In short
- An Post describes 2 business return arrangements: Click & Post returns and prepaid return labels placed in outgoing parcels. With Click & Post, your customer can use post-office drop-off or a booked collection; agree with An Post whether your shop or the customer pays.
- A retailer missing from the selection list can still receive a return through a separately purchased postage label addressed correctly to the business.
- An Post’s customer returns page offers a printer-free process; collection availability excludes weekends, bank/public holidays and non-service days.
- The booking, physical receipt, refund decision and stock disposition are separate events. Track each against the original order.
- AirPost is a peer-to-peer fulfilment network: online shops have their orders packed and dropped at a parcel point by verified people near their customers, who earn a fee per parcel from home. No warehouse, no minimum order volume.
The return journey starts with a customer who wants a clear instruction and ends with a product that needs a decision. Between those points, the carrier moves the parcel, your shop handles the cancellation or complaint, and somebody receives the item. A returns portal helps with transport. You still need an address, a payer and a person responsible for the physical goods.
How can my webshop offer An Post returns?
An Post’s domestic business returns page directs shops to an account manager to discuss a suitable arrangement. It describes Click & Post and prepaid return labels as separate choices. The public page does not establish an automatic retailer listing merely because you register a personal An Post account or buy an outbound postage label.
| Business arrangement | Customer action | Seller decision |
|---|---|---|
| Click & Post returns | Select retailer and a supported handover option | Agree payer, return destination and customer instructions |
| Prepaid label in outgoing parcel | Use the supplied return label when needed | Keep the label linked to the original order |
| Retailer absent from portal | Purchase ordinary postage to the known return address | Publish the correct address and reimbursement policy |
The business page says Click & Post can be configured with the shop paying all returns or the customer paying. For prepaid return labels, it says you pay only for parcels actually returned. These are useful distinctions for your budget: a label enclosed in every outgoing box does not necessarily mean every label becomes a billed return.
Before offering either arrangement, confirm where the goods go. Your registered business address might be an office where nobody opens parcels. If stock is stored with another person, obtain their agreement to receive returns before publishing that address. Include the actual receiving name and the information needed to identify your shop’s goods.
Does the customer need a printer or a weekend collection?
The current An Post consumer returns page says the service takes care of the label without the customer needing a printer. It offers post-office drop-off or home collection. Keep your instructions specific to that supported return booking; a separately purchased ordinary postage label can follow a different printing and handover process.
Collections are available Monday to Friday, excluding public and bank holidays and An Post non-service days. The consumer page describes next-working-day delivery to the retailer after collection or drop-off in the Republic of Ireland. That is transport timing after handover, not a promise that your shop refunds the customer the next day.
A buyer making a request on Friday evening therefore needs instructions that acknowledge the handover schedule. State what they should do now and where they can see the booked option. Avoid promising a Saturday home collection unless the exact booking actually provides it. Your support message should distinguish booking confirmation from collection completion.
Packaging still matters with a printer-free return. An Post tells customers to pack securely and remove old delivery labels when reusing the original packaging. Explain this in ordinary language and include any product-specific protection the item needs. A return authorization does not make an unprotected item safe to transport.
What should I tell a buyer if my shop is not listed?
An Post’s returns FAQ says a customer can still return goods when the retailer is not listed, provided they know the address. It points them to purchasing a postage label. Treat that as an ordinary addressed shipment, rather than telling the buyer to select a similar-looking retailer or assuming your listing will appear before their deadline.
Give the exact recipient name, postal address and Eircode where applicable. Add an order reference inside the parcel so your receiving person can identify it even if the outer label becomes damaged. Explain who initially pays and whether you will reimburse an agreed transport cost. Avoid an open-ended promise to reimburse any service the buyer chooses.
Where you offer a statutory cancellation, keep a usable route available while your commercial returns setup is being discussed. A customer should not have to wait for a carrier sales process before notifying your shop. Record their cancellation notice in the order record and provide the practical return instructions promptly.
Do not publish a universal portal tariff based on another retailer’s arrangement. The price and payer displayed for a selected retailer belong to that booking. A comparison needs the returned parcel’s measurements, your destination and the actual service. The product being sent back may need different packaging from its outward journey.
Which return dates matter for Irish consumer cancellation?
The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission explains that most online goods purchases have a 14-day cooling-off period from receipt. The customer must notify the trader within that period and then has another 14 days to send goods back. The rule has exceptions, including certain personalised and hygiene-related items; do not apply a single policy blindly to every product.
The CCPC also says the business must explain cancellation rights and provide a cancellation form. Its guidance describes a refund within 14 days of notification, subject to receiving the returned items, through the same payment method unless otherwise agreed. Use the official guidance for your policy and distinguish change-of-mind cancellation from a faulty-goods complaint.
For your operational record, store the delivery date, the customer’s notice date, the handover evidence and physical receipt. These dates answer different questions. A return label created before a deadline is not evidence that the parcel was handed over. A parcel received later does not tell you when the customer first notified you.
| Event | Record to retain | Decision it supports |
|---|---|---|
| Customer contacts shop | Notice and original order | Reason for return and applicable policy |
| Return is booked | Booking reference and payer | Correct route and expected charge |
| Parcel is handed over | Receipt or carrier evidence | Transport follow-up |
| Goods are received | Item count and condition report | Refund assessment and stock action |
| Shop resolves the case | Refund record and final item disposition | Financial and inventory reconciliation |
How do I avoid putting a damaged return back into stock?
Ask the receiving person to match the returned item to the actual order before changing stock. Check product variant, quantity and any accessories. Record whether packaging was opened and whether the item can be safely resold. Keep uncertainty visible to the shop instead of allowing the parcel’s arrival scan to trigger automatic restocking.
An Post’s FAQ permits combining multiple orders from one retailer when the parcel remains within the size and weight rules. Your process must therefore handle more than one order reference inside a box. Ask the customer to list the included orders and reconcile each line separately. One carrier tracking number can represent several returned purchases.
A missing accessory, an unexpected variant and transit damage require different follow-up. Give the receiving person a way to send a factual report and let the shop decide the next action. The report should describe what arrived, rather than speculate about why the buyer returned it or whether a refund is legally owed.
AirPost’s returns copy says shops can send returns to a sender who accepts them, and the sender reports receipt so the shop can choose what happens to the item. Confirm that person’s actual capability and return price. Do not assume every sender accepts returns merely because they prepare outbound orders.
What separate costs belong in my returns budget?
Keep return transport, physical handling and any replacement dispatch in separate lines. The outbound preparation recommendation is not a return-handling tariff. On AirPost, use the return price set by the receiving sender and the platform charge shown for the return action. Obtain the actual transport price from the return service you book.
A worked component example, using shared constants on 14 October 2026: one accepted return plus one replacement dispatch has two platform charges, or 2 × €0.85 = €1.70. Adding the recommended small replacement preparation amount of €2.25 gives €3.95 in those components.
That subtotal excludes the sender’s actual return price, both transport labels, materials and any product loss. It is not a complete replacement-service quote. If the outward AirPost label price already contains its platform charge, remove that duplicate line before adding it to the worksheet. This keeps a return decision tied to what is actually purchased.
The local Irish stock guide helps choose a receiving arrangement. The returns without a warehouse guide explains the wider workflow. For your own shop, agree responsibilities through AirPost for webshops before customers receive a return address.
Frequently asked questions
How does the An Post returns portal work for a webshop?
The business arrangement determines retailer selection, return destination and payer. The customer then books a supported return and chooses a handover option. Discuss the commercial setup with An Post before advertising it.
Can customers return goods if my retailer name is missing?
Yes. An Post directs them to buy a postage label when they know your address. Give a correct receiving address and clear payment or reimbursement instructions.
Does an An Post return require a printed label?
The consumer returns service advertises a printer-free process. Follow that booking’s instructions; an ordinary addressed postage purchase is a separate workflow.
Are An Post return collections available on Saturday?
The published returns FAQ says collections run Monday to Friday, excluding public and bank holidays and non-service days. Check the actual booking rather than promising a weekend slot.
Can two returned orders share one parcel?
An Post says orders from the same retailer can be combined within the parcel limits. Include both order references and reconcile the contents against each purchase.
Sources
Choose a sender who accepts returns and agree the receiving address, report and handling price before offering local Irish returns.
Discuss Irish return handling