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Returns & Refunds

Editorial Policy: How We Research and Update Guides

Return policies are only useful if they’re right. This page explains how we research, write, and maintain every guide on Returns & Refunds.

Sources we use

  1. The retailer’s or manufacturer’s own policy pages: return policy, help center, and warranty terms. These are the primary source for every window, exception, and refund rule we publish.
  2. Government and legal sources: the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), state attorney general offices, and the text of laws such as the Fair Credit Billing Act and the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act.
  3. Company announcements: official press releases for changes like holiday return extensions.

We don’t copy other policy-summary websites, and we don’t present forum anecdotes as policy. Where in-store practice commonly differs from the written policy (for example, how strictly a manager applies a rule), we say so and label it as such.

How a guide is written

  • Answer first. The return window, the main exceptions, and what happens without a receipt go at the top.
  • Specific over vague. We name the item categories, time limits, and documents involved, not just “check the policy.”
  • Linked sources. Store guides link to the official policy pages they’re based on.
  • Plain language. We explain store-credit rules, restocking fees, and legal rights without jargon.

Reviews and updates

Store policies change, so we re-check the pages that cover them regularly, and immediately when a retailer announces a change. When a fact changes, we update the guide and its comparison tables together, since all of our store tables are generated from one dataset.

Corrections

If you spot an error, contact us with the page and what you think is wrong. A link to the store’s current policy helps. We verify every report against the official source and correct confirmed errors promptly.

Independence

We are not affiliated with any retailer or manufacturer. Returns & Refunds is made by the team behind the Return & Refund Tracker iPhone app, and we disclose that wherever the app is mentioned. If the site carries ads or affiliate links in the future, they will be labeled and kept separate from editorial content.