What is a refund?

[CarderPlanet]

Experts predict an increase in purchases in online stores around the world in the amount of two trillion US dollars. Almost half of that money comes from Chinese marketplaces, making China the world leader in e-commerce.

How have online purchases earned their steadily growing popularity? Basically, therefore:

• The prices are more favorable than in offline stores. Apparel and electronics dominate shopping carts.
• A huge selection of similar products - no store in the real world has such an assortment.
• A purchase is made without leaving home, or from an application installed on a smartphone from anywhere.
• Cashless payment.

The comfort of shopping and the savings in time and money were appreciated by every user of online shopping resources.

But, perhaps, there is also a danger lurking here?

If you buy a defective product in any offline store, you can return and make a refund. The administrator meets the buyer halfway in such cases.

But what if, instead of the ordered phone, a carefully packed building brick arrived from China in a parcel?

The main thing is not to worry. Yes, time, unfortunately, wasted, but not money. Most sites that sell goods on the Internet provide protection to their customers.

It is enough to know what a refund is. Then you will stop worrying about getting caught by a rogue seller, or the error with the size of the delivered clothes will not be corrected.

What is refund​

So, a refund is a voluntary return by a merchant or a seller of a payment to a buyer (refund - return, refund).

Request: "Please return" is certainly not the most powerful argument in a dispute with the seller. It is necessary to refuse the product for some reason and do it correctly.

When the store is obliged to return the money:

1. If the seller did not provide the tracking number of the parcel, and the goods did not arrive on time. Even with a track number, if the goods are not yet with you - let the seller know about it: sending is on his responsibility. The seller may ask to wait a little longer, but there are some nuances. Please note: on some services, you can open a dispute with the seller and demand a refund within a fixed time, after which it will be impossible to open a dispute. For example, on Aliexpress. Therefore, carefully read the rules of the online store and open a dispute in advance, three days before the expiration of the buyer's protection period.
2. The view does not match the description. Wrong size of clothes, poor quality, no declared functions. Anything that does not match the specifications in the description is the reason for the return.
3. Fake. Previously, Chinese sites sinned with this much more often, but now they prefer to speak directly: the product only looks like the original. But anything can happen, so if the logo differs from the brand, the decision is made in your favor immediately after you present evidence.
4. Defective, spoiled or broken goods. Or the parcel is not your order, or not the whole set.
5. The item broke before the warranty expired. The seller is obliged to replace the product or return the funds to the card within 45 days.

Make it a rule, when receiving a parcel with goods, to record the process of unpacking and turning on the purchased electronics on video. In the event of a dispute, this will be an important argument in your favor.

Save the product page and take a screenshot, just in case. It happens that unscrupulous sellers put another product on an old page with good reviews, or inflate the cost, and pay more than they bargained for. There are many apps out there to help you avoid these kinds of scams. For example, AliTools.

There are several types of refunds to a Refand bank card:

• Refund (Full Refund). The item remains with you plus the full purchase price is returned. Or the return of the goods will be carried out, with payment for delivery by agreement.
• Partial Refund. If the defect is minor, which can be corrected by inexpensive repairs, the seller offers to refund the cost in part. The product remains with you.

Replace is also possible. This is the replacement of a damaged or unsuitable product with a similar one. The seller does not return the money.

What to do if the seller refuses to refund money​

The seller is wrong, but does not respond to messages and in every possible way refuses to compensate for damage. This is an almost impossible situation, but still.

Then the refund operation can be started by the support service of the marketplace. E-Bay, Amazon, AliExpress, Asos - these and most other resources have such a loyal attitude towards the buyer that the seller has almost no chance of refusing to return. Moreover, if the buyer's account does not sin with constant refrands.

Another option is chargeback. The buyer contacts the bank from which the payment was made, and the money is debited from the payee. Sellers do not like this option very much. This process is fraught with fines from the bank; the store loses the value of the goods; spoils the reputation on the site. When the number of returns via the support service or chargebacks becomes more than statistically possible, the seller and his account will be blocked.

Why refund is not a problem​

Amazon's total revenue in 2018 was more than $ 70 billion, and in the first three months of 2019 alone it amounted to almost 60 billion. Refunds for the year passed by less than $ 30 million - a drop in the ocean.

It makes no sense to refuse a justified refund for marketplaces that care about their reputation and are interested in positive reviews. After all, business growth is due to the influx of loyal customers.

Use the services of online stores where buyer protection works, pay for purchases with a card - this way you will protect yourself as much as possible from losing money.