Creating a return on a customer's behalf

When a customer phones or emails to send something back, you raise the return yourself from the order. Create Return sits in the Returns section of the order page in your Orbit dashboard. It walks you through three steps: the items, the reasons, and how the return will be settled. After that the return follows the same approve, receive and complete steps as one the customer raised.

Considerations

• Your return window applies here too. If it has closed for the order, Orbit refuses the return. To take it anyway, extend or clear the window first. See Setting your return window and return reasons.
• You cannot return more of an item than the customer bought. Units already on a requested, approved or received return count against that. Declined and cancelled returns do not.
• Creating the return moves no money and no stock. You refund from the order, and stock comes back when you mark the items received.
• The customer gets the Return Request Received email as soon as you create the return, the same as if they had asked themselves.
• If the return total is at or under your Auto-approve small returns amount, Orbit approves it straight away.

Create a return

1. From your Orbit dashboard, go to Orders.
2. Open the order.
3. Scroll to the Returns section. It reads No returns if none exist yet.
4. Click Create Return. The Create Return window opens at step 1 of 3.

Step 1: pick the items

5. Under Select items to return, tick each item coming back. Each row shows the product, its SKU and the line total.
6. A Quantity (max 3) box appears under each ticked item, showing how many the customer bought. It starts at 1. Type the number coming back.
7. Click Next. The button stays grey until you have ticked at least one item.

A bundle lists its components under the bundle's name. Click Return whole bundle to tick every component at its full quantity, or tick the components one by one.

Step 2: give a reason

8. Under Select a reason for each item, each item you ticked is listed with its quantity.
9. Click Select reason... and pick a reason. The list is the one on your Return Reasons page.
10. Type what the customer told you in Additional note (optional). The note is saved against that item.
11. Click Next. The button stays grey until every item has a reason.

Step 3: choose the resolution and check the summary

12. Set Resolution Type to Refund or Exchange. Agree this with the customer before you go on. It decides the later steps of the return.
13. Leave Auto-restock items on if the units should go back on sale once they arrive. Switch it off for goods you will not sell again. This only sets the starting choice you see when you receive the items. You can still change it then.
14. Under Notes (optional), type anything else the customer said. It is saved as the Customer Notes on the return.
15. Check the Summary. It lists each item with its quantity and value, and the Total Refund. The values come from the line totals on the order.
16. Click Create Return. The message Return created appears.

The new return shows in the Returns section with its number, such as RET-0001, its resolution, the status Requested, its item count and the date. Click it to open the return page.

Refund or exchange?

• Refund: the customer gets their money back. Once you receive and check the items, you issue the refund against the original payment from the order. See Refunding an order.
• Exchange: the customer gets replacement goods. Their money stays with you and you fulfil the replacements. Check the replacement is in stock first.

What happens next

• Status: the return starts as Requested. Open it and click Approve to add a return label or tracking, then Receive Items when the parcel arrives, then Complete Return. See Processing a return.
• Stock: each unit comes back only when you choose Restock on Receive Items. With Auto-restock items off, every line starts as Quarantine instead.
• Money: completing a refund return records the total but does not pay the customer. Refund from the order's Refund button.
• The customer: they get the Return Request Received email now, then Return Approved or Return Request Update when you decide, and Return Completed at the end.
• Where it shows: under Orders, then Returns, and in the Return column of the Orders list, which reads Return Requested.

Tip: If the customer is keeping the item, such as a low value product that costs more to post back than to replace, open the return and click Resolve without return.

Related guides

• Processing a return
• Managing returns
• Refunding an order
• Setting your return window and return reasons