for items, silicone earbud tips.. trivial stuff worth pennies.

They made me return a tiny plumbing part recently, was sure they'd write that one off. I think it was some washers. Had to take them to Kohls.

 

[Johnny956]

Yea Amazon has done this for years because it's not worth the costs of returning and having to then get rid of the product or get it to a liquidator.

Online returns is expensive, shipping is ridiculous and most companies take loss on shipping (free shipping, low flat rates). Even negotiated special rates companies get, they are often eating costs to offer cheap shipping options, but to return a package is gonna just be full price shipping hits that are often more than the item returned. Then to get rid of said item which often can't simply be resold? It's all just piles of huge amounts of waste sadly.

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Yea several times where I tried to return something from them and Amazon says to just keep it

 

[Deleted member 2802]

It used to be the case about three years ago for Canada. I'd want to return something and they would credit my account instead.

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I don't seem to be buying the right items I guess.
I mostly buy food and computer stuff

 

[LewieP]

A lot of things get returned used or damaged, so if someone returns a storage box that's now full of hair or a used Tupperware container that hadn't been washed or melted plastic that wasn't dishwasher safe, the store isn't getting anything back at all from that purchase. It's getting tossed right out. People might be more willing to purchase if they can return, but returns in general are pound for pound a loss over anyone who might buy a bit more because they can return it.

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Why do you think so many retailers offer refunds beyond legal requirements then? Generous shareholders?

Any costs are offset by the gains in increased sales.

 

[Diablos]

Can I do this with a series s?? Lollll

 

[squeakywheel]

I got a free Switch once from Target (they shipped one, was lost for 4 weeks so after I reported not getting it after a week, they shipped me another). Service Rep said don't bother returning it back and just keep it. That was the best thing I ever got to keep since it was a hackable unit. With Amazon it's hit or miss on when I can keep the small item. Recently I've had to ship it back even if it's very defective and barely worth a couple of bucks.

 

[CatAssTrophy]

I have had Amazon do this, but it was on VERY trivial items. Think felt feet stickers for items, silicone earbud tips.. trivial stuff worth pennies.

They made me return a tiny plumbing part recently, was sure they'd write that one off. I think it was some washers. Had to take them to Kohls.

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Interesting. Were they all shipped/sold by Amazon? Or were some of them third party sellers?

I'm curious what the policies/procedures are behind the scenes when it comes to third parties and what the numbers look like. I don't want to harshly judge something if the reality is that it's impacting a third party much more than Amazon.

 

[Lakeside]

Interesting. Were they all shipped/sold by Amazon? Or were some of them third party sellers?

I'm curious what the policies/procedures are behind the scenes when it comes to third parties and what the numbers look like. I don't want to harshly judge something if the reality is that it's impacting a third party much more than Amazon.

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I think maybe the plumbing part was third party but it's been a while and I'm not finding the order when I search.

 

[DrScruffleton]

I feel like I've seen this practice LESS recently. Walmart made me return a 3 dollar item recently that came broken. Surely it cost them more on shipping than just letting me keep it

Amazon made me return a $9 item recently

 

[Olorin]

Amazon has been doing this for years.

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Indeed. I wanted to return an electric lawnmower 3 years ago and Amazon CS told me to keep it and they would send another lol

 

[Wrexis]

About five years ago I ordered a treadmill from Amazon. It broke within 20 days.
I ordered a return and they shipped me another goddamn treadmill.

Like, what am I supposed to do with two treadmills? I ended up selling one for parts.

 

[Pirateluigi]

Why do you think so many retailers offer refunds beyond legal requirements then? Generous shareholders?

Any costs are offset by the gains in increased sales.

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It's not that offering returns is a net loss. It's that processing those returns is. Which is why it's oftentimes better for the company to simply pay the customer the refund and let them deal with the unwanted product.

 

[OhSatan]

Yup Amazon started doing this then stopped then was a case to case basis and now I don't know where they fall.

 

[LewieP]

It's not that offering returns is a net loss. It's that processing those returns is. Which is why it's oftentimes better for the company to simply pay the customer the refund and let them deal with the unwanted product.

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Yep. That's basically my point, they aren't losing money by offering refunds.

The same logic applies to other areas of their business. Online retailers that offer "free shipping" don't profit from processing the shipping, but they profit from the sales generated by providing shipping.

Basically any business has operating costs, which refunds like these come under.