FEBRUARY 2018 | 29
News
Read online at www.proinstaller.co.uk
DIY-ERS ABUSE RIGHT
TO RETURN TOOLS
Findings from
courier comparison
site ParcelHero
suggest that
amateur DIY-
ers are getting
around the cost of
hiring professional
tools, needed for
a one-time job,
by buying, using,
and then returning
the equipment
they need.
If they need any tools for a
small quick job, they use it for
the day and, after a good bit of
cleaning and baby oil, it will be
good as new. They can just return
it as unused.
Although damaged and faulty
returns are a necessary part of
any business, canny consumers
have started to abuse their right
to return at the cost of businesses’
profit margins.
Returns cost UK retailers £60
billion a year, with online busi-
nesses facing 13% more returns
thanks to unique legislation that
leaves them open to exploitation.
And though it is clothing stores
that see the most returns, Parcel-
Hero’s new returns report sug-
gests that increased returns from
seasonal events such as Christmas
could spell the end for businesses
of all shapes and sizes.
No Questions Asked
One problem is the 14-day
‘cooling off’ period that all online
purchases are subject to. This
allows customers to return goods
within 14 days of receiving them
with no questions asked. There
are only a few exceptions to this
rule – goods that are perishable,
custom made, or unhygienic when
returned – but essentially, retailers
of any description have battled
with this.
It’s thanks to this cooling off
period that online returns cost
more than offline returns – where
stores have no obligation to accept
returns when customers change
their minds – but more important-
ly, the cooling off period make
returns scams like the one we
highlighted above possible.
easy to do, all you need to
‘ do It’s is very
make sure that your packaging
is salvageable and you are all good ’
Returns are skewed
towards the consumer
In ParcelHero’s report, a con-
versation with an employee at
national clothing chain Topman,
who explained some of the scams
that they have come across. These
scams are by no means isolated
to clothing stores; ParcelHero
also spoke to one consumer who
spoke up about how he kept his
own DIY projects from getting
too expensive.
“It’s very easy to do,” he said.
“All you need to do is make sure
that your packaging is salvagea-
ble and you are all good.”
When we asked him what sort
of things he had returned, he told
us that it was “realistically simple
to return all sorts.”
Thankfully, retailers are pro-
tected by this sort of abuse by
the law. Although businesses are
obliged to accept returns, if they
are not in an acceptable condi-
tion, they are allowed to issue
partial refunds. However, the
savvy consumer had a solution
for that too.
“Just use it for the day and,
after a good bit of cleaning and
baby oil, it will be good as new.
No one will be able to tell it was
used.”
A Great Returns
Policy is Vital
Despite the doom and gloom,
ParcelHero’s report suggests that
returns could be more important
than you think. More than 80%
of the consumers spoken to said
that a good returns policy would
make or break their purchase.
Only 8% said that they didn’t
check the returns policy before
making a purchase.
Consumers also increasingly
expect more from returns than
ever, with nearly half of con-
sumers saying that they expect
the retailer to cover the cost of
their returns – even if it is only
because they changed their mind.
Small businesses in the report
said that they can’t afford to do
that – the costs of offering free
returns would likely put them out
of business.
What’s the Bottom Line?
As online shopping becomes
more and more prevalent, the
pressure to provide a great returns
experience becomes stifling. DIY
and tool stores may not be in the
most threatened demographics –
clothing stores have that dubious
honour – but are still at risk of
falling short, especially in the peri-
ods after raised sales numbers.
Perhaps Imogen Shurey, found-
er of Velvet Cave, says it best in
ParcelHero’s report: ‘People are so
used to being able to return things
to big stores easily and often free of
charge so it’s difficult to compete.
For a company with a huge turno-
ver the money lost doesn’t make an
impact but too many returns could
spell the end for a small business.’
For more information on the
impact returns are having on
businesses, read ParcelHero’s
report here: https://www.
parcelhero.com/blog/marketplace/
retail-returns-got-hand
Source: Insight DIY Team & Parcelhero.