E-commerce
July 1, 2026
"The bot says free return while the portal displays €6.90." "The AI promises full refund without mentioning the shipping deduction." "Broken product, yet the bot asks me to pay for the label." Three failures where an ungrounded return shipping fee bot invents an amount or promises free returns outside of policy.
An e-commerce return shipping fee AI chatbot does not replace RETSHIP agents (#509). It reads RETSHIP-MAP, explains who pays based on the reason and market, previews refund deductions, hands off defect proofs, and handles dispute claims.
This guide #510 covers intents bot_ret_ship_*, flow RETSHIPbot, and KPI retship_bot. The bot counterpart of the RETSHIP playbook (#509). New AI use case: who pays for the return before RMA without inventing arbitrary amounts.
Summary
Why automate return fees with a bot?
Queries about "who pays for the return?" come up before the RMA is opened. A calibrated bot cites RETSHIP-MAP and previews the net refund within seconds, without promising it's free if customer_pays is Y.
What the bot resolves
Who pays: customer_pays Y/N according to the return_reason map
Fee amount: grounded label_type EUR amount
Deduct preview: product refund minus net ship_fee
Free threshold: explains if order > free_return_threshold
Loop Returns notes that displaying fees before RMA approval reduces abandonment (Loop Returns, policy 2026). The bot intercepts ret_ship_who_pays before post-refund disputes arise.
RETSHIPbot vs RETSHIP #509, eligibility #365 and returns #10
Four contents, four customer return responsibilities.
Quick matrix
#510 RETSHIPbot: bot who pays fee preview pre-RMA tier 1
#509 RETSHIP: agents defect proof litigation dispute
Eligibility #365: eligible delay SKU gate
Returns bot #10: complete exchange refund journey
Pipeline: #365 eligible → #510 return fee → #10 RMA if customer confirms.
Which bot_ret_ship_* intents should be configured?
Eight return shipping fee bot intents.
Eight bot_ret_ship intents
bot_ret_ship_who_pays: who pays for change-of-mind return
bot_ret_ship_fee_amount: how much does the return label cost
bot_ret_ship_deduct_preview: net refund after fees
bot_ret_ship_free_threshold: free return order threshold
bot_ret_ship_defect_path: defective product free label
bot_ret_ship_store_dropoff: free instore dropoff vs mail
bot_ret_ship_free_claim: handoff #509 site claimed it was free
bot_ret_ship_international: reroute #379 cross-border cost
Tier 1 auto: who_pays, fee_amount, deduct_preview, free_threshold, store_dropoff, defect_path collect photo.
Intent bot_ret_ship_free_claim and defect dispute u2192 agents #509 with session payload order_id, return_reason, fee_cited.
How should RETSHIP-MAP #509 be consumed?
The bot reads RETSHIP-MAP #509: return_reason, market, customer_pays, label_type, free_return_threshold, defect_exception, store_dropoff_free, policy_url.
Lookup grounded
Order context: market shipping country order total EUR
return_reason ask: change_mind vs defect branch map row
customer_pays Y/N: exact amount if partial EUR map
deduct preview calc: product_refund minus ship_fee net
policy_url cite: mandatory if fee > 0
Alignment anti-hallucination (#123): return fees = RETSHIP-MAP whitelist only.
RETSHIPBOT-SUP policy in six rules
Six rules bot return fees safe.
NO-FEE-INVENT: never amount off RETSHIP-MAP
NO-FREE-PROMISE: free only if customer_pays N map
DEDUCT-PREVIEW: show net refund before portal link
DEFECT-COLLECT: photo required before free label promise
POLICY-URL-CITE: policy_url#shipping-fees if fees > 0
DISPUTE-HANDOFF: formal dispute → #509 lead
Flow RETSHIPbot RSB-1 to RSB-8
Eight-step return fee bot flow.
RSB-1 Classify: bot_ret_ship_* intent
RSB-2 Context: order lookup market order total
RSB-3 Reason ask: change_mind defect non_conform
RSB-4 RETSHIP-MAP: lookup customer_pays amount label
RSB-5 Guardrail: NO-FEE-INVENT NO-FREE-PROMISE
RSB-6 Respond: TPL-RETSHIPbot grounded
RSB-7 Portal: deduct preview then RMA link if OK
RSB-8 Log: fee_cited net_refund tag retship_bot
Example TPL-RETSHIPbot-PAY
"Change of mind return: fee [amount] € [label_type]. Product refund [product_refund] € - fee [ship_fee] € = [net_refund] €. Policy: [policy_url]#shipping-fees. Continue?"
TPL-RETSHIPbot templates and touchpoints
Four essential templates.
TPL-RETSHIPbot-FREE
Free return for your order of [order_total] € ([free_return_threshold] € threshold). Prepaid label at the portal.
TPL-RETSHIPbot-DEFECT
Defective product: free label after photo. Send 2 photos of product + packaging. Agent confirms within 24 hours.
TPL-RETSHIPbot-STORE
Free store drop-off: [store_dropoff_free URL]. Return by post: [amount] €. Choose option at the portal.
TPL-RETSHIPbot-RESTOCK-CLARIFY
Return shipping fees: [ship_fee] €. Restocking fee: separate, see [policy_url]#restocking if applicable.
Touchpoints
Return portal step 1: bot_ret_ship_who_pays before reason
Page /returns FAQ: chip "Who pays for returns?"
Checkout footer: link to pre-purchase return fees policy
Post-eligibility #365: auto chain bot_ret_ship_deduct_preview
Edge cases and reroutes
Five cases outside tier 1 bot.
Ineligible: reroute #365 gate first
International return: #379
Transit damaged parcel: #363 claim merchant pays
Gift return: gift bot #460
Free claim dispute: handoff #509 RETSHIP finance dispute
Bot does not create complete RMA: handoff #10 after customer confirms fees.
Essential retship_bot KPIs
Five RETSHIPbot management metrics.
retship_bot_auto_resolve: % tier 1 without agent
retship_bot_fee_grounded_rate: RETSHIP-MAP compliant answers
retship_bot_fee_invent_violation: NO-FEE-INVENT, target 0
retship_bot_deduct_preview_shown: % with net refund quoted
retship_bot_handoff_dispute: sessions → #509 dispute
Monthly red team: 10 prompts "100% free return guaranteed", "full refund without fees", "invented amount €3". Non-MAP amount = NO-FEE-INVENT violation.
RETSHIPbot anti-patterns
Six frequent errors.
Free return promised without map: NO-FREE-PROMISE
Invented amount: NO-FEE-INVENT
No deduction preview: DEDUCT-PREVIEW violation
Defect free without photo: DEFECT-COLLECT handoff
Confusing eligibility and fees: #365 gate first
Duplicating return bot #10: fee focus only
RETSHIPbot with Qstomy
Qstomy on Shopify + Loop: RETSHIP-MAP RAG, deduct preview widget, defect photo collect, chain post #365 eligible, handoff #509 dispute payload.
Pipeline: #365 eligible → #510 preview fees → #10 RMA → AI governance #142 audit fee claims.
Explore AI support and request a demo.
Checklist, FAQ and going further
RETSHIPbot Checklist (8 steps)
Sync RETSHIP-MAP #509: RAG bot whitelist only
Policy RETSHIPBOT-SUP: 6 NO-FEE-INVENT rules
8 bot_ret_ship_* intents: flow RSB-1 to RSB-8
4 TPL-RETSHIPbot-* templates: PAY FREE DEFECT STORE
Chain post #365 eligible: auto deduct preview
Portal step 1 fee widget: preview before RMA
Red team 10 prompts: free invented wrong amount
Dashboard KPI: retship_bot_* section 9
FAQ
Difference #509?
#509 = defect agents litigation dispute. #510 = bot tier 1 who pays preview.
Difference #365?
#365 = eligible yes/no. #510 = return cost if eligible.
Does bot create label?
No. Fee preview then portal link or handoff #509 defect.
Always free returns?
Only if RETSHIP-MAP customer_pays N or threshold met.
Going further
This week: index RETSHIP-MAP in bot corpus, test red team "promised free return", measure retship_bot_deduct_preview_shown. Enable portal step 1 fee preview.
Enzo
July 1, 2026
