Clark Howard's Tips

July 25, 2007

When you buy something that turns out to be wrong, it's important to know how to return it.

Clark prefers to deal with stores with unlimited return policies, but not all of them make it easy. And that matters to consumers.

The Harris pollsters state that 91 percent of people choose whether or not to buy at a store based on its return policy. It's the most important thing people name in determining whether they'll buy in the first place.

But retailers worry about fraud when items are returned, because it's become a big problem. It's a challenge for them to deal with fraud without treating the regular customer like dirt.

Clark's advice to retailers: be friendly about returns, and make it easy for your customers. It will create real customer loyalty and good will, which means higher sales for your business.

Consumer advice courtesy of