Many retailers offer “cash back”. Don’t expect them to talk much about it.

This is one of the most unofficial policies among some of them the largest US retailers: sometimes they fully refund customers and leave them unwanted items also.

Refunds are a tool that more and more retailers are using make online shoppers happy and reduce shipping fees, handling time and other costs associated with product returns.

Such companies as AmazonWalmart and Target have decided that some items are not worth the cost or return hassles. Consider that a $20 t-shirt might cost $30 in shipping and handling. There are also single-use items, such as plastic straw packaging, which may be difficult to resell, or medicines which may be unsafe to resell.

Analysts say companies that offer refunds do so somewhat sporadically, usually reserving the option for low-cost properties or properties with limited resale value. But some online shoppers said they were also allowed to keep more expensive items.

Dalia Harel, 48, recently received a free refund after ordering a desk from Amazon that cost about $300. When the table arrived, she noticed it was missing some key pieces and was impossible to assemble, Harel said. She was unable to request and receive a replacement within a reasonable time for her New York lice removal office because the product was out of stock.

Harel, who regularly buys towels and other items from Amazon for her business, said her team reached out to the company’s customer service. She was pleasantly surprised to learn that she would receive a refund without returning the table.

“It’s one less headache,” Harel said. “It was really nice for us that we didn’t have to make an extra trip to the post office.”

She used parts of the desk to create makeshift shelves in her Brooklyn office.

Mysterious process

While the retail practice of allowing customers to keep an item and get their money back is not a trade secret, how it works is shrouded in mystery. Companies don’t want to publicize the circumstances under which they issue non-refundable refunds because of anxiety over the potential for return fraud.

Even if brands don’t detail such policies on their websites, refunds are expanding in at least some corners of retail.

Amazon, which industry experts say has been using the practice for years, announced in August that it would extend the option to third-party sellers who provide the majority of sales on the e-commerce giant’s platform. Under the program, merchants using the company’s US fulfillment service can offer customers a traditional refund for purchases of less than $75, with no obligation to return what they ordered.

Amazon did not immediately respond to questions about how the program works. But publicly, he has directed non-refundable refunds directly to international sellers and those offering cheaper goods. Items sold on a future section of Amazon’s website that will allow U.S. shoppers to buy low-cost goods shipped directly from China will also be eligible for a refund, according to documents seen by The Associated Press.

In January, Walmart gave a similar option to merchants selling items on its growing online marketplace, leaving it up to sellers to set price limits and determine if and how they want to participate.

Founded in China e-commerce companies Shein and Temu say they also offer non-refundable refunds on small orders, as do Target, online retailer Overstock and online pet store Chewy, which some customers say have encouraged them to donate unwanted items to local animal shelters.

Wayfair, another online retailer that some customers say offers nonrefundable refunds, did not respond to a request for comment on its policy.

Deciding who is entitled — and when

In general, retailers and brands tend to be cautious about how often they allow customers to keep items for free. Many of them deploy algorithms to determine who should be given choice and who should not.

To make a decision, the algorithms evaluate several factors, including the degree of trust of the buyer based on previous purchases — and returning — patterns, shipping costs and demand for the product, according to Sander Shamiss, CEO of goTRG, a reverse logistics company that works with retailers like Walmart.

Optoro, a company that helps optimize returns for Best Buy, Staples and Gap Inc., has seen retailers measure the customer’s lifetime value and expand non-returns as a kind of informal, low-key loyalty benefitaccording to CEO Amen Ali.

The king of online shopping seems to have made sure the process works this way.

In a statement, Amazon said it was offering non-refundable refunds on a “very small number” of items for “customer convenience.”

The company also said it was hearing positive feedback from sellers about its new program, which allowed them to let customers know they could keep some products and get a refund. Amazon said it is monitoring signs of fraud and establishing eligibility criteria for sellers and customers. He did not provide further details on what that would cover.

Online shopping and return costs

Some retailers are also stepping up the liberal return policies they’ve long maintained encourage online ordering. Buyers who liked to shop on a computer or mobile phone are used to downloading theirs digital shopping carts with the intention of returning things as they are ended up not liking it.

Online shopping has also grown significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic, as stay-at-home consumers cut back on their trips to stores and relied on sites like Amazon for everyday things. In recent years, retailers have talked about processing returns becoming more expensive due to rising volumes, rising inflation and labor costs.

According to the National Retail Federation, U.S. consumers returned $743 billion worth of merchandise last year, or 14.5% of the items they purchased — up from 10.6% in 2020. In 2019according to Appriss Retail, a loss prevention company, returned goods were valued at $309 billion.

According to a joint report by the National Retail Federation and Appriss Retail, about 14% of returns were fraudulent last year, costing retailers $101 billion in losses. The problem ranges from minor forms of fraud — such as customers returning pre-worn clothing — to more sophisticated schemes by fraudsters returning shoplifted goods or items purchased with stolen credit cards.

to restrain excessive profitssome retailers, including H&M, Zara and J. Crew, began charging customers a return fee last year. Others have shortened return windows. Some shopping sites, such as Canadian retailer SSENSE, have threatened to kick frequent returners off their platforms if they suspect violations of their policies.

However, retailers don’t all view repeaters the same way. According to Optoro’s Ali, such customers can be considered “good returners” if they buy — and keep — many more items than they return.

“Oftentimes, your most profitable customers tend to be the ones with the highest profits,” she said.