Study: Returns cost online retailers an average of five to ten euros
Published: Tuesday, Dec 5th 2023, 05:00
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Online retailers have had to contend with high costs due to returns. This is the result of a study by the retail research institute EHI, for which online retailers from Germany, Austria and Switzerland were surveyed.
The average cost is therefore between five and ten euros for each returned item. Returns in the home and furnishings sector are particularly expensive at between 10 and 20 euros due to their size and higher value. According to the respondents, the biggest cost driver is checking the returned items and checking their quality.
According to the study, the volume of returns varies greatly depending on the sector. Fashion products have particularly high rates of 26 to 50 percent on average. Online shoppers often order several variants in order to decide which item of clothing they like best when trying it on, write the authors of the study. This is part of the business model. Many of the returned fashion items then go back on sale.
Pandemic had no impact
On average across all product groups, the item-related returns rate is between six and ten percent and therefore at a similar level to previous years. 58% of retailers state that the rate is constant, 21% say it has increased and 15% say it has decreased. According to the study, the pandemic has not had a significant impact on the trend.
74 percent of retailers specifically try to avoid returns. In order to be able to take the right countermeasures, 70 percent record the reasons for returns. For 86% of respondents, detailed information in the online store with precise descriptions and images is the most important measure to reduce the rate.
Shipping costs as a service
Few sellers let customers pay the shipping costs for returns. Only 14 percent of online retailers make use of this option to reduce the number of returns. Almost two thirds cover the shipping costs. "It seems essential for them to offer this service due to the high level of competition and because they assume that customers expect such a service," write the authors.
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