What exactly is their claim about why they are doing this? Is it to "speed up the line" for returns?

Because honestly I could think of a very good way to speed up the line without screwing their customer... by getting their lazy fat assed returns people to stop dicking aroun and eating food behind the counter while 4 people wait around for 10+ minutes for someone to actually get to the desk. And NO you eating food and chatting up what your going to be doing at 10 pm does not infact equal you "doing something" and being unable to come up and help the customers on line.

Oddly enough - in a recent 60 minutes segment on the TJX wifi hack security breach - one of the parties interviewed cited the fact that the credit card issuers insistence that merchants keep purchaser CC data in their systems (ie: "...but they should allow people to use the card they bought the item with as a way to look up the receipt information. ") was the greatest threat to data security. I'm willing to loose a little convenience and remember my receipt if it meant that there was less of a chance of my data being compromised.

@MickeyMoo: Very true, but the fact is the data is still going to remain there, so really by doing this your securing nothing at all.

good thing I retuned that stupid alcohol pump I got for xmas on Monday!

@MickeyMoo: The TJX hack happened because they were also storing PIN blocks, which merchants are supposed to wipe from their system.

I wonder if this is something they are rolling out by state or district? I was able to do a receipt look-up and a no receipt return yesterday with no problems.

I'm generally a fan of Target, but I've already run into some problems with the new return policy this weekend.

I purchased a rather nice looking zippered sweater from the men's department on Friday afternoon and planned to wear it to work on Saturday. Well, I put it on Saturday morning, got into the car and by the time I got to work, the zipper had broken and the collar had started to unravel.

Frankly it looked like I'd been roughed up in a dark alley.

So, on my way home from work, I stopped by Target again. I wait thru the return line, and the lady behind the counter rolled her eyes a little as I tried to explain that I'd bought the sweater the day before, on clearance, and I just wanted another one. She let me know what a big problem it was for her to exchange something that lacked tags and without a receipt. I offered the card that I had used to purchase the item, and it was ignored as she went on about the lack of tags. Keep in mind, the signs saying a card could be used to track down the purchase were still up at this time.

She sighed and told me I had to go to the Men's department, find a sweater in the exact same color & size. Needless to say, it was a clearance item, I bought the last one. Finally she tells her supervisor that I brought it back, without tags or receipt and "in poor condition".

Now I've got two people staring at me like I'm a criminal, like I'm trying to commit fraud, over a 17 buck sweater. And they still haven't offered to use my card to find the purchase.

Well, it finally got returned after spending about 45 minutes in the store, and I went and did what I wanted to do the entire time: exchange it for a sweater that still had the damn collar attached.

Thanks Target, I wasted an extra hour because of your shoddy workmanship.

I bought a few gifts there over xmas and after hearing about this I was surprised when I wasn't offered a gift receipt and had to ask for one.

Most of this is because of stupid jerks that try to defraud businesses by switching tags or trying to return items they never bought. They pick up something in the store and they walk over to returns and try to return it without the receipt.

We all end up paying the price for stupid people with no sense of right and wrong.

At many retailers, when you make a purchase they take your name and number. That info is then tied to the transaction (as is the credit card you used) so that if something goes wrong in the future, you can come back w/ the item, and the transaction can be looked up without any hassle. I know when I worked for sears, any transaction over $20 required the customer's name address, and phone number.

What I'm getting at here is why make it harder for customers to return things when other retailers are making it easier? This is going to hurt them in the long run. The money saved on avoiding fraudulent returns will be lost tenfold in the loss of good will of honest customers trying to return something.

Ha, this seems to have gone into effect right after Christmas around here. My fiancee got a movie that he didn't want for X-mas, and was unable to return it because he didn't have a gift receipt, and the movie was $24.99. Total garbage IMO, because they have a loss prevention team, which is obviously not doing their job. Why else would they put this in place?

@warf0x0r: The Target store I shop at automatically prints a gift receipt with every purchase - you don't have to ask for one, you get one every time. I thought every Target did this?

the SD thread makes it sound like credit card lookup is still going on. I'm confused now.

@fuzzball21: What's loss prevention got to do with it? Are they going to stop someone from buying a DVD at Wal-Mart & trying to take it back to Target?

@selianth:
Yep, the only thing I haven't gotten a gift receipt for at Target was groceries.

As per the people who walk into the store, pick things up and try to return them without a receipt, loss prevention is obviously not doing their job. The Targets that I go to have one of their loss prevention guys at every door, and returns is right around the corner, so it should send up red flags if people walk into a store empty handed and then go magically return something. I have also seen quite a few cashiers just "accidentally" not ring things up, and bag them. Loss prevention is supposed to keep an eye on the registers, as is my understanding.

@matt1978:

On the store level, there's nothing LP (or asset protection as target calls them) can do about it. However, just as there are district, regional, and corporate management teams, there are also district, regional, and corporate LP (AP) teams. They're likely the ones that came up with this brainchild as a matter of fact.

There isn't anything you can do to stop someone from buying a DVD at Wal Mart and returning it at target - and guess what else? That doesn't hurt target's bottom line. As long as it's a dvd they carry, it gets entered back into the inventory system same as anything else. You can't do anything with an opened dvd except exchange it anyway, but that's not really the point is it? The point is they're avoiding things like that with this new policy, but they're also alienating honest, loyal customers who just want to return a defective / unwanted product... not to mention making life harder on their customer service employees.

@MickeyMoo: Furthermore, just because they're not letting you use the credit card to make a return doesn't mean they're not still storing your credit card info.

@ WARF0X0R
I was told, while buying Christmas gifts, that Target was limiting the number of gift receipts you could have with one ring up to 8. So should I buy something for my sister, her husband, her kid, my other sister, her husband, her kid, dad #1, stepmother, dad #2, mom, husband, brother in law, father-in-law, his wife, their son, his wife, her kid, their daughter, her husband, their two kids, mother-in-law, or her husband (and that's just the immediate family) I would have to do 4 separate ring ups... assuming I only bought one thing per person. (Last year they printed them automatically on almost everything.)

Or I can shop elsewhere. Amazon got a lot of our business this year....

@artisan my first consumerist comment ever was about the hell Target gave me when returning something WITH receipt but no tags. They wouldn't do it. I had to call 1 others store, speak to the managers there, then call the Target by me and confront them with the policy confirmed by the other Targets. (i.e. no tags needed!)

Sounds like Target is inching up on just banning returns.

erf, correction: "3 separate ring ups"

This is very disappointing news for me. I often make returns by using the Credit Card lookup, and easily loose receipts. Maybe I'll just have to keep a tape dispenser in my car, and immediately tape the receipt to the appropriate box before I forget about it.

I don't think they normally print out multiple gift receipts, though; so if you're purchasing two separate gifts, make sure you get them on separate receipts.

@Ben Popken: And we won't even talk about the unsecured wireless networks that allowed them to steal all that CC info in the first place.

I returned an item using credit card lookup on the 31st, and when I asked the worker there if this would be a problem into the new year they assured that credit card lookup would still be in place. The only thing she indicated was leaving was the fact that they'd previously return items under $20. Sounds like conflicting information is being handed down/misinterpreted by various stores.

Last I remember Target was a "for profit" company and anything they sell which can not be returned is another drop in the bucket. Oh well, customer satisfaction tanks and they will not come back. Yeah, right... Everyone comes back if you are cheap enough. Everyone will be more careful where they stuck their receipts the next time, but I can bet my life that, thouse who swear not to step foot in Target will be back in a few weeks. So, get over with it.

Whatever you do, do NOT register with their baby registry. When a person sends you a gift from the website, a gift receipt is not sent. When you have a problem with the product, they will not accept a return on it without a gift receipt. You are stuck. I've got a ton of baby bottles my girls wont even use.

Target must fix this. They must send gift receipts with the items.

@TheNomad: You're exactly right. It's all "This isn't right! I'm so full of rage, I'll never shop there again! Never agai - wait, I'm out of soap, and I really like that Michael Graves line..."

What is so hard about putting Target receipts in an envelope until needed?

I think it probably does have to do with CC# data retention policies from the credit card companies. Its a "no No" these days to hold onto the credit card #, and it was probably pressure from Visa & MCard to start purging this data.

They probably aren't purging the data YET, but they know they will have to soon.

I think this is a great opportunity. I was originally going to suggest that retailers start doing what Apple does and provide an email receipt as well as a paper receipt. However that could become expensive and problemsome for smaller retailers. It would be cool if the receipt was linked to your credit card online, meaning if you logged into your visa account online, you not only have a list of your purchases but the retailer's receipt that you can print out. It would be an online database of all your purchases with receipts. Likewise, tax season and a dreaded audit could become even easier.

@fuzzball21: As a looong time now former Target employee, I have a lot to say but I'll keep it short. Loss Prevention (AP) keeps a great eye on the registers. Even if it looks like a cashier is "getting away" with stuff, you can bet 90% of the time there's a file with their name on it in the AP office, and it's just a matter of time until they get called in.
It's my understanding that the receipt-look-up system cost Target a lot of money to install and have available. I find it hard to imagine they would completely do away with it, maybe this is just a policy change and the system will still be around for "exceptions."
Also, my mom still works at Target and she hadn't heard this announced at all. You'd think such a big change would at least make it onto a bulletin board or something.

@TheNomad: @matt1978:

You're right and wrong at the same time. Yea, a lot of people are just blowing smoke out of their ass when they threaten to "never shop here again". They'll be back within the week.

There is also a sizable number of people who will have a bad experience, and next time they need hand soap or a new blender they'll go to the wal mart that's three miles down the street from the target. At that point all wal mart has to do is not offend them while they're there, and they've got a new loyal customer. Customer satisfaction turns into customer loyalty. They're happy, they come back. If they're unhappy, they may come back, but they may not. If only one percent of customers attempting a return never shop at a target again, it could mean millions of lost dollars over the next ten - twenty years.

@whatthegeek: But at the same exact momment, people who have just been offended by Walmart are headed to the Target.

A few days ago I returned a game a got without a receipt. I don't think all employees are aware of the new policy because the cahier told me that I could return up to twice a year without a receipt...nothing about the policy changing soon.

I told my mom this and this is what she emailed me with-

"I just called Target (our local store) and if it is under 90 days and I have purchased it on my Target card they will look it up and return it."

I'm interested to see if this is true or not.

I can bet my life that, thouse who swear not to step foot in Target will be back in a few weeks. So, get over with it.

@TheNomad: Well since no one has said they'll stop shopping at Target that's a pretty safe bet to make.

I bet $100 that all of the babies born on the moon last year will grow up to be cowboys.

@blondegrlz: Spot on - at the end of the day, customer loyalty comes down to who can offend the least customers.

I remember when Target had the most lenient return policy of any store, anywhere. Now that others are catching up to where Target used to be, Target's going the other way.

this is the best gift WalMart could have received for the holidays!

I just got off the phone with Target Customer Service inquiring about the new program. And indeed, they have taken away the option to return anything without a receipt EXCEPT IN THE CASE WHERE YOU HAVE UTILIZED A CHECK OR CREDIT CARD. The stores are still keeping that data within their database system and you ARE allowed to have them look it up without your receipt present. You cannot however return anything purchased with check or cash without the original receipt.

@lewissalem: That really stinks. Maybe try another target? When we had doubles of stuff last year they just allowed us to print out the baby registry that listed the item(at the kiosk) and they were able to exchange it for a store credit.

I hope they still let you exchange diapers without gift receipts - but I have a feeling they won't.

Another fine example of a company making it's customers do more work so they can catch a small percentage of people abusing the system.

It's the retailer's job to prevent fraud, for their own benefit. That work should never be passed on to a customer.

@whatthegeek: Yeah right. The store three miles further down the road won't get the business when it's raining, snowing, hot, cold, or the buyer's tired, hungry, low on gas, and/or 2 months later when they forgot why they stopped going to target.

You'll go back soon enough. Everybody does.

@matt1978:

Let me put this a different way - earlier on last year Circuit City laid off their top 3400 best paid sales associates - these would also most likely be the most knowledgeable employees. Their stock took a large hit (70% if I'm not mistaken) in the months that followed. Any major decline in customer service leads to at least some decrease in repeat customers, which leads to losses for the company.

I am sure that everyone realizes that there is a difference between rules and what consumers can do? Inevitably either some one makes the rules or make exceptions and you can change the behavior of the organization by talking to the person and convincing them or realizing that the rules of the organization (in this case target) only bind you under certain circumstances.

For instance in the sweater comment @aristan is very enlightening b/c if it was approached in law it is essentially either a defective product claim or fraud by Target. Essentially by claiming that the consumer is at fault they have shifted the blame inappropriately according to the evidence irrespective of their policies.

This is exactly why when theres a 'deal' at any store, I take full advantage of it. it's my way of "sticking it to the man".

i think this certainly hasn't hit Seattle, either, as i had a hoodie i had bought and then stupidly lost the receipt for absolutely fall apart.

one wearing, no washing, and i hadn't worn it to work, as i do climb and squiggle a lot at work.

i was hoping for an exchange if they could look it up; the GSTL was taking returns and literally had me in and out so fast my head spun with a $4 credit for the difference as it'd gone on sale; the receipt lookup took seconds and the GSTL was pretty horrified the thing had fallen apart. (I have another one of the same hoodie i had bought pteviously that was way more durable.)

alas i just ask for two receipts for everything. i just stupidly misplaced both.

Awesome! This makes it that much easier to decide where to purchase things - by shortening the list.

There are these things called "computers", Target, and they're really good for keeping track of these kinds of things so we don't have to hold onto a stupid piece of paper forever in case something breaks a week later.

I hate the SuperTarget in Highlands Ranch by us anyway - the only thing cool about it is the escalator for the shopping carts, but they have the nerve to charge an extra 1.5% "improvement fee" on all purchases, which annoys me whenever I forget and shop there.

Well, no more - I'll remember not to shop there now. No more Targhetto for me!

What about for straight exchanges? Do you need a receipt for that too? Or heck - even non-straight exchanges?

I hate to be the one to side with Target or any big retailer on this type of a policy, but I find that I must.

Liberal store return policies leads to a large amount of fraud. An ex sister-in-law of mine was banned from Target and several other stores for excessively returning items without having the receipt. A red flag that the person is a shoplifter. (Which I wouldn't put past my ex-in-law.)

Does anyone know if this bans a simple exchange of clothing that's the wrong size without the receipt too? Now that would be a hassle.

I can confirm, I'm not shopping there anymore, thanks. I went there last night to spend the LAST gift card from Christmas and now I'm DONE. It's further away from me, more expensive, and there's never parking. :p

I can confirm that *I* won't be shopping at Target anymore. It's further away, more expensive, and there's never any parking.

I went last night to spend the last of the Christmas gift cards, and now I am DONE!

Whoops. :p

@quail:

Generally, bans like the one you mention are reserved for stores w/o a system for for associating your name/phone number/cc number with your transactions. If you make a lot of returns that you can prove you purchased (regardless of receipt) you get a red flag. If it can be proven either by receipt or electronic record of the sale, it's not a problem. My whole problem with this is that it appears you'll ONLY be able to make returns with a receipt. No other proof of purchase (ie: electronic record of the transaction) accepted. For lack of a better way to put it, that's just lame. We live in a world where we can tie a customer to a transaction without ever needing a receipt - so why take the step backwards? I'm not arguing that no proof of purchase should be required, but why rely completely on an easily misplaced or destroyed piece of paper?

And retailers wonder why they continue to lose sales and struggle more and more with gaining customers..

Printing a receipt on flimsy paper that fades within a week does not help either..

How about just tracking every return with a person's drivers license or another ID, this would allow identification of fraudulent returners and allow stores to prevent them from constantly returning things, rather than preventing those holiday giftees from returning doubles of an item that they got.

They also should be required to post this policy in clear wording by the return desk, as in "NO RETURNS WITHOUT A RECEIPT PERIOD" instead of the get-around language they constantly use.

On another note this has been kmart's return policy for quite some time now and I don't hear any whining about that.