As Black Friday 2025 approaches, British shoppers are being urged to check the fine print before making purchases, as retailers have been quietly tightening their return policies in recent years.
The Hidden Cost of Convenience
According to marketing professor Lauren Beitelspacher, returns represent a significant financial burden for retailers, costing U.S. businesses nearly $890 billion annually. This staggering figure includes losses from returns fraud and the complex reverse logistics required to process returned items.
The shift to online shopping has dramatically increased return rates, with Capital One analysis showing online purchases are returned almost three times more frequently than in-store purchases. The pandemic accelerated this trend, with returns accounting for 16.6% of total U.S. retail sales in 2021.
How Retailers Are Changing Their Approach
Faced with these mounting costs, retailers are implementing several strategies to protect their profits. Many are now offering store credit rather than cash or card refunds, ensuring the money stays within their business.
Other common changes include charging flat fees for returns, even when customers cover postage costs. Beauty retailers Sephora and Ulta have reduced their return windows from 60 days to 30, while many brands are using conspicuous "do not remove" tags to prevent "wardrobing" - the practice of wearing items once before returning them.
Protecting Yourself This Shopping Season
With these policy changes appearing quietly in terms and conditions rather than being prominently advertised, consumers need to be more vigilant than ever. Professor Beitelspacher recommends shopping in person whenever possible and always familiarising yourself with return policies before purchasing online.
Most importantly, ask yourself whether you're buying something you genuinely want or whether you're planning to return it later. As return policies become longer, more specific and less forgiving, that impulse purchase might become an expensive mistake.
