Quite recently I received a faulty product from one of the renowned online shopping sites. Even though I got the money back to my account I had to bear the courier charges which was not a minor amount. So in that case I wonder whose responsibility it should be to deliver the product in a good condition - buyer's or seller's? I am curious to know if there are any shopping sites that do no impose any further charges on already disappointed customer.
Well, in my case, I also received a insufficient items which don't conform for the products I have ordered online. The return freight cost is free as long as the products are packaged in the same way as they were delivered. Meaning they should be returned to the box where they're placed. No extra cost is paid. It is being so provided in the terms and conditions of the online store I have transacted with.
I've only had two companies that didn't charge this, years apart. The first was one company that provided a freepost address to return the item to when I reported that the item was faulty, and the other gave me a shipping label to print and sent a courier tound to collect it at their expense. In both cases though, those were manufacturers, not merchant sellers. I think with most online merchants, you are going to be out the shipping costs if you have to return it. If that is an issue, for example the shipping costs are higher than the item cost, it might be better to look elsewhere to buy it.
I have been ordering items from Lazada. It comes with a delivery charge of 99 pesos, that's about $2. There was a time that I received a defective product that I returned. It took some weeks before the replacement came back and I was quite satisfied. There was no extra charge for the delivery. But if I would be charge a delivery fee then it is unfair to me.
I think the OP is asking about the shipping charges which comes with buying the product before the returns. I don't think that the online stores are obliged to pay back shipping cost in that case. It is only for the return that they do not charge the shipping cost.
The T&C differs from site to site. There're products where you need to pay the shipping charge in case of returns. So far, I never had to pay the shipping charge on any of the returns as I do avoid buying where there's a courier charge involved.
I don't think they will exclude the shipping charges. I have felt that it's unfair. The shipping costs should also be refunded.
I personally do not think shipping cost should be refunded because, the seller did not get that money the shipping service did, Unless the product was shipped badly (lack of protection) I do not think it is right to ask for a refund for shipping cost. Its already been used on the shipping service. Returns is a whole different story, if they want you to return the product then the seller should pay shipping.
But I think there is no fault of buyer too. When buyer chooses a particular shopping site he expect to get the product that will perform as intended. When it fails to do so it should be the sellers responsibility to bear the cost including courier charges. I don't think if any seller will ask you to return the product they already sold. I bought a 10 meter USB cable from Amazon to power up my WiFi dongle and before purchasing it it got it clarified from the seller that it will work as per my requirements. But it did not work and the seller asked to buy a power hub to make it work. So I returned the product to Amazon but I had to bear the courier charges. I don't think it was a fair deal.
@luckycharm Sorry my first response was kind of vague. I think there is a lot of situations and there is no perfect solution. I personally understand if it wasn't as described then they should (seller) pay return shipping (if they want you to return for refund). But on another note there are many cases of buyer remorse (not saying yours is just in general) and buyers are sick of having to foot the bill for people that don't read the descriptions. I only think the seller should bear the cost if it is being returned for refund for the item not being as described, like in your case. If you are unhappy with a product or if it is not as described a lot of sellers will ask you to return for refund, but its best to look over their return policy before purchasing. If it was not as described I would of told them to pay for return shipping and not stopped bugging them till they did. Anything else the money for the courier is gone (like buyer remorse, or not returning for a refund), there is no way getting that back unless you paid for insurance and it got broke in transit. I am not trying to come off harsh I am just trying to give another perspective.
I have returned number of products I bought from online shopping sites which were paid either by credit or debit cards including shipping charges if applicable. But in all such cases my total amount was refunded to me so I have never experienced any thing like that. I mean they never charged me any thing in the name of courier or shipping for any of the consignments I returned thus far.
I had never experienced such problems with delivery costs. When I need to return or exchange any faulty items I buy online all is refunded with no problems. I don't think the buyer should ever bear the charges because it's the stores responsibilty to provide customers with good service.
I believe the seller should be the one to cover the return fee as obviously it isn't the buyer's fault. I bought numerous items online and I have encountered wrong products which is really stressful on my part. The good thing is that this one seller who sent me the wrong item, did not oblige me to return the item. Instead, she apologized and told me to just keep the wrong item since it's their fault, and she sent me the right one the day after. I hope there are a lot of sellers like her since we as buyers pay the right amount including shipping fee so sellers should also provide us the right service.
By the way, the terms of seller always mentions it that one can return the good within stipulated time with no obligation whatsoever therefore there is no reason that one has to pay shipping charges for none of his fault. I know most reputed eCommerce portals would not afford to stay in the cutthroat competition if they adapted to such malpractices.
