In addition to the above, having this document on display has more benefits for the business. If people see clear return policy for an item, it will be easier for them to make an informed buying decision. It’s easier to convince someone to make a purchase when they have all of their questions answered, including those regarding refunds.
In fact, if you go and visit help pages on eBay, you will be able to read that this large company requires all stores to have this type of policy because items that come with refund policies tend to sell far better than those without.
Refund policy can also protect your interests by helping you to play it safe on the legal side. If you have informed the customers about your policy and it respects the minimums defined in the regulations of the business’ origin country, you don’t have to be afraid of losing a case in court should a customer bring the problem to the court of law.
People don’t have a tendency to read long and boring legal documents online. On the other hand, you have to provide all the necessary information. This is why it is advised to break down your return/refund policy into smaller sections. This will increase the readability of the document, make it easier for customers to find what they need and, at the same time, protect you legally.
Despite what you sell, your refund/return policy should usually contain these three sections:
- How many days a customer has to return the product. Does the counting start from the moment they order it, or from when the product gets shipped to them?
- If the customer does return a product, you have to specify what kind of refund they are eligible to get. Some stores allow customers to get similar products or get a store credit in the value of the purchased item, while others return the cash spent on the product.
- At last, you will have to specify who will pay for the return shipping. Some stores don’t charge customers that are in the same state or country as the business is, while others offer free return shipping regardless of the customer’s location.
If you run a company that sells digital products (downloadable software, SaaS, digital games, etc.) it is advised to provide these two additional sections:
- If you allow your customers to get refunds on digital purchases, you have to clearly specify on which ones. In case return/refund policies are different for specific products, you will have to specify each one separately.
- Sometimes businesses that sell digital products online offer refunds only in certain situations. In this case, you will have to specify each of the situations and provide a short description to each one of them.
If customers can make in-store, online and over-the-phone purchases, it is advised to specify the refund/return policy for each one of these. You can do this by adding three very short sections to your agreement (policy for in-store, online and over-the-phone purchase).
As we have already stated, any legal document has to be very clear and easy to read. Try to remember that a return/refund policy should make your customers trust you and feel safe to purchase from you.
You should give your best to make the refund process as simple and as smooth as possible. In other words, avoid things such as too many requirements for a refund, difficult and unintuitive refund process, and refund processing fees.
Another thing that you should definitely avoid is inconsistency in your policy, simply because it will get people confused. If you have multiple online stores, make sure to have the same refund/return policies on display on each one of them.
A “no refunds” policy is generally a bad idea if you do any businesses, especially if it’s online. Here are the main reasons to consider when you are thinking about whether you should have a “no refunds” policy:
- You will most likely lose a customer. It is generally a far better idea to give your customers a store credit than to inform them that they have no refund/return rights whatsoever.
- An angry customer will cost you far more than a refund. When you take your customers money and they end up with a product or service they don’t like and have no options to get their money back there is a good chance they will get angry. You might very soon have to deal with a lot of bad reviews even if they’re untrue. It is really not worth the risk, so do your math carefully. Business advisers often say that taking care of your reputation should always come before taking care of your money. By not refunding, you might save a couple of bucks, but you will risk losing hundreds if not thousands of dollars in lost opportunities due to a bad reputation.
- It will slow down your sales. If you put a “no refunds” policy on display on your website. Customers who are still deciding whether they should buy from you or not might go for the latter option to avoid possible risk.
If you provide a highly detailed refund/return policy that protects your interests as well, you don’t need to have a separate “no refunds” policy. Instead, you should specify in your return/refund policy in which cases the customers won’t be able to claim their rights (damaged goods, goods pass the expiration date, etc.).
One of the main concerns of online shoppers is if they will be able to get their money back if they are not satisfied with the product or service. Shopping online is quite different than in a retail store. This is why you should offer more incentives for the customers to complete the sale. One of the ways to do so is to make them know that you have a “money-back guarantee” policy.