WhatsApp return requests: 4 checks
A WhatsApp return request passes four checks before the system says yes: link it to the invoice and delivery date, confirm the product is not excluded, separate a change of mind from a faulty or wrong product, and leave the refund to a named person after inspection. It follows WhatsApp customer complaints: there the customer reports a problem, here they send back what they bought.
What the regulations say about returns
If your sales fall under the E-Commerce Law, Article 7 of the E-Commerce Law Implementing Regulations, published by the Ministry of Commerce, requires your contract terms to tell the consumer about their right to cancel under Article 13 of the Law where allowed, the costs they bear, and what they must do to cancel, or that cancellation is not allowed because the product is excluded. Article 11 of the Regulations lists those cases unless agreed otherwise, including products that can spoil within the cancellation period, cannot be resold for health reasons, were made to the consumer's specification, or are priced by a volatile market such as gold and silver. Write the period and costs into your policy as the Law sets them, reviewed with your legal adviser, and enter them into the system so it applies them to every request.
A worked example
Illustrative example: a homeware shop that sells to customers over WhatsApp received 11 return requests in one week. The system accepted 6 that passed all four checks and sent pickup slots. It declined 2 with a reason: the policy period had passed. A knife set engraved with the customer's name went to the owner as an excluded case. Two broken products moved to the complaints route.
The four checks for every request
- Link the request to the invoice and delivery date. The system finds the order by number or the customer's mobile and shows what was bought and when it was received. The period runs from the date in the proof of delivery, not the order date.
- Confirm the product can be returned. The system checks the item against your policy's excluded list: perishables, items not resellable for health reasons, and items made for that customer. It asks whether the product was used and requests a photo with the packaging.
- Separate a change of mind from a fault. A change of mind follows the returns route with its published terms and costs. A faulty or wrong product is a complaint and goes to the complaints route.
- Refund only after inspection, on a named person's decision. The system books the pickup and numbers the request, but refunds nothing until the warehouse inspects the product. The responsible person then approves the refund to the same payment method, and the item returns to stock or to the damaged list, depending on the inspection.
What the system does in each case
| Case | What the system does |
|---|---|
| Within the period, unused, not excluded | Accepts, books a pickup and states the published cost |
| The period in your policy has passed | Declines with a reason citing the delivery date and period |
| An excluded item | Refers it to the person with authority and promises nothing |
| Faulty, or different from the order | Moves it to the complaints route |
| Item received and inspected | Asks the responsible person to approve the refund |
| Third request from one customer in a month | Escalates to the owner |
The conversation as it happens
Customer: I bought a pressure cooker from you last week and it's too big. I want to return it.
System: I found your order 3088, delivered on Sunday. Has the cooker been opened or used? Please send a photo of it with the box.
Customer: Not used, and the box is complete. (photo)
System: Return request 52 is logged. Our driver collects it tomorrow, 4 to 7 pm; the pickup fee is as in the shop's policy. The refund follows inspection at the warehouse.
In the evening the shop owner asks:
Owner: What returns do we have?
System: 3 requests. One is inspected and needs your refund approval, one awaits pickup tomorrow, and one is an engraved knife set your policy excludes. Accept or decline?
Owner: Approve the first, and decline the set politely.
Running the business from WhatsApp keeps request, invoice, stock and refund in one record.
Checklist before automating return replies
- A written policy with period, costs and steps?
- Excluded items marked in the system?
- The period runs from the proof-of-delivery date?
- Faulty and wrong items go to the complaints route?
- No refund before inspection and named approval?