Almost £7billion worth of clothes are being returned per year by so-called ‘serial returners’ who are taking part in a social media trend.
The ‘KeepOrReturn’ trend sees TikTokers place large orders – referred to as ‘hauls’ – from online fashion retailers before trying them all on for the camera and asking their followers if they should keep or return the items.
These serial returners account for around a quarter of all online returns made across Britain every year, new figures from Retail Economics suggest.
Over 11million videos have been posted under the hashtag #KeepOrReturn on TikTok and more than two thirds of Gen Z shoppers confess to over-ordering with the intention of sending items back.
Every business allows for a certain amount of loss through returns each year as the process costs them money but none had forecast returns of up to £7billion a year as a result of a TikTok trend.
Are YOU a serial returner? Email freya.barnes@mailonline.co.uk
A TikTok influencer holds up bags of clothing ordered from Asos as she takes part in the #KeepOrReturn trend
The trend sees customers modelling the clothes they purchased online and asking their followers if they should keep or return each item
Another TikToker holding up a huge bag of clothing from Asos admitting she bought them to try them on
The influencer trying on one of the dresses from her order and deciding it is too short to wear
Influencers are ordering clothing items in multiple sizes, colours and prints to showcase to their followers who tell them which ones to keep and which ones to send back.
On average, each ‘serial returner’ is sending back £1,400 worth of goods each year.
Online returns are predicted to exceed £27billion this year with serial returners estimated to account for £6.6bn of the total, according to Retail Economics.
Younger shoppers are more likely to be ‘serial returners’, according to the research from Retail Economics and returns specialist ZigZag.
Over 40% of TikTok users in the UK are aged between 18 and 24, making Gen Z the most popular demographic on the app and the most exposed to the KeepOrReturn trend.
A whopping 69 per cent of Gen Z consumers over-ordered on sizes or colours and then returned unwanted items compared to just 16 per cent of Baby Boomers, a survey found.
Richard Lim, chief executive of Retail Economics, said: ‘Serial returners are quietly eroding retail profitability in ways many retailers are only just beginning to understand.
‘The rise of opportunistic shopping behaviours, where many people intentionally buy large quantities of goods with the intention of returning most of them, is placing an unprecedented strain on retailers.’
Over 11million videos have been posted under the hashtag #KeepOrReturn on TikTok and more than two thirds of Gen Z shoppers confess to over-ordering with the intention of sending items back
Influencers are ordering clothing items in multiple sizes, colours and prints to showcase to their followers who tell them which ones to keep and which ones to send back
But retailers are fighting back with new rules invented to prevent such enormous losses from the rise of returns.
Last year, Asos said customers who frequently make returns were costing the company £6 per order, with some placing two or three orders a month and returning up to 90 per cent of the items.
This month, the fashion giant introduced fees on returns for customers who return items regularly. They will now have to pay £3.95 to send purchases back if they kept less than £40 worth of their whole order.
Boohoo has been charging customers for returns since 2022 but recently changed its policy for premier customers who pay £7.99 a year for unlimited next day delivery and free returns.
Boohoo has been charging customers for returns since 2022 but recently changed its policy for premier customers who pay £7.99 a year for unlimited next day delivery and free returns
Fashion giant Asos introduced fees on returns this month for customers who return items regularly. They will now have to pay £3.95 to send purchases back if they kept less than £40 worth of their whole order
The fast fashion retailer began charging its premier members £1.99 for returns without warning after they saw losses. The company even began closing down the accounts of customers deemed to be making too many returns, despite there being no mention of a limit in their terms and conditions.
Sister company, PrettyLittleThing, introduced the same policy back in June sparking fury with disgruntled customers who insisted that the fast fashion chain should improve the quality and the sizing of its clothes if they want to reduce the number of exchanges and returns.
Back in May, Zara began charging customers £1.95 to return clothes with the cost deducted from their refund but they still allow items purchased online to be returned for free in stores.
The likes of H&M, Sports Direct and River Island have also introduced fees for returns amidst the industry wide losses from mass returns.