Non-Returnable refunds
I am pretty new to selling on amazon. I recently started to run reports including FBA customer returns. I have 2 type of products that have been returned which are in the personal care category. Amazon has submitted full refunds to every customer and have allowed them to keep the product. I understand that returns are part of this business and these type of losses should be incorporated in the selling price. But, I believe many customers are taking advantage of this loop whole and it's cheaper for amazon to let the customer keep the item rather than to process the return. As the seller, I would prefer the product to be return so it can be evaluated - discarded it needed, sent back to the seller or returned to inventory. It's a win-win situation for the customer and Amazon. As the seller, I have to take the loss. If Amazon decides to not have the customer return an item and issues them a full refund, shouldn't Amazon be responsible for the refund to the customer and not the seller? Please advise because this alone makes me no longer want to continue with this venture.
Non-Returnable refunds
I am pretty new to selling on amazon. I recently started to run reports including FBA customer returns. I have 2 type of products that have been returned which are in the personal care category. Amazon has submitted full refunds to every customer and have allowed them to keep the product. I understand that returns are part of this business and these type of losses should be incorporated in the selling price. But, I believe many customers are taking advantage of this loop whole and it's cheaper for amazon to let the customer keep the item rather than to process the return. As the seller, I would prefer the product to be return so it can be evaluated - discarded it needed, sent back to the seller or returned to inventory. It's a win-win situation for the customer and Amazon. As the seller, I have to take the loss. If Amazon decides to not have the customer return an item and issues them a full refund, shouldn't Amazon be responsible for the refund to the customer and not the seller? Please advise because this alone makes me no longer want to continue with this venture.
2 replies
Seller_nRFmxiQg4EGrw
I'm not in that category, but I understand that there are many products in the category that should not be returned. Obviously, anything that has been used cannot be resold; so while you like the idea of evaluating, you would also need to pay the cost for shipping back to you. In addition, for some products, once opened, Amazon cannot rely on an untrained customer to package properly for shipping (liquids, etc.). And while this may not apply to all items in the category, Amazon tends to solve problems with a chainsaw rather than a scalpel; easier for them to apply policy to the whole category than to figure out specifics for each item.
You may find, like many others, that Amazon simply is not the appropriate venue on which to sell your items. Best of luck deciding your path forward.
Tiff_Amazon
Hi @Seller_BCcyY6gRgNokZ:
Tiff here from Amazon. I wanted to check in and see if I can help.
It sounds like one of the main questions you're curious about is why Amazon isn't requiring the returns to come back, correct? I thought this part of the FBA customer returns policy might help describe this:
In some cases, we issue customers a “returnless refund.” This means that the customer is not required to send the item back to the fulfillment center. Some items that are not eligible for return may be eligible for a refund.
You can check with Seller Support to see if there are any options for you to consider regarding your FBA products. Have you also considered trying FBM as an option?
There is another tool that I wanted to point out - Manage FBA returns page in Seller Central. Have you checked out the insights tool on this page? It provides more details on return trends and top return ASINs, which may give you additional information about the products.
