85% of cross-border returns handled by posts

In the third edition of the IPC Cross-border E-commerce Shopper Survey, released end January 2018, IPC has continued its research into consumer expectations and experiences when shopping cross-border.

When it comes to returns, shoppers are even more likely to use the posts then when ordering online. While 70% of consumers used the post for the delivery of the purchase, 85% of consumers uses the post when returning an item cross-border. Over 70% of respondents who returned their parcel did so for free, while 25% returned the item at a cost.

The most commonly used returns method was to drop off the parcel at the post office (26%), followed by the delivery provider picking up the parcel from the respondent’s home (18%) or dropping off the parcel at a courier’s parcel shop / postal service point (17%).

In a growing e-commerce market, IPC has developed a solution that responds to the needs of postal customers and consumers alike: a simple returns process for cross-border e-commerce. The solution, called the Common Returns Platform (CRP), builds on the functionalities and success of the IPC Easy Return Solution and is currently being implemented by 30 postal operators.

By the end of March 2018, more than 16m labels will have been generated by the IPC Common Return Platform and 8m items will have been returned through the platform. In order to support the growing volumes, IPC CRP platform has also recently increased the system’s capacity. 

To read more about the main findings of the IPC Cross-border E-commerce Shopper Survey, click here.

To read more about the IPC Common Returns Platform, click here.