Managing faulty or defective items is important for customer satisfaction and operational efficiency. This article explains how the Faulty Flow works, its key features, and how it benefits you and your customers.
What is the Faulty Flow?
The Faulty Flow is a dedicated process within Returns that enables you to handle defective item claims with clarity and efficiency. It provides tools to:
Identify and categorise faulty items.
Assess claims with supporting evidence.
Manage return decisions seamlessly.
By integrating these steps into the return process, the Faulty Flow helps improve customer satisfaction while reducing operational overhead.
Core Functionalities
The Faulty Flow offers essential features that simplify handling defective item claims.
Basic Faulty Flow - Customer
Faulty Item Selection: Customers select a faulty item reason when initiating a return in the portal.
Upload Photos & Comments: Customers upload images and provide comments to explain the issue.
Await Merchant Decision: The return label is not generated until the merchant decides whether the item should be returned or kept.
Email Notification: Customers receive an email with a decision—return or keep—along with relevant instructions and a return label if required.
Basic Faulty Flow - Merchant
RMA Dashboard Review:
Faulty items appear tagged and categorised as requiring review.
Uploaded images and comments from customers are visible for assessment.
Decision Process:
Decide whether items should be returned or kept.
Multiple faulty items can be addressed individually.
Finalise the decision to send a confirmation email to the customer.
Post-Decision Actions:
For items marked “Return”: Generate and send the return label.
For items marked “Keep”: No return label is generated; the RMA progresses as completed.
Return Processing:
Once decisions are made, faulty items merge into the regular return flow for refunds, credits, or replacements.
Benefits of the Faulty Flow Feature
The Faulty Flow provides several key advantages.
Improved Customer Retention
Quick and transparent resolutions foster trust and loyalty. It also reduces the risk of negative reviews or public complaints.
Cost Efficiency
"Keep the product" options save on shipping and handling for low-value items. Exempting faulty-only returns from shipping fees lowers operational costs.
Streamlined Operations
Clear workflows and enhanced dashboard features simplify the decision-making process. Filters and tags improve visibility and organisation.
Confirmation Email
The confirmation email sent via the RMA when faulty items decision is to be made is the same confirmation email usually sent to the consumer directly after submitting a return via the returns portal.
In faulty items flow, the email is not sent before faulty items decision is made, since the items list described in the email for return/ keep might be changed.
After making the decisions, the button will be enabled, and by clicking on the the email will be sent directly to the consumer.
Email containing:
List of items to return (according to decision made)
For a returned item which is faulty- there will be a note next to it
List of items to keep (according to decision made)
List of purchased items (if relevant)
The label/ QR code
What can you edit in the Email?
Under the “faulty Items” tab in the returns settings, there are few options for adjusting the text presented in the email sent in Faulty items cases
This text only added in case a return has at-least 1 faulty item, no matter the keep/ return decision made. You will be able to adjust:
Additional text that will be resented under the “keep” header
Additional text to be added under the “return” items header. Note that return items list might include non-faulty items as well. So the text should be relevant to both cases
Email Example:
FAQs
Here are answers to common questions about the Faulty Flow.
What happens if the merchant decides a faulty item should be kept?
If the merchant chooses "Keep," the customer is notified via email, and no further action is required. If there are only items to keep, the RMA proceeds without generating a shipping label.
Can decisions be reversed?
No, it cannot be changed once a decision is finalised and communicated to the cu