Do you return things you have used?

[Nana Annie]

 

[BeNJeNWaFFLe]

I only return items if they are defective or the wrong size. Even then sometimes I just forget and wasted the money. I will not buy something with every intention of using it for a day and returning it.

When I worked retail we had one lady who was the ultimate returner. It got so bad that she was banned from returning items. She would come in and buy maybe 30 items of whatever. Then exactly 29 days later she would come in and return every one of those items all almost completely used. I mean she would return a basically empty bottle of shampoo, conditioner, eyeshadow, lipstick, perfume...etc. If she felt like explaining herself to us she would just say "Oh, well, I didn't like it." So you disliked it so much that you used the whole bottle?

 

[liamsaunt]

I do almost all of my clothes shopping online, so I do return stuff that doesn't fit the way I thought it would, or if the color is not what I expected etc. But, I don't see that as any different than trying something on in a fitting room--I'm just checking the fit, not wearing it around all day and then returning it.

One return policy I find amusing is held by our local Home Depot (I'm not sure if it is chain wide). You can return any houseplant you purchase there within a year, as long as you keep the reciept. It doesn't matter why--even if you forgot to water it and it is as dried up as firewood, they'll still take it back! (No, I've not taken advantage!)

 

[poohandwendy]

If she felt like explaining herself to us she would just say "Oh, well, I didn't like it." So you disliked it so much that you used the whole bottle?

LOL, what she really means is that she doesn't like paying for it.

 

[cepmom]

I have returned things that I have used, but then found it to be defective or otherwise did not suit my needs, but I have never bought something to use intending to return it after!

I work in customer service at Babies R Us and you would not believe the things people have tried to return used, with spit up, poop etc on it!! :scared2:Baby Bjorn's, high chairs, pack and plays all in very used condition. It's unbelievable. I feel like telling we are not rent a center!

I had a woman a couple of weeks ago that tried to return a bottle that she didn't like (without a receipt)...she told me it was used, but that she just didn't like it. Now if it had been defective, I would have taken it back, but not because she just didn't like it!! I can't put that back on the floor to be resold and she just didn't get it.

 

[crcormier]

And I have on a few (very few) occasions bought (iow "rented") something I knew I was going to return after I used it once. If it's still in new and resellable condition, what's the big deal?

So you get something for free, don't pay any sort of rental fee, and now the store has to lose money on processing the return and selling the product at a discount as open-box? I don't think that's fair to the store. (Not that some merchants aren't crooks too...)

 

[goofy!]

Costco has one of the most generous return policies in the business. And unfortunately, people take advantage of it. Which is too bad, as I am sure they are going to have to rethink their policies sooner or later.

Last fall, I was at the checkout counter and piled on several flat-bed carts were about 10 tents. They were obviously very well used as you could see the mud on them and they were faded. My checker and bagger were discussing how outrageous that return was.

Apparently, the boy scouts (and yes, they emphasized it was the boy scouts and not another scouting troop) bought the tents in the spring. They used them all summer and then returned them in the fall when they were done

The only thing I buy with the intent of returning are my cell phones at Costco. And that is only because the Sprint people have told me numerous times that the policy is designed that way. You buy your phone and then when it is time to upgrade, you bring the phone back, get a refund and get a new phone. When I bought my first phone there, the Sprint counter at Costco explained in detail that I should save the box, receipt and accessories so that I could return it in a year or two and that it did not need to be defective to do return it.

I felt SO guilty the first time I returned a phone. I called Sprint. I talked to the service desk. I talked to the Costco manager. I wanted to make sure this was ok. Everybody assured me that the phone was not how Sprint made their money - it was my contract and Sprint wanted to keep my business, so they allowed this policy. The Costco manager assured me that the return did not come out of their budget - it came from Sprint.

So that is the only thing I buy with the intent to return someday. And only because I was urged to do it by the store itself.

 

[figment52]

.....and there was a women there with a container of eyeshadow that was so used you could see the metal in the bottom of the tin. The clerk said, "I'm sorry I can't return something that is so used". The women said, "I don't like the color now that my tan is fading, I have the receipt".

 

[Cool-Beans]

The only thing I ever used and returned was the Epilady. And I didn't plan on the return!

I hate the RETURN process so much that I barely ever get around to returning defective stuff...no way I'd buy something with the intention of returning it.

 

[robinb]

When I was in high school working my mall job a lady bought a top and then walked to the customer service desk and returned it. I saw her do this and was so confused. She did not give a reason for the return. We gave her the money back. All us dumb teenagers said why did she buy it and then walk the 10 feet to return it?

I worked as a Secret Shopper for a while. One of the standard things they ask you to do is to buy something and then return it right away. That way the Customer gets feedback on the SALE and the RETURN on the same visit paid the shopper. I always felt really stupid doing it *and* I ended up with twice the amount of work filling out the detailed report. I was good at it, but it was a PITA remembering names, gender, hair color/length, glasses, height, etc for everyone I came in contact with. It ended up to be not worth my time to drive to and from the store, spend 30 minutes in the store and another 30-45 minutes on the report for a piddling $10.