Walmart Makes Major Return Policy Changes for Massachusetts Shoppers

Massachusetts is a great place to live. Residents and visitors have their choice of city or county life, plenty of restaurants, and of course plenty of shopping.

Massachusetts is home to many independent retailers, from bookstores to sports equipment and gift shops. While small and family-owned businesses are a vital part of the state's economy, big box stores have their place in Massachusetts as well.

There is perhaps no more prolific big-box chain in the country than Walmart. Walmart has over 48 locations throughout Massachusetts, and those stores employ over 14,000 people in the state. Last year, those 48 stores produced $56.6 million paid to Massachusetts. Massachusetts Walmarts also donated over $2.6 million to the state, between stores, clubs, and the Walmart foundation, according to its corporate offices.

Walmart Makes Major Changes to Return Policy for Massachusetts Shoppers

Walmart is enacting a new return policy that will affect customers in Massachusetts along with the rest of the U.S. The new policy? "Refund without returns". While that policy might sound confusing, in theory it's pretty simple. The approach will allow customers to keep less expensive items that Walmart decides are too difficult or costly to ship back or resell. Basically it's not worth their time to take back the item.

So, how does a company at Walmart decide which items are eligible for the "refund without returns" policy? According to NBC, to make the decision, "the algorithms assess multiple factors, including the extent to which a shopper should be trusted based on prior purchasing and returning patterns, shipping costs, and the demand for the product in the customer’s hands".

Have you experienced Walmart's "refund without returns" policy?