Blue Yonder has just released its 2026 Consumer Retail Returns Survey. It found that 89% of UK shoppers would shop less often or stop shopping entirely at a retailer that limited their ability to return items because they returned too frequently – the highest proportion across the five markets surveyed.
The survey polled more than 5,000 consumers across the UK, US, Australia, France and Germany, including 1,001 UK consumers. It asked how they shop, what they send back and how they respond when retailers tighten the rules. It found that UK consumers are highly resistant to return fees and remain sceptical of AI’s ability to recommend the right size or fit.
Key findings:
- 35% of UK consumers have stopped shopping at a retailer that implemented a stricter returns policy in the past year, while 52% have chosen one retailer over another purely because it offered a better policy.
- 25% of UK consumers make a return at least monthly, around half the proportion in France (48%) and Germany (46%).
- Only 17% would trust AI to recommend the right size or fit, while 37% would not trust it at all – the highest proportion across the five markets surveyed.
- Of the 23% of UK consumers who have purchased a product after receiving an AI recommendation, 41% have returned one in the past year.
Gen Z Drops Retailers Over Stricter Policies, but Boomers Walk When Flagged as Frequent Returners
Over half of UK respondents (52%) said that they have decided to buy from one retailer over another purely because it had a better returns policy. More than one-third (35%) have gone further and stopped shopping altogether at a retailer that implemented a stricter returns policy in the past year. Gen Z (52%) and Millennials (45%) were more likely to have stopped shopping with a retailer after it tightened its policy, compared with Gen X (31%) and Baby Boomers (19%).
The gap partly reflects how often each generation returns purchases. Thirty-seven percent of Gen Z and Millennials return a purchase at least once a month, compared with 12% of Baby Boomers, so a stricter policy affects them more often. The pattern flips when a retailer singles shoppers out. If a retailer told them they return too often and limited their returns, 62% of Baby Boomers would stop shopping there entirely, compared with 39% of Gen Z.
Despite reacting most strongly to return restrictions, UK consumers return products far less frequently than those in the other European markets surveyed. Only 25% make a return at least once a month – roughly half the proportions in France (48%) and Germany (46%), and just 14% had a return rejected during the past year, compared with 32% in France and 30% in Germany.
Retailers are adopting new tracking technologies, such as using AI to monitor return histories and flag frequent returners. When asked about the practice, 36% of UK respondents called it a fair way to control costs and 19% said it would not affect their shopping. However, 22% said it is invasive and would make them shop elsewhere.
“The instinct when returns go up is to tighten the rules,” said Duncan Angove, CEO of Blue Yonder.
“But the data tells you how that ends. Flag shoppers as frequent returners and limit their returns, and nearly nine in 10 say they’d cut back or walk away. And some of your most frequent returners are your best customers. The challenge is telling the difference between a shopper who abuses returns and a loyal customer who simply returns a lot. That takes systems that can set the right policy for each customer and handle every return as quickly and cheaply as possible. Done right, returns stop being just a cost and instead start earning loyalty.”
AI Recommendations Fuel UK Consumer Returns
Nearly a quarter (23%) of UK respondents said they have purchased a product after receiving a recommendation from an AI tool or assistant, such as a consumer chatbot. Of those, 41% have returned an AI-recommended purchase within the past year. Among UK shoppers who returned an AI-recommended purchase, the most common reasons were that it was different from its description (37%) and an incorrect size or fit (26%).
Younger consumers are more likely to shop with AI. More than a third of Gen Z (37%) and two in five Millennials (42%) have purchased a product after receiving an AI recommendation, compared with 13% of Gen X and 5% of Baby Boomers. More than half of Gen Z AI shoppers (56%) have returned an AI-recommended item in the past year. Trust also wanes with age. While 17% of all UK respondents would trust AI to recommend the right size or fit, that ranges from 25% of Gen Z to just 6% of Baby Boomers.
“Shoppers are taking AI’s advice faster than retailers are getting ready for it, and nearly half of them are sending something back,” added Angove. “That’s not really an AI problem. It’s a data problem. An AI assistant is only as good as the product information it can find, and most product data was written for a search bar, not for a machine suggesting products for someone. When what arrives doesn’t match what the shopper expected, it goes back in the box.”
Consumers Want Free and Easy Returns, but Accept Alternatives
Free and fast returns matter most to UK shoppers. For 43%, free returns shipping is the most important factor when returning an item, followed by fast or instant refunds (29%). If presented with a fee to return a product, 59% of UK respondents said they would not be willing to pay. Resistance increases with age, ranging from 38% of Gen Z and 49% of Millennials to 69% of Gen X and 70% of Baby Boomers.
Consumers are also accepting ‘keep it’ returns and alternative incentives in exchange for not making a return. Nearly three in five (58%) UK respondents have been told by a retailer to keep a product they wanted to return in the past year, up from 50% in 2025, with 67% of those saying it made them more likely to shop with that retailer again. For retailers, a keep-it refund can make economic sense when the cost of shipping and processing a return exceeds what the item could be resold for, provided they can identify shoppers who might take advantage of it.
Respondents would also accept a discount or partial refund (31%), store credit for a future purchase (30%), or a discount on a future purchase (27%), while 31% would not accept any offer in exchange for not making a return. More than half (56%) are concerned about the environmental impact of returned products ending up in landfill. Among this group, 30% would prefer to resell the product themselves and 23% would donate it to charity.
