Here’s What Happens When You Make Too Many Amazon Returns

This post may contain affiliate links which may compensate us based on your interaction. Please read the disclosures for more information.

Amazon offers free returns on many items. But read on to see what might happen if you take advantage of that policy. 

There are several reasons why Amazon has managed to maintain such a loyal customer base. For one thing, its prices are very competitive. Shopping on Amazon will often result in a lower credit card tab than shopping elsewhere.

Amazon has also made it extremely cost-effective and convenient for consumers to have items shipped to their door. A Prime membership, for example, gives you unlimited two-day shipping for just $139 a year, and that fee includes other perks, like access to a world of content.

Amazon also generally makes it pretty easy to return the items you don’t want. Most purchases are eligible for free returns, though there are exceptions. And you can generally choose from different return options, such as bringing your items to a local UPS store versus taking them to a nearby Kohl’s or Whole Foods (though in some cases, opting for UPS over Kohl’s or Whole Foods might result in a small fee).

But one thing you may not want to do is make a lot of returns on Amazon. If you do, you might risk having your account canceled.

When you take advantage of a big perk

Buying items on Amazon is generally a low-risk proposition. That’s because you can commonly return unwanted purchases without incurring a fee.

But there have been stories about Amazon accounts getting canceled due to customers making an excessive number of returns. And what makes things really tricky is that Amazon does not have an official policy when it comes to too many returns.

So let’s say you make 100 Amazon purchases in the course of a year and return 65 of them. That’s a pretty high percentage, and one that could get you banned from Amazon — at least for a period of time. But is 20 returns out of 100 too many? And what about 15 or 16? It’s hard to know.

USA Today tried to get the scoop on Amazon’s “too many returns” policy. But it didn’t get a straight answer.

An Amazon spokesperson responded to the publisher’s inquiry by saying, “We want everyone to be able to use Amazon, but there are rare occasions where someone abuses our service over an extended period of time.” They also said, “We take action when appropriate to protect the experience for all our customers.”

What to do if your Amazon account is canceled for making too many returns

You’d think Amazon would warn you if you’re at risk of having your account canceled due to an excessive number of returns. But since the online retail giant doesn’t even maintain an official “too many returns” policy, it stands to reason that you may not get an official warning before your account is yanked away.

If that happens, your best bet is to contact Amazon and try to rectify the situation. You may be able to get your account reinstated if you pledge to keep your return ratio lower in the future. You may also be told that you’ll have the option to reinstate your account after a few months of having it paused.

Ultimately, shopping on Amazon can be a great way to save money on the things you want and need. So you may want to proceed with caution when making returns to avoid a scenario where your account is canceled.

Alert: highest cash back card we’ve seen now has 0% intro APR until 2024

If you’re using the wrong credit or debit card, it could be costing you serious money. Our experts love this top pick, which features a 0% intro APR until 2024, an insane cash back rate of up to 5%, and all somehow for no annual fee.

In fact, this card is so good that our experts even use it personally. Click here to read our full review for free and apply in just 2 minutes.

Read our free review

We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers.
The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Maurie Backman has positions in Amazon.com. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon.com. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

 Read More