How long does the customer have to return the product?

Even the most generous of companies are not going to be able to offer an unlimited return window. You need to determine how long you are willing to let the customer keep the product before you will no longer accept a return.

The window you offer is going to depend on the type of products you sell. 30 days is a common allowance which is seen in many refund policies of eCommerce stores offering physical goods, while 14 days is usually common for websites offering digital products and services.

Feel free to go up or down from there as you see fit.

What type of refund will be provided?

Some companies choose to simply refund the purchase price of the product once it is returned. That is one option, or you could choose to provide refunds in the form of store credit. A stricter return policy may offer to replace the original unit but will make no refund available in terms of cash or credit.

For smaller businesses trying to get started on the web, it makes sense to launch with a liberal return policy in order to earn trust. If that policy proves to be too expensive, you can always tighten it up later on.

Who pays for shipping costs?

Assuming you are dealing with the return of physical products (as opposed to digital goods), you will want to outline who is going to pay for shipping costs. The simple solution is to ask customers to pay for shipping, although that will obviously not be as popular as handling the shipping expense yourself.

If you do decide to cover the shipping, the logistics of that offer will need to be sorted out. Are you going to send a pre-paid shipping label for the item? Think through the details and outline them in your refund policy.

The three points above are the key elements and the minimum of what should be included in the refund policy.

Do you offer perishable products? Do you require proof of purchase? What condition does the item need to be in to be eligible for a return?

Craft your policy while thinking carefully about the variables involved with the products you sell.