How to create a return – Sendcloud Help Center

Purpose: In this article we will explain the different options we offer to create return labels via Sendcloud.

Would you like to create a return label for your customer or give your customer the possibility to create his own return labels? Sendcloud makes returns easy for both you and your customer! We offer the following options to create returns via Sendcloud:

You can manually create a return
You can create a return for an outgoing shipment
You can create a return for an outgoing shipment via the return portal
Your customer can make a return via the return portal

How to manually create a new return

You can use this method when your return portal is not activated or the outgoing shipment was not created via Sendcloud. Navigate to your Sendcloud panel go to Returns > Overviews >click on + New return.

Overview of the return shipment form

On the Return shipment form, there are four sections: Customer information, Return details, Return items and Shipping method. On the right side of the panel, you will find a Summary of the details you have added and the Indicative total price of the manual shipment.

Shipping method

Our Shipping recommendation feature will already recommend the best shipping method for you, based on your historical shipment data. This means that the recommendation will become better over time! Choose the shipping method that you want to use.

Once you have created your return label it will appear in the

Tip: If you click the Save this contact box under Customer information, the next time you create a return for this customer their information will be auto-filled into the form

How to create a return for an outgoing shipment

This method allows you to create returns directly from the Shipped parcel overview in case you didn't activate your return portal or you would like to make changes to the return shipment manually (for example if you would like to add insurance).

Go to the Shipping > Orders and click on Shipped
Click on the eye icon next to the order for which you want to create a return
Click on Actions
Select Create return

You will be brought to the manual return form for outgoing shipments:

On the manual return form your customer's details will be pre-filled.
The manual return form will allow you to fill in the return reason for items, if applicable. The information will be pre-filled based on the previous outgoing shipment.
If you use the form to create a return for your customer from the outgoing shipment, the returned item will be presented in the overview.

Please ensure the pre-filled details are correct before proceeding:

Tick the box Send return label to the customer if you want your customer to receive the return label in their inbox. Please note that if Tracking email notifications are not enabled, no return label can be forwarded.

Finally, click on Create label

How to create a return for an outgoing shipment via the return portal

If you prefer to use the return portal to create returns, instead of filling in the return form, you can choose this option.

Go to the shipping overview and click on Shipped > Overview
Click the eye icon next to the order for which you want to create a return
Select Actions
Select Create a return with return portal from the dropdown menu
You will be directed to the return portal where you can proceed in the same way as your customers can. You can find more information in the section: How customers can make a return via the return portal.

Not yet activated your return portal? Click here to see how to enable it in the Sendcloud platform and how to process your returns.

How customers can make a return via the return portal

When you have activated your return portal, the link will be available to your customers via Tracking emails. You can also include the link to your personal return portal in the terms and conditions on your webshop or send it directly to customers who ask to initiate a return.

In the Return portal settings, you can select the number of days in which you want to allow customers to make returns. For example, if you select 14 days, from the first day in which the parcel has the delivery status delivered, the consumer will have 14 days in which they can start a return.

Steps on how customers can make a return

Step 1: Start your return

When a consumer opens the return portal to issue a return, they are asked to provide their postal code and the order number or tracking number. Once the order is retrieved, the return process can be started. The consumer can find the order number and the tracking number in the Tracking emails sent after the label is created. To learn how to set up your Tracking emails.

Step 2: Items selection

In the second step, consumers can choose which products they want to return. Per item, they can choose one of the return reasons. You can choose between many return reasons to display in your return settings beforehand. In case the buyer would not be able to find a suitable return reason, he or she can select “Other” and type his or her reason in the message field that will appear below. The "Other" reason is selected by default, meaning everybody will be able to give more information on why they are returning. To learn how to set up the best return reasons for your return portal, click here.

If the consumer purchased multiple items of the same product, they can provide how many they want to return. To streamline the process, the total amount of units purchased is preselected by default.

Step 3: Choose refund method

After the consumer specified which items to return, they can choose a refund method.

The refund methods that Sendcloud provides are money back, store credit or exchange.

Money back: the consumer will expect to be refunded the cost of the items returned. The European law states that in case the entire order has been returned, the shipping costs have to be refunded as well if they have been charged at the moment of the purchase.
Store credit: Store credit allows the buyer to order something else from your shop, without receiving cashback. In this way, the return is not a lost purchase anymore, but it becomes a new sales. Store credit can be issued through a discount code or a gift card.
Exchange: This method allows the consumer to choose a different product in exchange. When this method is selected, a message field is displayed where the client can write what he or she would like in exchange. This information is then collected in the return details view in the Sendcloud panel. More info on how to process your returns can be found here.

At Sendcloud we do not process these transactions we only provide options.

Learn how to set-up refund methods in the return settings.

Step 4: Choose return methods

In the fourth step, consumers can select the preferred method to return the items. The return methods available are two: through a drop off point or in return in-store.

At Drop off point or at the closest postal office:
by selecting this method, the buyer can return by printing a return label and handing it in at a drop-off point. Depending on the carriers and method available, the consumer can return his / her parcel by dropping it off at a service point or a local postal office. Choosing this method triggers the creation of a shipping label, that can be downloaded when the return process is completed. In the portal, the closest drop-off point is pre-selected. If the consumer wants to return to a different drop-off point, he or she can select another by clicking on "Change drop-off point". By clicking there a list of drop-off points close by will open. Through this return method, a return fee can be charged. Learn how to set a return fee here.

Return in store: by selecting this method, the consumer chooses to return his / her order in one of your stores. By selecting this method no shipping label is generated, but you still receive a confirmation of the return in the Sendcloud panel. You can create store locations in the address tab in the Sendcloud panel. Once you are there, go to the return address tab and checkmark which return address is also a store location. In case you return address differs from a store location, create a new return address follow the procedure explained here.

Step 5: Return confirmation

The fifth step represents the last step in creating a return. In this step, a summary of the procedure is displayed. In this screen, consumers can edit their choices and details. When the summary is confirmed, the return is created.

In case the consumer has chosen to return the order via mail, he or she can download the shipping label. It’s important to remember that if the consumer can’t print or download the label immediately, the label is sent via email if the return Tracking emails are activated. Learn how to activate your returns email by clicking here.

Once the return is created, you will be able to track it and process it in the returns tab in the Sendcloud panel. Click here to learn how to process your return.