Return-to-Sender (Return-to-Sender)
Return-to-Sender is a dedicated return type for the cases where a package is returned due to a failed pickup or refused receipt. It gets its own order type (returntosender), its own status flow, and its own color in the return order's flow visualization and in the Type column of the return list, so it can't be mistaken for a regular return at a quick glance.
Enable Return-to-Sender as a cause
Before Return-to-Sender can be used on an order, the return type must be created and enabled as a reason/cause in the return system's settings. This is done once globally and then applies across all sites — it is not something that needs to be enabled separately for each site. This activation is what controls whether the return type can be selected at all: if it hasn't been created yet, the order's Options menu simply leaves out the item for creating a return-to-sender order.
When the cause is created, you should make sure to set up the relevant email templates, so that the customers and employees involved in the process receive the right messages. This return cause should also not be made visible to customers who create returns via the customer portal — Return-to-Sender is created from the order internally, not by the customer themselves.
Create a return-to-sender order
A return-to-sender order is created from an existing order, not from the return list:
- Open the order (it must have the status Completed), and use the Options menu (the gear icon) to find Create return to sender.
This option only appears when Return-to-Sender has been created and enabled; if it hasn't, the menu simply leaves it out.
The status flow for return-to-sender
Once the return order has been created, it opens on its own page, with the same colored type badge and flow panel used by all return types — but with a shorter chain of steps than a regular return. Because the package is already back at the warehouse when the return-to-sender order is created, there is no "awaiting package" step in between: the flow goes through creation, an approval decision, receiving & sorting, refunding, and finally completion.
As with the other return types, the flow panel also reflects the order's current state directly on the track: a rejected order shows a cancellation marker at the approval step, and a label or handling conflict is highlighted with its own badge at the top of the panel.
