What Is Amazon Partial Refund, and How Does It Work?

Many of our readers are unfamiliar with why Amazon sometimes gives partial refunds for returns. With this Amazon policy, customers may receive a partial refund if the return is received after the allotted 30-day window, damaged items, and other situations.

However, you may wonder what else is required to receive a partial refund. If so, read on to learn more about how the Amazon partial refund policy works, including eligible items, refund amounts, and other helpful information.

What Is Amazon Partial Refund, and How Does It Work In [currentyear]?

An Amazon partial refund reimburses the customer a portion of the sales price minus the restocking fee in [currentyear]. Only a partial refund may be received for specific items, such as when CDs or vinyl opened. Occasionally, like when a delivery is late, a seller can issue a partial goodwill refund for the customer’s lost time.

To learn about Amazon partial refunds, how they work, and more, keep reading for more useful facts and information!

What Is an Amazon Partial Refund?

When a customer has used part of what they originally purchased, it’s a common practice only to receive back an amount equal to the cost of their original purchase.

In other words, Amazon gives partial refunds to customers for products returned in a state that is considered used.

What Items Would Receive Amazon Partial Refunds?

According to the Amazon return policy, a total return item should be in the original packaging and new in condition. Therefore, Amazon can easily resell the items on its website.

However, items eligible for a partial refund may appear used or be damaged. Therefore, Amazon will need to put more effort into processing the products before they can be resold.

Examples of items that would receive an Amazon partial refund are as follows:

  • Orders returned past the 30-day window
  • CDs, DVDs, VHS tapes, cassette tapes, or vinyl records opened from their plastic wrap
  • Products that are damaged, missing parts, and not in their original condition or have obvious signs of use for reasons other than from an Amazon.com error
  • Open software or video games for reasons not due to an Amazon.com error

Can You Receive a Partial Refund for an Order Delivered Late By Amazon?

Occasionally, Amazon and third-party sellers make concessions when packages have issues with a delivery, such as late orders or defective items.

When this occurs, they may choose to issue a partial goodwill refund to compensate the upset customer for lost time or money.

Unlike another refund, when late deliveries are made, a partial refund can be issued without requiring the customer to return the order to Amazon or the seller.

Can You Receive a Partial Refund for Orders That Are Received Damaged From Amazon?

Can You Receive a Partial Refund for Orders That Are Received Damaged From Amazon?

If the order was damaged in transit or while Amazon or the seller had control, the customer can request a full refund or a replacement.

However, if the damage occurs following transit, once the order has reached the delivery location or when the customer has possession of the order, the customer can only receive a partial refund.

Can You Get a Partial Refund Without Returning Your Order to Amazon?

In response to marketplace seller requests, Amazon began offering an option for a partial refund without the need to return the order to the seller.

Basically, under this policy, sellers gift customers items that are broken or very cheap instead of initiating the more costly return process.

As discussed above, this can occur when items are delayed in transport, as well as when they’re broken, defective, or inexpensive.

What Are the Price Changes to Amazon Partial Refunds?

Item Refund
Orders returned in original condition past the return 30-day window 80% of the sales price 
Open-box CDs, DVDs, VHS tapes, cassette tapes, or vinyl records 50% of the sales price 
Products with damaged, missing parts, not in original condition, or with obvious signs of use not related to an Amazon.com or seller error  Up to 50% of the sales price 
Open-box software or video games not due to Amazon.com or seller error 0% of the item price

As you can see from the above chart, when products receive a partial refund, price changes reflect a percentage of the original sales price in return.

Given that Amazon needs to reprocess the orders to prepare them to resell on the website, the seller must retain a part of the purchase for the restocking fee.

Are Amazon Partial Refunds Paid to an Amazon Gift Card?

When Amazon issues a partial refund, it will send it to the payment method used for the original purchase.

For verification, customers can check which payment method was used and see if the refund has been processed successfully by checking the Your Orders section on their Amazon account.

To know more about Amazon, you can also see our posts on whether or not Amazon refunds canceled orders, Amazon refund without return, and Amazon delivered to the wrong address.

Conclusion

With partial refunds, Amazon and third-party sellers can retain a portion of purchases returned in a state that is not ready to be re-sold.

In addition, partial refunds can be issued to customers without the need to return orders in situations where returns would not make sense logistically or monetarily for either party.  

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Marques Thomas

Marques Thomas graduated with a MBA in 2011. Since then, Marques has worked in the retail and consumer service industry as a manager, advisor, and marketer. Marques is also the head writer and founder of QuerySprout.com.

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