By Janson Wang — CEO & Founder, ASG Dropshipping
Before you sign with a dropshipping agent, get the after-sales terms written into the accepted quote: which problems the agent covers, what evidence proves them, where returned goods go, who pays each cost line, and whether you recover by refund, credit or reship. Your store still answers to customers for the policy it publishes, which Shopify’s policy guidance places on the merchant. Reviewed: 2026-11-05.
This guide is for Shopify sellers about to accept a quote from a China-based sourcing and fulfillment agent.
Run that quote through the comparison sheet below and mark every answer that is “not stated.”
Each blank is a cost nobody has agreed yet , which you may fund with no settled route to recovery.
In this guide Separate your store’s promise from your agent’s obligation Put the return and refund terms into one comparison sheet Agree what evidence a claim needs before the first order Decide where returned goods go and who pays Separate the customer refund from recovery from the agent Test the terms against a realistic order problem Confirm ASG’s applicable terms in your accepted quote FAQ Before you sign: close the unanswered items Separate your store’s promise from your agent’s obligation
Every return involves at least two separate deals. The first, between your store and your customer, is shaped by the policy you publish and the consumer law where you sell.
The second, between your store and your agent, is shaped by the quote, the service agreement and anything confirmed in writing.
Factories and carriers sit behind the agent, often out of view.
Shopify’s help center calls its automated policy templates informational rather than legal advice.
It also says: “You’re responsible for the accuracy of your published policies and for following them.” Your agent is not a party to that promise.
If your policy offers something the agent’s terms do not cover, the difference comes out of your margin, not out of the customer’s remedy.
Consumer law sets requirements a store policy cannot contract away, and the detail differs by market.
For UK distance sales, GOV.UK guidance says a customer who cancels within 14 days of receiving an item must be offered a refund, then has another 14 days to send it back.
The seller must refund within 14 days of getting it back, including standard delivery if the customer paid for it.
The same page lists goods, such as custom-made items or hygiene-sealed items once opened, that only need a refund if faulty.
For EU buyers, Your Europe describes a 14-day cooling-off period that runs from delivery for goods.
The buyer usually pays return postage, while the trader bears the cost of returning a defective product.
Other markets, including individual US states, have their own rules; confirm those where your customers live.
This article is general operational guidance, not legal advice. The agent contract and the consumer obligation run on separate tracks.
An agent’s short acceptance window does not shorten what a customer is entitled to, and a generous agent term does not oblige you to promise more.
Reconcile the two line by line.
If the agent refuses or delays a claim, a refund the customer is owed still does not wait.
Handle the customer under your policy and the applicable law, then pursue the agent under the accepted quote, any signed agreement and the general terms.
Read them together with their order of precedence, caps and exclusions.
Editorial diagram based on the two relationships described above. Put the return and refund terms into one comparison sheet
CJdropshipping’s returns guide lists five things to confirm with a supplier: whether returns are charged, the return window, who pays extra shipping, whether mistaken orders are accepted, and the return flow.
An agent relationship adds who decides responsibility, what proof counts, where goods physically go, and how money comes back to you.
The sheet below turns these into fields to check any quote against.
Agent after-sales terms to confirm before signing. Editorial checklist built from the supplier questions in CJdropshipping’s returns guide and the refund wording in ASG’s Terms of Service ; it is not a comparison of any agent’s actual policy.
Situation Term to confirm in writing Evidence the agent may ask for Cost lines and who pays If the quote is silent
1. Customer reports a defect Which faults count; who decides responsibility; how the decision reaches you Order number, SKU, photos of the fault, customer message Replacement unit, reship freight, refund amount, original delivery charge: ask You may fund the remedy with recovery unsettled 2. Damaged in transit Who files the carrier claim; where risk passes Photos of outer box, label and item; tracking events Claim handling, reship freight: ask The claim can stall between agent and carrier 3. Wrong, missing or not-as-described item Whether pick-and-pack errors and short shipments are the agent’s responsibility; which approved specification decides a not-as-described claim SKU on the label against the order; photo of what arrived; packing photo if agreed; listing version at purchase and agreed spec Correct or missing item, reship, retrieval of the wrong item: ask You may pay twice for one mistake 4. Lost or returned to sender When a parcel counts as lost; what happens to parcels the carrier sends back Tracking history; the address as submitted Reship, redelivery, disposal: ask Parcels sit with no instruction 5. Change of mind or wrong size chosen Whether the agent accepts these at all; conditions for reuse Item condition on receipt Return postage, receiving, restocking: confirm Any refund owed has no agreed recovery 6. Custom-made or hygiene-sealed items Which SKUs the agent treats as final; how faults in them are handled As for a defect As for a defect: ask Your policy may promise something nobody backs 7. Settling an approved claim Cash refund, account balance, invoice credit or reship; timing; any liability cap Claim reference linked to the order Any fees deducted: ask Recovery may become an undated credit
Use the sheet in three passes. First, fill each cell with the agent’s actual wording and its source clause or email.
Where the quote is silent, write “ask” rather than guessing.
Second, compare each row with your store policy. Where your policy promises a remedy, an “ask” in that row needs an answer before you sign.
Only a written exclusion you accept leaves two choices: change the term in the quote, or keep the promise and price the exposure into your margin.
Third, decide which blanks block signing. A workable rule: rows 1 to 3 should not stay blank.
Each turns on steps the agent handles or records: the approved specification, packing and carrier handover, even if the fault lies elsewhere.
Rows 5 and 6 can stay with you if the quote states the exclusion, you accept it, and your policy matches the law where you sell.
Row 4 covers lost parcels as well as parcels sent back after an address failure or refusal, so weigh it by route and carrier, not address quality alone.
A silent quote is not a refusal, and it does not mean you lose the full amount. It leaves three questions open.
Your policy and local law decide whether the customer is entitled to a remedy. In practice you fund it meanwhile, because you face the customer.
Your contract documents settle what you finally recover.
Packing photograph from the existing ASG asset library. Agree what evidence a claim needs before the first order
A claim moves faster when both sides can match the evidence to one order.
ASG’s public terms apply the same principle to quality work: the inspection standard, sampling method, tolerance and evidence are to be agreed for the relevant order.
Agree the evidence pack before you sign, while nobody has a claim to win.
Suggested claim evidence pack: what each record can show and what it cannot settle on its own. Editorial checklist; confirm the required items with your agent.
Evidence item What it can show What it cannot show on its own Who captures it; what to agree
Shopify order number and agent order reference Which order is affected Which parcel, on a split order, without each parcel’s tracking number, SKUs and quantities You; how the references map to each other and to each parcel SKU and variant as ordered What should have shipped What actually arrived Your store data; that the agent’s SKU list matches yours Listing and size chart as at purchase; agreed specification What was promised and what the agent was told to supply Whether your page, the agent’s data or the goods caused a mismatch; matching SKUs cannot tell You keep listing versions, the agent the approved spec; tie both to SKU and order Photos of the item and contents A visible fault, wrong item or missing part When or how the problem arose The customer; which views are enough Photos of the outer box and shipping label Packaging condition on arrival Whether transit or production caused the fault The customer; whether box photos are required for damage claims Carrier tracking events Scan times and delivery status The physical condition of the parcel or item The agent or carrier portal; who pulls the record QC or packing record, if one was agreed What was checked at dispatch, against the agreed standard Units outside the checked sample, or later damage The agent; whether a record exists and how to request it Customer messages with timestamps When the issue was first reported The cause You; any reporting window in the agent’s terms
This suggested pack leaves out an unboxing video on purpose. A video can help with a borderline case, but the pack does not depend on one.
The customer’s refund still follows the policy in force at purchase and the rules that apply to the sale. Agree with the agent that the standard pack is enough to open a claim.
Records point to a cause; none of them settles responsibility by itself. Two terms belong beside the pack.
The first is who decides and how you can challenge it: a named role, a written reason, a route for a second look, and who supplies more proof when records conflict.
The second is the reporting window: what starts it, whether it limits discovery or notice to the agent, and what happens to faults that appear after it closes.
For later faults, get a written answer on whether the agent accepts them and, if not, what you carry. The agent’s window need not match yours.
Editorial selection from the claim evidence table; records do not settle responsibility by themselves. Decide where returned goods go and who pays
A return is only a return if the goods have somewhere to go.
Before promising returns, find out whether the agent has an address that accepts consumer returns, in which country, and on what conditions.
CJdropshipping’s agent guide says handling returns to China is often impractical because of customs and cost, and suggests refunding without taking the item back.
That is CJ’s view, not a rule; the right choice depends on the product’s value and resale potential.
Whatever the destination, the customer needs valid return instructions in time.
The customer contacts you; you decide; you get any return reference the agent or supplier requires; the customer ships with tracking.
CJ’s returns guide describes this authorization step and advises against publishing a return address on the policy page.
The agent’s reference is your internal step, not a gate on the customer’s deadline .
As a fallback, if the agent is slow or declines, give the customer an address you control or refund without return, so you still meet your policy and the law.
Next, agree what happens on arrival: whether returned items are inspected and the result recorded, and what condition qualifies an item for reuse.
Ask what happens to items that fail (sent on, held or disposed of, on whose instruction) and how long they are held while you decide.
A parcel left with no instruction becomes an unbudgeted cost.
Then separate the costs. A single phrase such as “returns at seller’s cost” hides several charges:
return postage from the customer
import duties or taxes on goods coming back, where they apply
receiving and inspection
storage while a decision is pending
repackaging or relabeling for reuse
disposal
freight for any replacement sent out
Ask the agent to say, line by line, which of these they charge, which pass through from third parties, and which do not apply to your route.
ASG’s terms , for example, leave chargeable third-party costs to the accepted quote or agreement, the right place for this list.
With the customer, keep three freight lines apart: the original delivery charge, return postage and reship freight.
GOV.UK’s standard-delivery refund applies to cancellations, within its exceptions, not to every return.
Under the Your Europe summary , EU buyers usually pay return postage for a change-of-mind return but not for returning a defective item.
So a blanket “customer pays return shipping” line cannot cover every case.
Before choosing refund without return, check in the quote whether the agent’s recovery depends on getting the item back.
If it does, weigh any recovery you would lose alongside resale value, return postage and handling.
Agreed substitute evidence is not the same as keeping the claim. Confirm in writing whether eligibility and amount change.
Editorial diagram of the cost lines listed above; it does not state which charges apply. Separate the customer refund from recovery from the agent
When something goes wrong, two flows are in play: your refund to the customer, and what you recover from the agent, in cash or otherwise.
They have different rules, timing and paperwork. The most expensive mistake is making the first wait for the second.
The customer refund runs on your policy and the applicable law.
In the UK cancellation example above, the seller must refund within 14 days of receiving the returned item, whatever the agent decided.
Receiving the return at the address you set can be the trigger where your policy or the law makes it one. A supplier review, an insurance payout or recovery from your agent cannot.
Recovery from the agent runs on your contract documents.
ASG’s terms put it plainly: “Fees, payment timing, currencies, refunds, credits, and chargeable third-party costs are governed by the accepted quote or agreement.”
Settlement forms are not equal as cash:
Cash refund: money back to your payment method.Account balance: money held with the agent. Ask whether you can withdraw it, whether it only covers eligible future orders, whether it expires, and what happens if you stop working together.Credit: an amount offset against a future invoice, which only helps if you keep ordering.Reship: a replacement unit sent to the customer, with freight handled as the quote says.
If the customer asks for money instead, your policy and the law at purchase decide the remedy. If a refund is owed, issue it and cancel or reconcile any reship under way.
Ask whether you can choose the form per claim, and what happens when the agent approves only part of one, such as the unit cost but not the freight.
If you offer a customer a partial refund to keep a lightly damaged item, confirm whether the agent will recognize that as a claim, and on what evidence.
Keep a claim log that joins the two flows, one line per claim:
Shopify order number, customer remedy and date
agent claim reference and evidence sent
agent decision and approved amount
how it settled: cash received and date; balance posted, whether withdrawable, and when used; credit applied to which invoice; or reship order and tracking linked to the original, with its agreed fulfilment point
Approval, posting, fulfilment and cash receipt are separate states.
A fulfilled reship is recovered without cash, a restricted balance only once used, and an unapproved part of a partial claim stays open.
Decision and settlement timing should come from the quote; if it names none, your sheet says “ask.”
Editorial diagram using the settlement definitions in this article. Editorial diagram of the separate recovery events described above; no settlement timing is implied. Test the terms against a realistic order problem
Test a draft quote by running a problem through it before a real customer does.
The two examples below are illustrative walkthroughs, not customer cases, with no real prices, dates or volumes.
Walkthrough 1: the item arrives damaged
A customer sends photos of a cracked product and a crushed outer box.
Start at row 2 as a provisional route. The photos point to transit damage but cannot rule out a fault before dispatch or weak packing.
Does the quote say who files transit-damage claims, and are box and label photos part of the agreed evidence?
If yes, your team handles the customer under your policy and opens the claim using the order reference mapping.
The named role weighs the evidence, and an unclear cause goes to the agreed route for more proof or review.
If the quote is silent, nobody knows whether the agent, the carrier or you should pursue it. You fund the remedy while recovery stays open.
Before accepting the quote, add a transit-damage clause naming the claim owner, required evidence, reporting window and settlement form.
Walkthrough 2: the customer chose the wrong size
As a pre-signing test, imagine a customer orders the wrong size after launch and wants to swap.
Nothing is wrong with the product, so row 5 applies. CJ’s returns guide says suppliers generally do not accept these returns, though some do; check your agent’s terms.
Can the item go to an address that accepts returns, and will it be inspected and reused? Who pays return postage, and does your policy say so before purchase?
If the quote says nothing, that order still follows the commitments and law that applied at purchase.
Those decide whether you take the item back to an address you control, or refund or exchange without it.
Narrowing your store policy is a separate step, for later orders only and only where the law allows.
Scenario check for the two illustrative walkthroughs, mapped to the comparison sheet rows.
Question Damaged on arrival Wrong size chosen
Who owns the customer remedy? You, under your policy and local law You, under your policy and local law Which sheet row applies? Row 2 to start; cause still open Row 5, change of mind What evidence is needed? Item, box and label photos; tracking events Item condition on receipt, if it comes back Where do the goods go? Confirm whether the agent wants them back Agent-accepted address, your address, or kept by the customer Who funds the agent-side cost? Per quote: ask Per quote: confirm whether excluded Gap signal No named claim owner If the item must come back: no return address, reuse rule or cost split. An agreed no-return route is not a gap for lacking an address
If either column shows a gap signal the quote cannot resolve, add that clause before signing.
Then run one more problem from your catalog, such as a missing part or a parcel returned to sender, through the same questions.
Warehouse scene from the existing ASG asset library; not a returns-case photograph. Confirm ASG’s applicable terms in your accepted quote
ASG’s public Terms of Service do not publish a single return window or refund rule. They defer to the order.
Scope and inspection standard sit in the applicable quote or written agreement, and refunds and credits follow the accepted quote or agreement.
A signed agreement, accepted quote, purchase order or service schedule can add to or replace parts of the terms.
Section 11 limits ASG’s aggregate liability for a specific order or service to the fees paid to ASG for it, except where liability cannot lawfully be limited.
It also excludes certain indirect losses such as lost profit. Claims responsibility follows the quote, shipping terms and carrier rules.
Import rules, duties, taxes and customer address accuracy sit with the seller unless a written agreement says otherwise.
That clause sets who pays and acts between the parties, not who a market treats as importer.
So this article cannot tell you what ASG will cover on your order. Do not read any of these into it or the public terms; ask for any that matter in your quote:
blanket refund eligibility for every after-sales case
fixed deadlines for filing or processing claims
automatic free return freight, duties or taxes
unconditional acceptance or restocking of returned goods
reimbursement that reaches you before you refund your customer
Nor does an agent contract by itself promise market compliance, platform or carrier payouts, or customs release. Those decisions stay with the authorities, platforms and carriers involved.
A quote can record the work around them: who prepares or supports a claim or filing, who bears which cost, and how any remedy is split if the result goes against you.
Send the comparison sheet with your quote request and ask for each row to be answered.
Then ask three contract questions. Which parts of the general terms does the quote replace?
Does the liability limit apply to after-sales claims, and which of your payments count as the fees paid it is based on? Which losses are excluded?
Get changes in writing rather than assuming the quote overrides the terms, and have email answers referenced in it.
A blank row is a question, not a yes.
FAQ
How do returns work on dropshipping?
The customer contacts your store, not the agent, even when the item ships from another country.
You decide the outcome under your policy and the law of the customer’s market. Then you settle the goods and the money with your agent separately, under your contract documents.
If the item physically comes back, it goes to whatever valid address you give the customer: one the agent accepts, or one you control. Some items stay with the customer after a refund.
CJdropshipping’s agent guide notes that an agent can run one return process across several suppliers, so put the terms in the agent quote rather than chase each factory.
How to write a good return policy?
Write it from what you can actually deliver. Start with the legal requirements of each market you sell into.
Check every promise against your comparison sheet and decide which gaps you will fund.
State plainly which items are final sale, who pays return postage in which cases, how a customer starts a return, and what remedy they can expect.
Shopify’s automated templates help with structure, but review the generated text against your real process and your agent’s terms before publishing.
Revisit it whenever you change agents, products or markets.
What is return to seller?
Return to seller means a carrier sends a parcel back instead of delivering it.
USPS , for example, uses RTS for mail that is undeliverable as addressed and cannot be forwarded, mail with an incorrect or nonexistent address, and mail the recipient refuses.
Other carriers may define it differently, and a returned parcel does not automatically go back to the agent’s warehouse.
Confirm both with the carrier on each route.
In your agent terms, the lost-or-returned row should cover what happens to the parcel, who pays for a reship, and what triggers one.
Since ASG’s terms leave address accuracy with the seller unless agreed otherwise, checking addresses before orders reach the agent is part of the fix.
Before you sign: close the unanswered items
Before accepting the quote, check that a written source, not a sales chat, answers each of these:
Which problems the agent covers, including missing or not-as-described items, and who decides responsibility.
The evidence pack that opens a claim, and any reporting window, including faults found after it closes.
Where returned goods go, how they are inspected, and what is reused or disposed of.
Each cost line: original delivery, return postage, duties or taxes, receiving, storage, repackaging or relabeling, restocking, disposal and reship freight.
How approved claims settle (cash refund, account balance, credit or reship), when, and any liability cap or excluded losses.
How lost and returned-to-sender parcels are handled.
Where your store policy promises more than the agent terms, and how you will fund the difference.
Do not sign while the defect, transit-damage or wrong-item terms still read “ask.”
Other items can be priced in if the exclusion is written and accepted. Keep the completed sheet with the signed quote, so whoever handles support later can see what was agreed.
To see how ASG would handle these points for your products and markets, request a quote with the after-sales terms written in, row by row.
Contact ASG
