Customers whose after-Christmas plans include returning unwanted gifts are being warned by a consumer group that their exchanges may not go smoothly unless they’ve read the fine print.
Retailers nationwide continue to tighten return policies, charge restocking fees and reject serial returners as part of an effort to cut down on “return fraud.” Additionally, many retailers enforce shorter return windows on electronics and other items.
While the efforts help companies reduce losses, they can also be a nightmare for customers who aren’t familiar with store policies, said Edgar Dworsky, founder of Consumer World, a Somerville, Mass.-based online consumer resource guide.
Changes in this year’s return scene include wider use of restocking fees for opened items – particularly electronics.
Earlier this year, Sears became the first major department store to implement a broad 15 percent restocking fee on select home appliances, electronics, home-improvement and household goods, lawn and garden equipment, and automotive items not returned unused with full packaging.
Other retailers with restocking fees include:
“Restocking fees are more prevalent in consumer electronics because the merchandise tends to become obsolete very quickly,” said Edward Fox, a marketing professor at the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.
Another trend expected to continue into the post-holiday return season is the use of tracking systems that will reject returns from customers it determines have a pattern of too many returns. The system by The Return Exchange of Irvine, Calif., is used by retailers including The Sports Authority of Englewood, KB Toys, Limited Brands’ Express Clothing stores and some Staples stores.
Consumer World has also reported that Home Depot, Wal- Mart, Barnes & Noble and other stores use their own systems for a similar form of tracking.
Both Dworsky and the National Retail Federation warn shoppers to familiarize themselves with return policies before purchasing items and to include receipts or gift receipts and all original packaging with products to ensure that the process goes smoothly.
Staff writer Kristi Arellano can be reached at 303-820-1902 or karellano@denverpost.com.
