How to Return Products to Amazon

Returning a holiday gift or purchase to Amazon? Most items bought between Nov. 1 and Dec. 31 can be returned until Jan. 31. Learn more.

You already know that Amazon offers practically everything a consumer could want or need. But with such a diverse range of products to buy, you can also expect that not all of them will work out.

Returning stuff to Amazon can get a little tricky in some cases, particularly because of the abundance of third-party sellers on the site, and the fact that each can set their own return policy. Despite that, however, most returns to Amazon are actually quite simple thanks to easy-to-find return shipping labels for mail-in returns and thousands upon thousands of drop-off locations all across the country (including at Kohl’s stores).

Shipping your return back to Amazon may even be free! (Though that’s not the only thing you can get for free from Amazon.) The one downside, though, is that you don’t have a particularly long time to make your Amazon return in most cases—at least when compared to some other retailers.

There’s a lot of information to unpack here (kind of like those 10 different Amazon boxes that arrive on your doorstep each week), so let’s just jump into everything you need to know about how to return things to Amazon.

How Long Do You Have to Return an Item to Amazon?

Amazon gives customers 30 days from the date of delivery to return most new and unopened items for a full refund. The stipulation is that it must have been fulfilled directly by Amazon, and not a third-party seller. Sellers can set their own return policies, though most are comparable to what Amazon offers. 

You can even get a full refund for damaged groceries ordered through Amazon Fresh within 30 days of delivery, though you won’t need to send those items back because, well, that’d probably be pretty messy.

And, don’t forget that Amazon’s holiday gift to shoppers is a special extended return window. That usually lasts through Jan. 31 for anything shipped by Amazon between Nov. 1 and Dec. 31 (dates might vary each year).

There are some exceptions to the standard 30-day return and refund policy, including:

What Is Amazon’s Return Policy?

As long as your item was shipped from Amazon.com or Amazon Warehouse, you should be able to return it for a full refund within the designated time frame. Returns can be made by mail, or shipped from one of over 18,000 drop-off locations. You can also request an item to be replaced, or exchanged for a different size or color as long as it meets certain criteria, including being purchased with a credit or debit card.

Amazon promises that all items which are eligible for return must have at least one free return option, as long as it weighs less than 50 pounds. Amazon will also ship you an exact replacement of any merchandise that is damaged or defective upon receipt, unless it was purchased through a third-party seller. You can still get a refund in those cases, however.

Purchases from third-party sellers must be returned to the seller, even though the order was fulfilled by Amazon. It’s a little confusing, but the good news is that all third-party sellers are required to provide either a return address within the United States or a prepaid return label, or they must offer a full refund without the need to return the item.

Some items, however, cannot be returned to Amazon. These include:

• Pet food.
• Grocery products.
• Fresh flowers, live indoor plants or live insects.
• Unboxed, expanded mattresses.
• Amazon Photos printed products.
• Most games, software downloads and purchases from the Amazon Appstore, the Amazon Digital Music store, the Amazon Luna store or the Amazon Video store
• Items containing hazardous materials or flammable liquids or gasses.
• Online subscriptions after they have been accessed.
• Any product missing the serial number or UPC.
• Gift cards, except as required by law.
• Prepaid phone cards or game cards.
• Theme park tickets.

If any of these non-returnable items arrived damaged or defective, however, you can still reach out to Amazon to request a refund or replacement.

How to Return an Item to Amazon

Though there are some very few exceptions, your Amazon purchase was most likely completed online and delivered to your door. For such a simple process to get to you, Amazon offers a multitude of ways to send unwanted items back to them. You can:

• Use a qualified drop-off service near you.
• Use Amazon Locker, Locker+ and Amazon Hub Counter locations for small returns. You can also use hubs and lockers to pick up your Amazon packages in person.
• Request a pickup, especially for heavy or bulky returns.
• Initiate a label-free and package-free return.

The various options will have different requirements for whether you need to supply a box or label. Here are the options that were available to us for a recent return:

How to Ship a Return Back to Amazon Yourself

If you don’t mind boxing up an item and printing your shipping label out at home, you’ll have the widest array of options here’s what to do:

1. Log in to your Amazon account.
2. Navigate to “Your Orders.”
3. Select the order with the unwanted item(s).
4. Select Return or Replace Items.
5. Select the item and choose a reason for return.
6. Select whether to process your return for a refund or replacement, if applicable. If your purchase was through a third-party seller, you should see “Submit Return Request.”
7. Now you can select your preferred return method depending on eligibility.
8. Print your return label and return authorization.
9. Pack your item securely and affix the return label to the outside of the package.
10. Drop the package off at an Amazon Locker, a UPS dropoff box or UPS store. You can also initiate a UPS pickup (UPS will retrieve your box from your doorstep), but you’ll have to provide a box $7.99.

How to Do a Packaging-Free, Label-Free Return to Amazon

If you’d rather not pack up your item yourself, you can initiate a a label-free, box-free return to Amazon.

Amazon’s box-free, label-free locations include:

• Whole Foods
• Kohl’s

While that gives you fewer options than above, you won’t have to hunt down a box or print a label. Plus, dropping off at an Amazon Hub counter lets Amazon reduce packaging and trucks on the road, by packing multiple peoples’ returns together.

1. Log into your Amazon account.
2. Navigate to “Your Orders.”
3. Complete the steps above for the return process.
4. Select whether you’ll be dropping your item at Whole Foods or Kohl’s
5. You’ll receive a QR code to be scanned when you bring your item to a designated drop-off location. No need to print or pack anything yourself. Just bring the item in during the hours the Hub Counter is open (which may not be the same hours of the store the counter is inside).

When Will You Get Your Refund from Amazon, and In What Form?

Amazon notes that most payments are fully refunded within a week of them receiving and processing your returned item. However, you’ll also have to tack on the amount of time it may take for your item to get to Amazon, and you may be waiting up to three weeks before you see your refund.

Here’s how long it may take for funds to be available after Amazon has fully processed your return, depending on your original form of payment:

If you’re returning a gift that you received from someone else, your refund will come in the form of an Amazon.com Gift Card, with the amount automatically added to the Amazon account that you used to generate your return.

If you’re returning a gift that you received from someone else, your refund will come in the form of an Amazon.com Gift Card, with the amount automatically added to the Amazon account that you used to generate your return.

Amazon Gift Return Process

Got a gift from someone at Amazon? You can return it in exchange for an Amazon gift card — and you don’t need a gift receipt. Follow these steps:

1. Log in to your Amazon account. Create one if you don’t have one.
2. Go to the Returns Center.
3. Enter your 17-digit order number from the packing slip and hit “search.” Don’t have that? You’ll have to have a conversation with the gift-giver.
4. Select the item you want to return and choose your preferred return method.
5. You’ll get your refund as a gift card balance in your Amazon account.

Things to Consider Before Returning Your Item to Amazon

Though Amazon likes to make it sound as if returns are always free, return shipments are actually free of charge only in some cases. There are a lot of moving parts in terms of what items qualify and how you choose to ship the item back, but you can find the full breakdown here.

You may also be subject to restocking fees if select items are returned used, missing parts or in poor condition. This applies mostly to electronics and software purchases, and a tax on restocking fees may also apply in some states.

Finally, it should be noted that there are special circumstances around collectibles and other pricey items returned to Amazon. If the value of your collectible sports or entertainment items, coins, fine art, jewelry or watch is $35 or more, you’ll need to use a trackable method to send it back to Amazon. If it’s worth more than $500, it must also be insured. In either case, you’ll need to send these items back in their original packaging with all their documentation to avoid rejection of your refund, and you’ll want to photograph the item for your records before shipping it back. After all, you can never be too careful when your goal is to maximize your savings at Amazon!

Returning a purchase from another major retailer? Here’s how:

• How to Make a Return at Walmart.
• How to Make a Return at Home Depot.
• How to Make a Return at Kohl’s.
• How to Make a Return at Target.

The post How to Return Products to Amazon appeared first on The Real Deal by RetailMeNot.

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