You know what causes clutter? Gifts! Chances are you received at least one thing this past year that you couldn’t use or wasn’t the right size.
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6 Tips to Return Gifts to Reduce Clutter
- Return gifts quickly, definitely within 30 days! Check store policies to find out exactly how long you have to return your gifts, but the sooner, the better.
- Take the money and run. Whether you are offered cash or store credit, take it! Don’t wait to return an item until you have time to go shopping. Cash is portable and durable; that aging gift is not.
- Yes, you can return a gift without the gift-giver knowing, even if it was purchased online. Here is Amazon’s page that describes their process for returns.
- Decide whether shipping a return will be faster than trying to visit a store for a return. Check your calendar now. If you can’t make it to the store in the next two weeks, you might be better off calling to receive an RMA (return materials authorization) and shipping it back.
- Sometimes you aren’t completely sure if you want to return the gift. Maybe you want to try the gift out first. In most cases, once you use an item, it is yours and you shouldn’t attempt to return it. So DO open the package and take your gift for a test drive. If you find you love it more than an older but similar thing that you own, choose one to keep.
- If you can’t return the gift, donate it sooner rather than later. That way it won’t be clutter when the next holidays roll around.
Can you locate all of your gifts to return and schedule time to return them before January ends? Do you still have a gift from a year ago that you wish you had returned?
