How do you deal with Target's Return Policy?

[tlbwriter]

WalMart now is tougher on returns than Target! At least mine is! They used to take things back, no questions asked. Well, I had to return a carseat I bought, couldn't find the receipt. I had not even opened the box. I brought my credit card bill with the purchase listed on it because I didn't have the receipt. They couldn't look it up based on the card I paid with (which Target can do in seconds). They wanted to know what day and time I made the purchase AND which checkout lane I went through!! It was crazy. They ended up giving me a gift card because they couldn't credit my card since I didn't have my receipt. Lesson learned. Wal Mart's return policy stinks now! (and I found the @^!%@$ receipt a few days later at home! I knew I had it somewhere!)

Apparently their policies vary by store. My WM would have taken the seat back, no questions asked. You would have received a gift card, not cash (but if you'd taken it back 12 months ago, you'd get cash!) I guess mine is pretty loose!

 

[dopeyfanatic]

Target has had this policy for YEARS. It isn't new, unlike what some are saying. I do agree that since you're exchanging for the same title it shouldn't matter. If you wanted a different movie I could understand them saying no, but you don't. It's not like you're buying them, watching them and then returning them. I know their policy but even I have had some issues. I can't make someone give me a gift receipt, and you can't always ask the person for one either. I think Kmart is worse though....I went to return something there that had their name on it and they told me it wasn't theirs! It said KMART on it!!! I finally got the receipt from my inlaws and was able to return it, but seriously!?!? It had their name on it and the girl tried to say it wasn't theirs!!! LOL!

 

[firstfamilytrip]

Our Walmart is the same way. Their posted return policy is 90 days with receipt only. My daughter got the same CD for her birthday that I got her at Walmart for Christmas. I didn't want my sister to know I was exchanging it so I figured I would use my receipt. Of course I couldn't find it. I had heard Target will now let you do 2 per year without receipts so I thought I would try at Walmart.

I was honest with the cashier and told her we already had the product. This was gift and I don't have the receipt. She said to give it to her and she would see what she could do.

The lady told me it wasn't from their store. She wouldn't even scan it to see. I told her I had purchased one exactly like it the month before from that store. It was a kids CD not like a regular one.

Then she told me she wouldn't return it because it felt a little sticky in one area one the plastic packaging. They don't put anything on the plastic. It was from the double sided tape from being wrapped. I cleaned it as best as I could and you couldn't see the stickiness just feel it a bit. When I explained that she said it didn't matter because she had never seen that CD before and it was not sold at Walmart.

I asked her to please scan it just to prove my point because I had bought one there a month prior. Guess what, it came up at $9.88. Then she inspected the plastic on the package and accused me of having some machine that would repackage CD's so they looked like they weren't opened when they actually were. Yeah, if I had that then wouldn't I have repackaged it without the sticky from the tape on it.

I told her at that point that I would go home and get the CD and case for the one that I had previously purchased to prove that I was returning it because it was a duplicate. I didn't even want a refund at this point I just wanted to prove that I wasn't trying to cheat them. She then told me she would put in my license number to see if I was a habitual returner. I was cleared of that charge since I had no returns and she put it on a gift card for me.

If she had said "we don't accept returns with out receipts" when I told her what I was doing there I would have been fine with that. She never gave that as a reason.

Moral of the story...save your Walmart receipts and get gift ones and give them with the gifts. Of course mine can never figure out how to print gift receipts so I am back at square one.

 

[Chicago526]

I used to work at Target at the refund desk in the mid 90's, when their policy was more lax. You would not BELEIVE the crap people would try to pull. I caught a lot of it but many of my co-workers did not, and often we were over-rulled by GM's that were affraid of complaints to corporate.

Sad to say, but it's the fault of some of your fellow consumers that would rather rip off the store than be an honest paying customer. Target and the rest of the retailers have to protect themselves some how, and by saving themselves money they in turn save us money.

I know it's a pain, and I know it's not always fair, since most people ARE honest, but the best thing to do is to always save the receipt, and always get a gift receipt when buying a gift. It's the only way for the store to truely know what's going on.

 

[rparmfamily]

Reading through this thread, it seems like being able to simply exchange something is now a lost art! I'm thinking it must have been the good old days, when you could go to the customer service counter, hand them the wrong size or format thing, head into the store to get the right one, come back to the counter to complete the exchange and be on your way. Why don't retailers do that anymore?

Really, you don't know? Because scammers make a living off of returning and rebuying and returning,etc. Stealing items and returning for cash. Using an item and returning it for a new item.

I worked at Sports Authority at the customer service desk for several years. OMG the shoe returns were ridiculous. It was such a scam...people would bring back shoes all the time saying they were defective and they only had them X amount of time but somehow tread was wore off and laces broken. We were starting to get very strict and instead of exchanging it, telling them they'd have to take it up with the manufacturer. Inconvient for the customer? Yes, but saving everyone else (the other customers who were honest) then it was worth it.

 

[crisi]

Yep, who among us doesn't know - or at least heard of - someone who has run the "stuff the tag in the dress and return it the next day" scam. Or the special occation shoes, put masking tape on the bottom and they look new the next day trick. There is they "buy things on sale, return them when they aren't on sale without a receipt" method. And as rparmfamily says, there is the ever popular "just shoplift it and return it for cash." Work retail at a store with a generous return policy and you may stop believing "most people are honest." And better computers and better inventory and accounting systems let corporate see what people working returns have known for years, that people are doing this all the time and its costing the stores millions - which they have to pass along to honest folks in terms of higher prices. Wal-Mart has been able to keep their prices low and have generous return policies because they've been very lean in other areas, but as Target, etc. start catching their supply chain superiority, I suspect even Wal-Mart will need to firm up.

The other thing is that it costs a lot of money to process returns and exchanges - those same computer systems are able to tell Target that their good customers seldom need a return and aren't likely to be too impacted by firm return policies. But that for a certain number of customers, those customer's cost Target when they step foot in the door - they by loss leaders, they are more likely to return - often for no better reason than Wal-Mart had it cheaper the next week. Who do you want as a customer - the one that makes you money, or the one that costs you money?

Customer analytics has been huge for the past few years, and stores are changing to reflect what they know about their customers.

 

[kaybracon]

I think I've returned two things to Target in the past six years. Generally we either live with what we bought even if it isn't perfect, or donate it. I picked up the wrong set of skates for my daughter, but they'll be a perfectly good Toys for Tots donation in October. With a full screen movie and no receipt given as a gift, we'd live with the fullscreen movie.

That is truly inspirational! Somebody call Oprah!

 

[kimsuenew]

I had this same problem with Target after having both of my kids. I had so many duplicate clothing items, etc. given as gifts, still had Target tags on them. I went in and was not aloud to return them, because I had returned more than two times in the past without receipts.

On the other hand, Babies R Us was amazing, as long as there tags were on it, they would return it, they are the only place I will buy someone a baby gift. In the craziness of having a baby, even when people gave me a gift receipt, I misplaced some of them!

I will not buy a gift in Target and I rarely shop in there anymore.

Does Babies R Us have a different policy than Toys R Us? Toys R Us is awful, they will exchange nothing... not even a TRU exclusive item, without a receipt. I have stopped shopping there entirely!

 

[allison443]

I think I've returned two things to Target in the past six years. Generally we either live with what we bought even if it isn't perfect, or donate it. I picked up the wrong set of skates for my daughter, but they'll be a perfectly good Toys for Tots donation in October. With a full screen movie and no receipt given as a gift, we'd live with the fullscreen movie.

I agree with your perspective.

 

[allison443]

Really, you don't know? Because scammers make a living off of returning and rebuying and returning,etc. Stealing items and returning for cash. Using an item and returning it for a new item.

My DD works at a clothing store in the mall that sells their own brand of clothing. They have to accept returns without a receipt since it is their own brand-the clothes are only sold there. But apparently there is a big problem with people shoplifting the clothes, then doing a return without receipt and getting money back. This is why stores have to make stricter return policies, which frustrates the honest customers!

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

Last Spring I bought a few pair of shorts for DS at Target and stuck them in the closet after he tried them on. Fast forward a few months. I wash one pair of the shorts and they come out of the dryer looking like absolute CRAP. So I get the other pair, brand new with all the tags attached, and take them back to Target. They do receipt look up and they tell me it has been more than 90 days since I bought them so I can have $3. And it counts as one of my 2 returns per year.

I am a nanny. My boss bought a pack of diapers for her DD that are one size too small. She asked me to take them back and get the next size. She didn't have the receipt. Target made me give my DL#, and since the diapers were on sale the week before they made me pay $1 to get the new diapers. Nice. I told my boss I had to "burn" my last Target return on those diapers, so if I need something returned in the next year she will have to return it for me!

 

[crisi]

I agree with your perspective.

Its laziness. I HATE returning things. It always takes more time than I want to get, you get the fish eye from the clerk, who just dealt with return scam #487 for the day and is convinced you come from the same slime. I never to remember to grab a return when I'm on my way to the store - so it becomes a special trip. And since I'm in Target returning something, I might as well pick up new lipstick or something - by the time I get out I've spent $100 because there is no such thing for me as walking into Target and not deciding I need something. So its easier, less aggravation and functionally cheaper to donate, regift, or live with it.

 

[rgf207]

I refuse to shop at target because of the horrible experience we had. We had the same problem as others with our wedding registry. We had people buy things incorrectly and ended up with multiples. When we went to return them, we had to get something from the same aisle. Of course since we already had what we wanted, there was nothing to get so we were stuck. Since we had to return a few things, we were flagged in their system and not allowed to return things for a year.

I wrote a nasty letter and told them I would never shop at their stores again. I have not set foot in one since.

 

[maxiesmom]

I refuse to shop at target because of the horrible experience we had. We had the same problem as others with our wedding registry. We had people buy things incorrectly and ended up with multiples. When we went to return them, we had to get something from the same aisle. Of course since we already had what we wanted, there was nothing to get so we were stuck. Since we had to return a few things, we were flagged in their system and not allowed to return things for a year.

I wrote a nasty letter and told them I would never shop at their stores again. I have not set foot in one since.

Did you ask for the receipts of the items you wanted to return? I know that being gifts makes it kind of awkward, but if you explained that it was a mess up with the gift registry, that could have helped.

I'm sorry you were stuck. But people need to undertand that this is not going away. You need a receipt if you expect to get money back. Too many unscrupulous people have made it crazy for retail stores to handle returns any other way. Even for gifts. Not meaning this poster at all, but do you know how many times I have heard "But I know they paid full price." You would think that no one buys anything on sale, by the way people act.

 

[disneymom3]

It's not like she is asking for a store credit to go buy something else or cash back. She wants the exact same movie but in a different format - basically an even exchange. I think it's rediculous they won't just do an even exchange.

This happened to us at Christmas. My dad bought my dh a movie in fullscreen and we use widescreen. There was no gift receipt, so as much as I despise WalMart, we exchanged it there. Actually, WalMart gave us a store credit, but we turned around and used it to buy the same movie.

The Target by me won't even do an even exchange for clothing of a different size. Every time MIL buys clothes for DD she acts like she has never seen her before. The clothes are always HUGE. I tried once to take in a size 14 for an 8 and they wouldn't let me exchange it. I wasn't even offered any kind of a credit price for it. Now I just flat out ask MIL for a receipt.

 

[crisi]

The Target by me won't even do an even exchange for clothing of a different size. Every time MIL buys clothes for DD she acts like she has never seen her before. The clothes are always HUGE. I tried once to take in a size 14 for an 8 and they wouldn't let me exchange it. I wasn't even offered any kind of a credit price for it. Now I just flat out ask MIL for a receipt.

The same shirt in two sizes are two different SKUs in Target's system. So to you it looks like a like for like exchange. To Target's computers, you might as well be exchanging the shirt for a frying pan. Silly, but that's the nature of product SKUs.

 

[LisaNJ25]

Does Babies R Us have a different policy than Toys R Us? Toys R Us is awful, they will exchange nothing... not even a TRU exclusive item, without a receipt. I have stopped shopping there entirely!

If you have ever worked there and could of seen that crap people would return that they had to take back you would understand the need for the policy.

 

[EnchantedPrincess]

I think sometimes it depends on the Target. I bought my dd a pink Leapster LMAX for Christmas when it was on sale for $56, but then she also received another pink one as a gift for Christmas. I brought it to the Target closer to my home (the lmax was bought at a different target since the one closer didn't have the pink one at the time) to exchange it for a blue one for my ds and they wouldn't let me exchange it unless I pay the different since the current price on the blue lmax was $89.99. So i took it back to the Target that I bought it from, and the guy there told me that he can do an even exchange and I won't have to pay the different even though it wasn't on sale anymore.

 

[rparmfamily]

But people need to undertand that this is not going away. You need a receipt if you expect to get money back.

This is very true. Returns aren't going to get easier! This is the norm!!

I also worked at Yankee Candle off and on for over 7 yrs. We take back ANYTHING that is Yankee Candle, no matter the age, where they bought it, burned, not burned you name it. No problems and usually with a smile or help you find something else. BUTTTTTT (BIG BUTT LOL) the number of times I ever thought we were being scammed is about 0-1 times. I was an asst manager as well so I was one of the ones doing the returns. I guess who we market towards (haha I call them the "mom's"--like me LOL) tend to be pretty honest in their returns and purchases but places like Target and Walmart and etc deal with the public, everyone, and believe me....everyone is NOT honest!

I know Walmart is getting tighter about returns. Last year after my kid's bdays (both are Nov) I needed to exchange a few toys that were duplicates. I took them to Walmart, got store credit. I STUPIDLY took them on different days so you know what happened to me?? I can't return without a receipt now! I should have done the return all at one time but I didn't (I kept forgetting) and now I have to have a receipt (which I normally do). Luckily I hardly shop at Walmart so it doesn't really bother me but it did make me laugh when I got blacklisted from Walmart. I'm not sure how long it lasts either LOL!

 

[rgf207]

Did you ask for the receipts of the items you wanted to return? I know that being gifts makes it kind of awkward, but if you explained that it was a mess up with the gift registry, that could have helped.

I'm sorry you were stuck. But people need to undertand that this is not going away. You need a receipt if you expect to get money back. Too many unscrupulous people have made it crazy for retail stores to handle returns any other way. Even for gifts. Not meaning this poster at all, but do you know how many times I have heard "But I know they paid full price." You would think that no one buys anything on sale, by the way people act.

I didn't want money back. I just wanted a store credit. I didn't want a credit that I had to use that day in a 3 foot square area of stuff that I had no use for. That is why Target will never get another penny out of me.