Retailers are making these changes to their holiday return policies…

A new survey provides insight into how retailers are handling holiday returns.

According to the survey of 300 U.S. retailers from returns processor Inmar Intelligence, almost 40% of respondents have altered their returns policies for the 2022 holiday season. Popular steps respondents have taken to modify holiday returns include:

• Expanding returns window: (32%).
• Shortening returns window: (21%).
• Reducing or removing returns/restocking fees: (21%).
• Providing free in-store returns only (19%).
• Increasing or adding returns/restocking fees (16%).
• Decreasing the dollar amount to qualify for free returns (13%).
• Increasing the dollar amount to qualify for free returns (12%).

The survey also asked retailers what perks they offer to customers returning a purchase. Replies included:

• Instant credit (50.33%).
• In-store offers or coupons (50%).
• Label-free / box-free returns (30.67%).
• Convenient drop-off locations (27%)

Looking at expected return rates (percentage of units returned versus percentage of units sold) for the 2022 holiday season, the survey found more than half of respondents expect holiday return rates of 20% or less:

• 0-10% (31.33%).
• 11-20% (22.67%).
• 21-30% (14.67%).
• 31-40% (13.67%).
• 41-50% (9.33%).

Other interesting findings include:

• 43% of respondents are offering free returns regardless of the dollar amount of purchase. 
• Once returns are made, only 10% of respondents said more than 50% of items are returned to stock.
• 35% of respondents said they altered their holiday sales strategy since September 2022 due to product availability, and another 29% had altered their sales strategy due to consumer demand.
• 28% of respondents said they already charge for returns or expect to start charging for returns in 2023, with another 25% not sure of future plans yet.

NRF: Holiday returns will surpass $170 billion

According to a new study from the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Appriss Retail, in terms of holiday sales, retailers can expect to see an average of 17.9% of merchandise returned, equating to nearly $171 billion. Because of the increased sales volume during this time of year, nearly 44% of survey respondents indicated they planned to hire more staff to handle returns during the holiday season. Of that cohort, most (71%) intend to add staff specifically for stores.

Overall, the NRF/Appriss Retail study indicates consumers are expected to return more than $816 billion worth of retail merchandise purchased during 2022. However, as retail sales continue to grow, the average rate of return has remained flat at 16.5%, compared with 16.6% in 2021.