You can now make an online return without leaving your couch — but it comes at a price.
Uber Eats has rolled out a new returns feature that allows avid online shoppers to return items purchased through the delivery app and receive an instant refund.
“A first for the on-demand delivery industry, customers will now be able to send back eligible retail items purchased on Uber Eats and receive an instant refund — just request a return in the Uber Eats app and a courier will come pick it up for a fee,” Uber said in its announcement.
For items purchased for $20 or more, shoppers can request a courier through the app to make the return — for a fee — without ever having to leave the house.
The cost of returning items is dependent on the shopper’s order and is calculated in-app based on the courier’s time and distance to make the return.
Uber will immediately process the refund — including the item price, applicable taxes and the Uber Eats service fee — once the courier picks up the return.
However, tips and the delivery fee from the original order are non-refundable.
On the returns fee consumers will be slapped with, Uber said to “think of it as a small price for never having to find parking at the mall again.”
Retailers operating through Uber Eats — including Petco, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Best Buy — will be part of the initial launch, with additional retail partners planned to be added to the service in the future.
For items not purchased through the Uber Eats app, consumers can utilize the “send items” feature, with which shoppers can request a courier to send up to five prepaid and sealed packages to local post offices, UPS or FedEx locations.
Shoppers will still have the option to make the return themselves if they don’t want to cough up the return fee.
The new feature comes after online shoppers have long grappled with issues while making online returns, a survey revealed, as cited by CNBC.
A recent study of 1,000 people who made an online return in the last year revealed that a third of shoppers found printing labels and locating packaging stressful — with 43% of respondents noting that waiting for a refund was the top return stress point.
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