To be irritated at having to pay for returns??

[HomeBird43]

Ordered some stuff from a clothing website. Sent back the stuff I didn’t want. £1.99 per return deducted from refund.

Wtf? Is this a common thing?? Is this not something that online retailers build in to their margins etc?! I have never come across this before.

I think for none faulty stuff it’s probably built in to stop people ordering lots and then sending most of it back. It’s frustrating but it must cost the companies a lot when people do that.

It needs to be paid for by somebody. Why should the rest of us pay more for you to get free returns?

I understand it. So many people order multiple things or the same thing in multiple sizes with no intention of keeping what they bought. The brands lose money having to sell/ship/return/re-organize the items so I think a small fee makes sense. I'd rather that than them increase prices for everyone.

I look at it as I have made an order and returning X amount is better value then 1.99 returns. It costs companies more to restock the items/ courier etc. Its not a large expense.

I’ve seen it on some retailers - maybe it’s to dissuade people from ordering things they intend to send back

It’s an excellent way to make sure people don’t order in the first place.

I don’t think it’s that bad, you’d have to pay to take a trip to the shops and back.

People have gotten used to free delivery and returns but the cost is huge to the retailer and lots of people buy multiple items and sizes (myself included).

There are costs associated with returns, why shouldn’t you pay?

I do know people who will order loads of stuff with the intention of only keeping one thing so I guess it stops this?

£1.99 per item?

It'll be in their T&Cs

Always worth checking before ordering

It has become more commonplace over recent years. YANBU I find it annoying too. Makes me less inclined to order multiple sizes to see if ons size fits better, and so if I get it wrong I end up not buying it

The buyer paying for return postage is fair enough but I think £1.99 per item just to return is a bit of a con. Which shop is it OP just out of interest?

I understand that returns, and postage for that matter are not free, but it would be less galling if sizing was more consistent, shop stock was better so we don't have to order so much online and if the pictures on the website actually matched the garment.

I've just been looking at some jumper dresses and the same item is a different length in two different pictures (of the same model so it's not like one is 5'2 and one 6' tall). So fuck knows what it's going to look like when it arrives.

If it's not soiled, or damaged, you can't really complain. If they paid, they'd have to put their prices up.

Agreed, it puts me right off. I don't order anything I don't envisage I could keep, but equally things like fit and quality of fabric are important to me. I'm finding more and more that sizes aren't even consistent within a store (H&M I'm looking at you!) so unless I order a couple of sizes I have no guarantee it would fit.

I don't mind paying for delivery, but if an item of clothing is poor quality or sizes up way differently than expected then it does irk me to essentially have paid a return fee just for trying it on.

Per item or per return?

Per return is unobjectionable, I think, since if they provide a paid return label, it's less than you'd pay for your own postage. Per item seems less fair.

On the issue of ordering multiple sizes: retailers could substantially reduce this if they gave comprehensive item measurements. You'd still get some, especially where people fall between sizes and the fit differs wildly, but you'd cut down on a lot. I find the usual measurements pretty useless for my concerns. Often they don't even give item length!

I also don't like when they give bust size (of the wearer) rather than the item width in the chest. I remain a bit sceptical that an item that is in item width several inches less than half the circumference of my chest really fits; typically I find it too tight. But that's a secondary concern.

I know Uniqlo does this, among others. The nearest store is 2 hours away from me so it’s just a risk. But it would obviously cost me more to visit the store in person.

What I find most irritating about this charge is that so many stores have very limited sizes in the actual shop and usually a much smaller selection of things available too. Even if you order online sensibly, you might still end up with this cost.

I'm in two minds on this.

Someone has to pick it, put it into the post bag, print a label, put it somewhere for the delivery company to collect (or take it to a delivery service e.g. the Post Office), and then what happens next is covered in the delivery charge. Then when it's returned, they have to open the post bag, check the item, process the return/refund, decide whether it can be restocked (add it back onto the stock control system) and either return it to a shelf or mark it for destruction.

Usually the costs of this are calculated into the pricing of the item. If you don't keep the item, they lose this money. For every customer who does this, the company loses money.

Buying lots and returning the excess has become very common but it's problematic for small businesses who can't absorb the cost into their profit margins.

Consistent sizing would help a lot, but there are a lot of CFs out there as well who just buy loads of stuff then return it for example after posing on Instagram in it for Outfit Of the Day.

So while YANBU to want to return an item, I think we as a society are unreasonable to expect to be able to procure a product from a company and just return it and get all our money back regardless of the cost to them if the item isn't faulty. But I do think they should be clear about charges beforehand.

I see wannabe ‘influencers’ on TikTok showing us the grand opening of a clothing package….try on some hideous outfits…. Then tell us they’ll mostl,y be returned. Why should I pay more for the one jumper I order from a site so they can stand in their bedroom trying on totally unsuitable clothes usually shipped from china?

I don’t know the policy in detail. But based on what I’ve seen on SM, there is a modern trend of buying bagfuls of clothes and then sending half of it back. It’s clearly costing companies money, and it’s either this, or the rest of us pay inflated prices to cover the cost of your returns.

Your post does make it sound like you bought a lot of stuff and then returned a large percentage of it. If you want to shop online, I suggest shopping more carefully by looking properly at sizes, textiles and reviews, and working out a few brands where the quality and fit are reliable and predictable. If that isn’t working for you, you need to wait until you can shop for things in person in the store and try things on.

I think the problem is that the margin for sales is so tight that retailers couldn't afford to do free returns without putting up prices. I've noticed that free p&p has become much more unusual too unless you are spending over a set amount.

I'm in Ireland. I only order from some retailers things I know will fit, otherwise the returns can be €9 a time!

There is a cost associated with returns - postage/ restocking etc.

Either it's built into the price of the item in the first place or it's charged only if you need to return something - which is fair enough, because plenty of people do take the piss with returns so why should everyone else have to cover the cost of it?

It's common.

So if I order from somewhere I haven't before.
I always check the returns policy. Its usually detailed there.

i view it as being cheaper than driving back to the city or town, paying a fortune in car parking fees.