“The Hidden Costs of Returns: Why Wehkamp is Charging 50 Cents per Return”

Returning is done on the assembly line. Of the 508 million parcels shipped within the Netherlands in 2021, 57.5 million were returned. And such a return involves quite a bit – in terms of costs, among other things – says retail expert Fred Rutgers. “A return costs much more than you can imagine.”

Throw away

Rutgers continues, “Packaging must be taken into account and returns must be handled by humans.” In addition, some products must be thrown away. “Think of sex toys, but also a dress with make-up stains on it. That must then be washed, ironed and folded. Then the choice is quickly made.”

The environmental impact caused by the return is enormous, Rutgers tells Editie NL. “That will work on your conscience. I understand that an item occasionally does not fit, but returning it on this scale is no longer normal.”

Create awareness

By asking 50 cents per returned item, Wehkamp wants to make people aware of the impact of returns. “That is an extra threshold to return it, but 50 cents is not unaffordable for many people,” says consumer psychologist Tim Zuidgeest.

He thinks it can be much smarter. This should make it much more difficult to return something. “In some webshops you already receive the return label in the package. They actually say: a lot is returned, so that’s why we make it easy for you.”

‘Threshold must be raised’

In short, the threshold for returning products must be raised, says the consumer psychologist. That could also be done by asking for the actual amount that a return costs, and not 50 cents. “People think that 50 cents covers everything, but that’s not the case. The return can be much more,” he says. “Sending something back should feel easy, but be difficult.”