Sep 30 2024
Consumers prefer returns fees to increased checkout costs
Data from a survey conducted by returns specialist ZigZag has revealed that nearly three-quarters of consumers surveyed claim that ‘one-off fees for returns are preferable to price rises on items’.
The independent survey asked 2,000 consumers if they’d rather retailers cover a fraction of the cost of returns by increasing the price of items they sell or by imposing a one-off returns fee of £2.50, with 71% preferring the second option.
ZigZag says that in the wake of recent backlash to new returns fees being introduced by retailers, the results of this survey ‘point to an acceptance that paid returns are better for consumers than inflated prices to compensate for running a free returns policy’.
This news comes as a ket time of year for returns, Black Friday, draws closer. Last year, ZigZag data showed that 43% of UK returns in the wake of Black Friday and Cyber Monday in 2023 were paid for by the consumer.
ZigZag founder Al Gerrie commented: “We commissioned this question as a thought experiment to see if consumers understand the reasoning behind the introduction of returns fees. Our aim is to show people that they aren’t paying for nothing – free returns policies aren’t sustainable in any sense of the word for most retailers.
“The miles travelled for each return made eat into revenues and add to the hundreds of thousands of tons of CO2 emitted each year making online fashion returns alone.” Read more
Source: LOGISTICS MANAGER