Return cost
Three dispositions side by side — send it back, keep it for a partial refund, or write it off.
The gauge
| Disposition | Net loss | When it applies |
|---|---|---|
| Send it backLowest | $15.30 | Worth it when the item value is well above the reverse freight and you still want the money rather than the item. |
| Keep it and take a partial refund | $24.00 | Worth it when the item is usable and the defect is one you can live with at a lower price. |
| Write it off | $80.00 | The honest baseline. If both routes above cost more than this, neither is worth the effort. |
The gap between sending it back and keeping it is $8.70.
The seller has not confirmed who pays the reverse leg, so the calculation assumes you do.
Parameters: returns.rate.shoes (checked 24 Sep 2026) · returns.reverseFreight (checked 24 Sep 2026) · returns.resaleLoss (checked 24 Sep 2026)
How to read the result
- The honest baseline is writing it off. If neither of the other two rows beats that figure, the effort is not worth the money.
- Reverse freight falls on you unless the seller has agreed otherwise in writing. Unknown counts as you.
- Set the daily opportunity cost to zero if you do not want waiting time priced in. It is there so the comparison is not only about cash.
- The gap between returning and keeping tells you how much the partial refund would have to be to make keeping worthwhile.
How it is put together
The reverse leg is modelled as a share of the outbound freight you already paid. The waiting period is converted at the daily figure you enter. Keeping the item is modelled as the share of the order you accept losing, plus a further allowance once the claim window has closed.
Reverse freight ratio and resale loss are editorial parameters; the waiting window follows published claim process descriptions. Seller responsibility is your input, not a lookup.
What it cannot do
- It does not know what the seller will actually agree to. The partial rate is your estimate, not an offer.
- Waiting times are drawn from published process windows and vary by destination and carrier.
- It does not value your time beyond the daily figure you set.
Parameters
This gauge carries 8 linked judging points and was last read on 26 Sep 2026. Its figures are recorded with a source type and an observation count; changes to any of them are logged in the change archive.