Auto Restock Products

  • Updated

Contents

  1. How to Access the Return Policy
  2. Auto-restock Products
  3. Considerations
  4. Recommendations
  5. Scenarios

 

 

Configure your Auto-restock Products setting that best fits your business while optimizing inventory management and refund processing.

 

 

How to Access the Return Policy

  • On your Return Manager, visit Return Settings.

return_settings_2_pub.png

  • Click the Return Policy tab.

return_policy_tab_2_pub.png

  • There, you will be presented with the Auto-restock Products setting. 

toggle_on_pub.png

Use the toggle switch to either enable or disable this setting.

 

Back To Top

 

Auto-restock Products

 

Main Description

Keep this on to select “Restock Items” by default when processing a refund.

 

With Auto-restock Authorization enabled, the "Restock Item" checkbox will automatically be checked for each RMA in the Manage Returns Dashboard.

 

This will automatically increase the item's product/variant stock by the number of units being returned in merchants' stores upon a return.

 

Back To Top

 

Considerations

 

Restocking methods, inventory adjustment, and processing a refund

  • When Returnly is being used as the sole restocking method.
  • When the RMA (Return Merchandize Authorization) is refunded, the product will be restocked within the merchant’s e-commerce platform.
  • If the merchant’s warehouse is restocking, disable this setting in Returnly to avoid double restocking.

  • Auto-restocking happens if auto-settlement is enabled.

Auto-settle will settle automatically those RMAs that fulfil specific merchant settings. When the restocking setting is enabled, all items from RMAs settled automatically will be restocked when the auto-settle is processed.

  • RMAs with multiple items of the same product/variant would result in the variant stock to be increased by the number of units that have been returned.

  • Auto-restock products setting correlates with inventory being adjusted on Shopify.

  • If merchants manually process a refund, they would be able to toggle this setting on or off to suit their business needs.

  • So, if a Refunds API call was made/triggered for a given RMA, the corresponding restock attribute (true/false) could trigger the inventory adjustment, where applicable.

 

Effectively assigning Shopify warehouse locations to warehouses in Returnly would optimize inventory management and tracking.

 

 

Settling an RMA: Refunds API, auto-restock setting, manual refunds, external process/system

  • Without usage of our Refunds API, restocking would be triggered based on action in the dashboard or auto-restocking upon auto-settlement.
  • If neither of the above, restocking could be being managed using an external process/system.

External system: An online inventory and order management software will sync inventory adjustments from Shopify. Thus, restocking via Shopify should flow back to the online inventory and order management software.

  • In an API integration Refund scenario, the restock value configured on the API request would always override the Auto-restock Returns Policy.

  • If merchants are settling an RMA manually or via our Refunds API, they can always opt to restock (or not) at the product level.

Note: We currently do not support Reason-for-return-driven conditional restocking.

    • The setting would be applied globally - with the option of manually checking/unchecking the "Restock Item" checkbox.

 

RMA Status: Delivered & Defective items

  • The Restock Item checkbox is only reflected for Delivered RMAs.

  • We currently do not present this option for a Damaged, Defective, etc. reason.

  • If the item is removed by our editing functionality (Manage Returns, RMA Details Page), that would also prevent the customer from being refunded for it.

  • It's not uncommon for product noted as defective by a customer to be reviewed upon receipt, post-delivery. In these instances, merchants could manually manage restocking behavior, while retaining the Auto-Restock Products setting as on.

 

Back To Top

 

Recommendations

 

When the restocking setting is enabled:

  • For multi-warehouse locations, merchants would need to ensure that each Shopify location is assigned to the correct warehouse in Returnly as that location would be the one where restocking occurs.
  • When the RMA reaches the "Delivered" status, all items from the RMA will have the "Restock Item" checkbox marked by default.
  • Items are restocked to the Shopify location linked to a Returnly location (previously labeled as "Return to address") in Your Account > Addresses > Locations.
    • That Shopify location must always be kept Active; failure to do so will result in refunds not being issued, restocking would not happen, and inventory would be added to a non-active location.

 

Back To Top

 

Scenarios

 

Auto-restock Products & Settling a Refund

  • If auto-restock is enabled in the Return Settings tab, it will apply for both auto-settled RMAs and manually settled RMAs.
  • If auto-restock is disabled when an RMA is automatically settled, it will not be restocked.
  • But if an RMA is manually settled/refunded, you can manually select the Restock Item checkbox on the item(s) in the RMA.
.