In the case of a return, a recipient sends the received goods back to the sender. A return slip is usually used to process a return. When the goods reach the warehouse, this is scanned and the return delivery is recorded. After that, and after a quality check, the inventory of the goods is, in the best case, replenished. In order to better plan returns, companies are gradually introducing the so-called RMA process.

Reasons for a return delivery can be, for example:

• Wrong deliveries
• Damaged goods
• Wrong quantity of goods

Returns in online trading

A complaint can also be made about the delivered goods from e-commerce if the goods do not meet expectations. To the chagrin of the supplier, buyers often order the same item in different versions from the outset. The reason for this main cost driver is that buyers are often unsure which size or model is suitable.

An empirical survey in German e-commerce by ibi research revealed various data and facts. These include:

1. When customers order inventory from a large-volume online retailer, they receive the goods sooner on average than they would from a small-volume online retailer.
2. If a customer pays in advance, the shipment to the customer takes longer than it would via PayPal, for example (PayPal = approx. 2 days, prepayment = approx. 3 days).
3. From the customer’s point of view, the main reasons for returns are: “The item doesn’t fit” or “I don’t like the item”.
4. 80% of retailers do not record which returns are associated with which payment method (prepayment, PayPal, instant transfer, direct debit, etc.).

Reducing returns

Ibi research cites the following factors for reducing returns, or the so-called returns rate:

• Detailed product description
• Precise product presentation
• High-quality packaging for protection
• Product rating by buyers
• Short delivery times

In a 2012 survey, 18 retailers of office supplies were asked to estimate the rate of abusive returns. The average rate of abusive returns assumed by the retailers was 6.8 percent. In the fashion industry, the rate of returns, whether abusive or not, is said to be as high as 50 percent. In 2012, the German weekly newspaper DIE ZEIT reported that 80.6 percent of returned inventory is actually destroyed.

For more information on offering goods and services across geographical distance, see distance selling.