I disagree with a return, what should I do?

It may happen that you disagree with a customer’s reason for returning an artwork. So what should you do in such cases? We hope the below information will be of help!

Can I refuse a return?

As per our Terms and Conditions, customers at Artfinder benefit from a 14 day return guarantee, regardless of the reason, so if a customer requests a return within this timeframe, we will have to process this for them. 

A return is however not the only option available for resolving such issues so we invite you to consult this article here to see what other options you could offer your customer. 

What if the request has come outside the 14 days?

It is important to firstly assess when the order was delivered, as the 14 days return period would only start from the day of delivery. If your order was delivered later than the ETA for example, but the delivery date was not updated on our system, please let us know so that we can amend our records and assess if a return can be booked or not.

Once the delivery date is confirmed, and if the customer is outside the 14 days period, we will always reach out to you first to ask if a return can be arranged. If the reason for return is a change of mind, you are under no obligation to accept this return, however if the reason for return was damage or listing inaccuracy, we would expect your full cooperation in trying to help us resolve the issue for the customer.

What if I do not agree with the reason for the return?

In cases where the customer has advised us of a listing discrepancy and you do not agree with their assessment, please reach out to us advising us of the reason you feel this was not accurate, and we will discuss this on a case by case basis.

It is important to note that matters such as colour, texture and overall aspect can sometimes be subjective and a return for listing inaccuracy does not always mean your listing was not on par with expectations. This is why such cases need to be discussed individually. 

If the reasons for a return is misrepresentation on the listing, our team may agree to process a return after the 14 days period has expired at our sole discretion, as dictated by our Terms & Conditions. You will be informed of such returns via email and will be provided with an advice on how to improve listings and avoid such situations in the future. 

Finally, we would recommend you keep in mind the below principles:

• Keep calm: We understand returns can be frustrating but we are here to support you, so if you find yourself frustrated about a return request, please contact us and we can help reassure you and advise on the next steps to take.
• Think twice before sending a message: Online communications do not carry tone or meaning very well, so remember that what seems like a polite message to you may not be perceived the same way by the recipient. If you are unsure of a message being ok to send or not, leave it aside for a few hours before coming back to it. That small window of time will likely help you assess if something could be phrased differently and you will likely not feel as strongly as you may have when receiving the message.If you are still unsure after this, reach out to us and we will gladly assist!
• Trust Artfinder: Our artists mean the world to us and are the very reason our business exists, so please rest assured that, regardless of the situation, we are here to help, and trust that we will do our best to ensure neither you nor the customer is at a loss. Remember, there is always a solution!  

Do you have any suggestions on how we could improve our returns process? Share them with our community by joining our forum discussion on the topic here: https://www.artfinder.com/community/artists/forum/topic/22304/

We always welcome feedback so please drop us a line at feedback@artfinder.com and let us know your thoughts on our returns process!