Yahoo Finance I’m a Shopping Expert: Why It’s Not Worth the Time or Money To Return These 4 Items
When you buy something and discover it just doesn’t quite work for you, your first instinct might be to try to return the item. But is that actually the best move?
In many cases, the time, effort and potential costs involved in the return process can end up outweighing the benefits. Certain types of purchases are simply not worth the hassle of trying to send them back, even if they weren’t exactly what you wanted.
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We spoke with Julie Ramhold, consumer analyst with DealNews.com, as well as smart shopping expert Trae Bodge, to get their thoughts on when returns tend to be more trouble than they’re worth.
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Electronics
This is a great example of the kind of product that may not be worth returning. A TV, printer, drone or other gadget can be really inconvenient to return, involving careful repackaging, shipping and waiting. Sometimes the retailer will even charge a restocking fee of 15% or more, penalizing you for changing your mind.
“Tech can be tricky to return,” said Bodge. “Return windows for tech items can tend to be shorter than for other items, and sometimes, there are restocking fees. Because the resale market is so strong, you might be better off selling your item on a platform that will buy your tech from you.”
Bodge points to a website called MPB.com as a good example. It specializes in buying used cameras and video equipment.
“The site is easy to use,” said Bodge. “You give them the specifics of your device and they quote what they will pay for it and provide a prepaid shipping label. If the item is received as described, you will be paid by direct deposit in a couple of days!”
No hassle, no headaches. Of course, the resale value won’t be as high as what you originally paid. However, according to Bodge, it may be better than the alternative of fighting with the retailer over returns.
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Food or Beverages
With food and drinks, the experience can really vary depending on where you bought them. Some stores will insist that you have a good reason for your return. If you just grabbed a new flavor of chips and it turned out not to be your thing, the store might not accept it.
“This will likely be harder to do and depend highly on what store you purchased the items from,” said Ramhold. “For instance, Costco and Sam’s Club both have pretty great return policies when it comes to things like foods and nonalcoholic beverages, but if you purchase these kinds of things from other big-box stores, the returns may not be as easy or forgiving.”
Of course, there’s a big difference if the food or drink was actually spoiled or contaminated when you bought it. Then you’ll definitely want to return it to the store, and the store should have no problem giving you a full refund.
“But if it’s a simple matter of trying a new type of cereal and not being keen on it, you may not be able to return it,” said Ramhold. “In those cases, it’s worth trying to find someone in your social circle who might like it or just cutting your losses and tossing it out.”
Clothing Accessories
Returning clothing accessories like belts, scarves and jewelry can also be a hassle. It’s often not worth returning them, even if you end up deciding you don’t want to keep the item. It’s often easier to try to sell the items secondhand rather than going through the return process (or donate them and chalk up a tax write-off).
The main reason, according to Ramhold, is that these types of accessories tend to be relatively inexpensive to begin with.
“Odds are good the time you spend driving to the store to return or ship an item back isn’t worth the refund — especially if you have to pay for return shipping,” said Ramhold. “This basically just cuts into your refund (even if you get the full refund, your time still matters) so if it was sufficiently cheap to begin with, it’s likely better to just cut your losses and move on.”
It may be a better option to just find another use for the accessory, rather than wasting your time and energy on the return process.
Anything That Will Cost More To Return Than It’s Worth
Anything that’s going to cost you more to send back than the item is actually worth, it’s likely just not worth the hassle.
“This is really broad,” said Ramhold. “But it’s a good thing to keep in mind, especially if you purchase something from a kind of sketchy source (like an ad on social media) where you might be asked to pay return shipping for returns or exchanges.”
If the item itself isn’t all that valuable to begin with, it just doesn’t make sense to spend money trying to send it back.
“When I want to return an inexpensive item, I’ll add it to my donate pile or see if a friend can use it,” said Bodge.
On the plus side, Ramhold added, “Some stores have already decided in some cases to not even require an item to be returned in order to provide a refund because they’ve learned it’s more expensive to cover that return shipping than to just refund the item and let the customer do what they want with it. This won’t always be the case, but it’s something to keep in mind and definitely weigh your options when trying to determine if a return is worth your time and money.”
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: I’m a Shopping Expert: Why It’s Not Worth the Time or Money To Return These 4 Items
