Walmart Inc. on Monday launched a return service with FedEx, allowing online shoppers to send back products without ever leaving the comfort of home.
The exclusive program, called “Carrier Pickup with FedEx,” offers customers a free return for any item that was shipped and sold by Walmart.com, Fox Business reported, citing a blog post written by Linne Fulcher, the company’s vice president of customer strategy, science and journeys.
Walmart announced today that it will offer free returns pickup on items shipped and sold by . The option is free, in partnership with FedEx, and allows shoppers to return items from home. Customers schedule a date for pick up and p…https://t.co/uhDwpVndMs https://t.co/DKeog2WGcA
— Phil Jeudy (@PhilJ) December 21, 2020
According to the company, customers seeking a return must schedule a date for pickup and print a return label through either Walmart’s website or app. In turn, a FedEx employee will retrieve the package.
Meanwhile, customers without access to a printer may select the “Drop off at FedEx” option and receive a QR return code that can be taken to any FedEx location to be scanned by an associate who will print a free return label for shipping, the company stated.
“Combined with a year unlike any other, we knew it was time to look at our return policies and processes to ensure they were safe and headache-free,” Fulcher wrote in the company’s blog post.
Walmart also clarified that even though the new service will most certainly help alleviate in-store crowds jockeying to return Christmas gifts, the service will remain in place after holiday returns have concluded.
The new shipping options comes as Walmart’s U.S. online sales soared 79% in the most recent quarter, CNN reported.
Amazon, the retail behemoth’s largest rival, already allows its customers to drop off packages without a box or label at some Whole Foods markets, Kohl’s and UPS stores and lockers – with some items eligible for home pick-up by UPS for a fee, the network reported.
Likewise, FedEx recently partnered with e-commerce return technology company Happy Returns to return products in person without a box or label from myriad retailers.
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