It is clear (and no surprise) that many of the posts here state facts that are not facts at all, but assumptions or guesses that the poster wishes were true, just to make their point. Anyone that actually sells on Amazon knows and has surely personally experienced the real facts.
I cannot give all of the precise details, because I also don’t personally sell on Amazon, though my son, neighbors, and friends do. But here is what I know:
– Most sellers are using FBA – Fullfillment by Amazon, which means that they own the product and send it to Amazon’s warehouse, and Amazon does the shipping. However, when you return it, it goes back to the Seller, not to Amazon.
– The return policy you are all referring to is set by AMAZON, not by the Sellers. Sellers do not have an option to refuse to allow or accept your return.
– Once an item is returned to you, you can send it back to Amazon again (at your own expense) if it is still in brand new condition. Even if the item is in new condition, 2-3 months could have passed since the item was originally sold, and the market price (for example on the latest electronic items) could have dropped drastically.
– Too often the item will be greatly devalued, broken, missing parts, or even totally swapped with a fraudulent replacement. In some cases you can fight with Amazon for a refund, but that too is an expense.
– If it is no longer brand new, you usually have to sell it elsewhere (like on eBay) for a lot less. Rarely is it possible or worthwhile to sell used items on Amazon.
So even though Amazon forces sellers to accept returns in order to make their site popular, each return inevitably causes some loss to the seller. If you choose to blame that loss on amazon and say that you are doing nothing wrong, I can’t say for sure that you are a thief. Add to that the likelihood that even Amazon’s generous policy might not allow you to buy items with the specific intention of using it and returning it. So if I told you in advance that a huge percentage of the sellers of certain items are frum Jews, would you still feel comfortable doing it anyway? If you were able to ask the sellers permission (not Amazon) they would all forbid it, 100%.
It is not helpful bringing a proof from store xyz that gave you permission to do it. The manager of that store is not personally taking a loss on your return. Also, in a regular store, the percentage of people that return things for no valid reason (meaning not defective or the wrong size etc…) is far lower than on Amazon. Amazon Sellers know that you typically have to factor in at least a 30% return rate into your business calculations.