If you’re keeping an eye on the Chinese e-commerce scene, you’ve probably heard about the “refund only” policy. It was a major buzzword during the 618 Shopping Festival, marking the first big sales event since many e-commerce platforms rolled out this policy late last year. Now, it looks like a lot of these platforms are having a change of heart.
The Backlash Begins
Here’s the scoop: the “refund only” policy was intended to boost customer service by allowing buyers to return items without having to provide a reason. Sounds good in theory, right? But during the 618 festival, things went sideways. Instead of improving service, the policy became a playground for scammers and opportunists looking to snag free stuff. There are even online tutorials teaching people how to exploit the system for just 30 RMB (about 4.14 USD) a pop. This got so bad that it started trending on Weibo, China’s equivalent of Twitter, and merchants were literally driving hundreds of kilometers to recover their goods.
The Impact on Merchants
The numbers are eye-popping. Beauty merchants saw refund rates nearing 30%, while some womenswear sellers faced refund rates as high as 80%. For many, this policy wasn’t just a nuisance—it was threatening their survival. The hashtag “20 thousand merchants unite to fight no-fault refund only” (#2万名卖家组团硬刚无理由仅退款#) even made it to number 10 on Weibo’s Hot Search list, racking up 16.87 million views. It was clear: something had to change.
Platforms Make a Move
Fast forward to now, and many platforms are rethinking their approach. Taobao, for instance, has started to phase out the blanket “refund only” rule. They’ve introduced a new clause that exempts merchants with a review score higher than 4.8 out of 5 from this policy. Douyin, the Chinese counterpart of TikTok, is doing something similar. Merchants with review scores below 70% are the ones still facing the “refund only” policy.
Shifting Strategies
So, what’s the takeaway? After 618, platforms like Taobao, Tmall, and Douyin are shifting gears. They’re moving away from a simple “low prices” strategy and are focused on increasing GMV (Gross Merchandise Value) in smarter ways. Taobao is even rolling out a new scoring system aimed at enhancing merchant service and updating the refund complaint process. The old one-size-fits-all approach clearly didn’t cut it, so here’s hoping these new tweaks will strike a better balance for both consumers and merchants.
