How do you reduce returned parcels with cash on delivery?
A parcel usually comes back for one of four reasons: the customer doesn't answer the phone, the product doesn't look like the photo, the size is wrong, or the address is incomplete. A confirmation call before shipping and honest listings solve most of them.
Updated
The four real causes
Before changing carrier, look at where your returns come from. In almost every case the cause sits upstream of the shipping.
| Cause | The warning sign | What you do |
|---|---|---|
| The customer doesn't answer | Night-time order, number never reached | Three attempts at different hours before shipping |
| The product disappoints | Borrowed, retouched or scale-free photos | Your own photos, in daylight, on a neutral background |
| The size doesn't fit | Listing with no measurements, "standard" sizes | Centimetre measurements for every size |
| The address is wrong | Vague commune, no landmark | Have them repeat wilaya, commune and landmark on the call |
The confirmation call: the move that changes everything
It's the only filter between an order and a parcel that comes back. Thirty seconds on the phone cost less than a round trip billed by the carrier.
- Introduce yourself with the store nameThe customer ordered from a brand, not from an unknown number. Say the name they saw on the store.
- Read the order back out loudItem, colour, size, quantity. This is where a customer says "actually I wanted the M".
- State the total, delivery includedThe exact amount the courier will ask for. No surprise at the door, no refusal over price.
- Confirm the address and a landmarkWilaya, commune, street, and a landmark. Ask whether someone can receive it if the customer is out.
- Give an honest delivery windowOnly what your carrier confirmed to you. An invented date manufactures a disappointed customer, and a disappointed customer refuses.
Listings that don't lie
- Photograph the product you actually hold, not the one in the supplier's catalogue.
- Show the real colour in daylight, and warn if it renders differently on screen.
- Give centimetre measurements for every size: length, chest, shoulders.
- State the fabric and care. Material that isn't what the customer pictured comes back.
- Mention any flaw and drop the price accordingly. A warned customer accepts; a surprised one refuses.
Keep your order statuses current
Ordered, processing, shipped, delivered — or cancelled, returned. These statuses are your memory: they tell you which parcels are waiting for a call, which left, and which came back unpaid. Without them you discover your losses at month end.
A buyer can cancel an order themselves as long as you haven't processed it. A cancellation before shipping costs you nothing: handle orders in order, and don't pack a parcel before you've called. The link between your visible fees and the refusal rate is explained in the delivery-fee guide.
Frequently asked questions
Why do my customers refuse the parcel at delivery?
Usually because something went unsaid: a total higher than expected, a size never checked, a product that doesn't match the photo, or a delay longer than announced. A confirmation call before shipping handles all four at once.
Should I call every customer before shipping?
Yes, as long as your volume allows. It's the most profitable habit in the trade: a thirty-second call costs less than a parcel that leaves and comes back. As volume grows, delegate the calls to a staff member rather than dropping them.
What do I do with a customer who never answers?
Three attempts at different hours, then a written message with the summary and the total. With no reply, don't ship: cancel the order. A parcel sent to an unreachable number nearly always comes back, and the return is on you.
Are returns the carrier's fault?
Rarely. A carrier can stretch a delay, but it doesn't choose your photos, your measurements or the total you announced. Fix your listings and your confirmation call first, then, if the problem persists in one area, compare the available carriers.