Retail returns: eligibility and completion log

Choose a prevention action after a longer waste record. Record repair or replace for equipment the shop uses. Return to the retail overview.

Eligibility is not completion

Customer-remedy progress stays independent of the item’s operational destination. route_eligible is the destination that is allowed after the legal basis and safety_state are recorded. Unknown legal_basis or customer_right_open unknown must not be converted into permission to dispose of or resell the item: the route stays hold until that authority is established.

not_assessed can be a fully recorded unresolved row when the required cells are filled. It is not a safe item. Missing required information leaves the row incomplete.

route_completed is yes only when the destination has actually been finished. A usable completed-route note names the destination that was finished, the date, and a reference that shows the item left for that destination, such as a waste-transfer or collection record. A listing identifier alone does not complete resale.

This log is not a legal-rights calculator. It does not tell a customer how to book a carrier. Use current official guidance for the customer’s remedy.

Fill in the log

Download both files. Save a copy of the blank log and type into that copy.

• Blank log, returns-blank.csv
• Fictional example, returns-example.csv

The files are plain CSV. You type every cell.

Columns: return_id, channel, legal_basis, customer_right_open, safety_state, safety_note, route_eligible, route_completed, completed_route_note, refund_status, row_status.

channel is in_store or distance. legal_basis is cra_faulty, distance_cancel, shop_policy or unknown. customer_right_open is yes, no or unknown. refund_status is due, paid, not_due or unknown. Customer-remedy cells stay independent of the operational destination.

safety_state is safe_to_resell_documented, not_safe or not_assessed. A usable safety_note for a documented safe item names what was checked, the date and who decided. For not_assessed or not_safe it states that no assessment has been made, or why the item is not safe, with a date. Cosmetic or resale-condition notes are not a product-safety finding.

route_eligible is hold, resale, repair, recycle, residual or not_eligible. It cannot be resale while safety is not_assessed or not_safe, or while the legal basis or customer right is unknown. route_completed is not_started, started or yes.

row_status is recorded when legal_basis, customer_right_open, safety_state, safety_note and route_eligible are filled, including when those values remain unknown, not_assessed or hold. If route_completed is yes, the completed-route note must also be filled. Missing required information is incomplete. The sheet is manual and does not enforce these rules.

Customer rights the log must not override

Not every return receives the same remedy. Use GOV.UK trader guidance on refunds for the current working summary. This log records the item’s disposition; the official guidance explains the customer’s rights.

For faulty goods, that page says a trader must offer a full refund if an item is faulty, not as described or does not do what it is supposed to, and that sale goods keep the same faulty-goods rights. It is illegal to restrict or take away those rights or to mislead customers about them, for example by displaying a sign that says the shop does not accept returns. For items bought in person, that page says a refund is not required where the customer knew the item was faulty, damaged it by attempting a repair, or no longer wants it unless they bought it without seeing it. An attempted repair may still leave a repair, replacement or partial-refund question.

Distance cancellation is a separate right. For items bought online, by mail or phone, that page says the customer has 14 days from receiving the item to say they want to cancel, then 14 days to return it, and the trader must refund within 14 days of receiving the item back. They do not have to give a reason. A known fault or an attempted repair does not, on that page, remove that cancellation right. Distance-cancellation exceptions on that page are a different list: personalised or custom-made items, perishable items, newspapers and magazines, unwrapped CDs, DVDs and software, and sealed hygiene items opened after supply. In-store change of mind is not required unless the item was bought without being seen or the trader’s own policy says so.

The log records shop_policy separately and does not invent an in-store change-of-mind right.

Worked example: fictional Millbridge Outfitters returns

The example is fictional. Ordinary non-food clothing and a small electrical item are in scope. Food, medicines and cosmetics stay outside this example.

Limits

The log does not calculate avoided kilograms or carbon. It does not interpret a warranty contract. Product-safety instructions follow Business Companion’s product-safety guide for Great Britain. Northern Ireland traders should use nibusinessinfo product-safety law. Northern Ireland consumer enquiries use ConsumerLine. Specialized food, medicine and cosmetics resale rules stay outside the ordinary non-food example. Equipment the business itself uses stays on the repair-or-replace record.

Your next action

Choose a prevention action after a longer waste record if residual or recycle is the later prevention question.

Sources

• Accepting returns and giving refunds: the law.
• Online and distance selling for businesses.
• Product safety | Business Companion.
• Product safety law in Northern Ireland.