Hi,
One of my latest orders was something I shipped but didn't inspect because it came from my vendor sealed and I don't like opening sealed packages or touching items that will come into contact with a customer's skin. The product was bad and the customer was understandably disappointed. She left a voicemail explaining the issues with the product and said that she wants a refund, including her return shipping.
I informed her of my return/refund policy, which can be viewed via link on my site during every part of the purchase journey (which I sent to her); it says that for items I have on hand (I typically dropship), the customer must tell me of their issue and I'll send a free return label. I also told her the limits of Shopify's refund system, in that it only gives back what was paid during the online transaction. The amount she paid to send the item back is double the cost of a return label.
She had the item delivered to a UPS Store mailbox and opened and inspected the item there and immediately initiated a return, and said that's why she didn't look at the return policy. She is demanding that I reimburse her the shipping costs due to the quality of the product, stating that she shouldn't be penalized for a bad product. She also said that the return policy should have been included on the packing slip; fair point, though 1) the policy is too big for that document 2) the link to my policy is easily accessible on desktop and mobile and 3) I'm not certain she would have followed through with the policy regardless, considering how quickly she made the decision to return the item.
I offer hassle-free returns, so my issue isn't that she wants her money back; it's that she did not consult my return policy before returning the item and is now trying to back me into paying for her decision. I am tempted to give her a screenshot of the return screen so that she can see that I cannot make an exception in her case, even if I wanted to, which I have to admit that I don't.
If anyone else has had a similar experience, or has any advice on how to handle the issue outside of sending her the return page screenshot, I'd appreciate it.
