Running a small online shop: 30 questions on returns, fees, postage, chargebacks and stock, answered

Question 1

How long does a customer have to return an online order in the UK?

Accepted Answer

Fourteen days from the day after delivery to tell the shop they are cancelling, then a further 14 days to send the goods back. The shop refunds within 14 days of receiving the goods or proof of posting. If the shop never gave the cancellation information, the right is extended by up to 12 months.

Question 2

Who pays the return postage on a change-of-mind return?

Accepted Answer

The customer, but only if the shop said so before the order was placed. A returns policy that is silent on return postage makes the shop pay it. The refund must include the original standard delivery charge: on a £42 order with £3.95 postage, the refund is £45.95.

Question 3

What does Etsy take from a sale compared with Shopify?

Accepted Answer

On a £42 item with £3.95 postage, Etsy takes £6.47 (14.1%) from a seller who is not VAT registered, with VAT on the fees included. Shopify Basic with Shopify Payments takes £1.33 (2.9%) in transaction fees at 120 orders a month, before the monthly plan fee. Etsy brings buyers; Shopify does not.

Question 4

What do Royal Mail parcels cost from October 2026?

Accepted Answer

From 5 October 2026, on the published tariff summary, a 1st Class small parcel up to 1 kg is £5.70 by stamp, while Tracked 24 bought online is £4.80; 2nd Class is £4.40 against Tracked 48 at £3.75. The tracked service is cheaper than the untracked one it replaces, by 90p and 65p.

Question 5

What does a chargeback cost a small shop?

Accepted Answer

On Stripe in the UK, £20 when the dispute arrives and a further £20 if the shop counters it, with the second fee returned only if the shop wins. The response window is 7 to 21 days depending on the card network. The card issuer will not open links, so tracking evidence has to be a screenshot or a document, not a URL.

Question 6

How do I work out a reorder point?

Accepted Answer

Daily sales times the supplier's lead time in days, plus safety stock. A product selling 3.5 a day with a 21-day lead time and a week of safety stock has a reorder point of 98 units. A shop with 60 in stock has already missed it: an order placed today arrives about four days after the shelf empties.

Question 7

Who is responsible when a parcel goes missing in the post?

Accepted Answer

The shop. Goods remain at the trader's risk until they come into the customer's physical possession, so a missing parcel is the shop's loss to put right and then claim from the carrier. Unless another date was agreed, delivery must be within 30 days. A reply telling the customer to wait for the carrier is not an answer.

Question 8

What happened to Stocky on Shopify?

Accepted Answer

Shopify's help centre says Stocky is no longer available after 31 August 2026 and points shops to the inventory features in the Shopify admin. Those track quantities and transfers but do not hold a supplier lead time, which is the one input a reorder point needs, so shops need a spreadsheet or another app for reordering.

Question 9

What does helpdesk software cost for a small online shop?

Accepted Answer

For a two-person shop handling 600 tickets a month, on prices published on 1 October 2026: Gorgias Pro is US$300 a month on annual billing, with 190 AI replies included and US$1.50 for each one beyond that; Zendesk Suite Team is £90 a month for two agents, with AI resolutions charged separately. Per-reply AI pricing means the bill grows with the busy season.

Question 10

What must a UK online shop's returns policy say?

Accepted Answer

That the customer has 14 days from delivery to cancel and how to do it, who pays return postage, when the refund is made, and which goods are exempt (personalised, perishable, unsealed hygiene items). Two omissions cost money: silence on return postage makes the shop pay it, and no cancellation information extends the right by 12 months.

Question 11

How should a shop reply to 'where is my order?'

Accepted Answer

With the tracking status in words, the date by which the shop will act, and what it will do then: resend or refund. Because the goods are at the shop's risk until delivered, the reply promises a replacement or refund by a stated date instead of sending the customer to the carrier.

Question 12

Can AI answer customer emails for a small online shop?

Accepted Answer

Yes for the routine ones: where is my order, returns requests, stock questions. The risk is a reply that gets consumer law wrong, such as refusing a return that is in time. Helpdesk AI is usually charged per reply. Overlyft can set up an AI assistant that drafts replies on the rules above, and never refunds without the owner pressing the button.

Question 13

What does the EU's €3 customs duty cost a UK online shop on each order?

Accepted Answer

Since 1 July 2026 the EU has charged €3 customs duty per item on consignments worth €150 or less, until 1 July 2028. An item is a kind of product, not a unit: five T-shirts pay €3, a T-shirt and a watch pay €6. On a single €12 product the duty is a quarter of the price.

Question 14

Do I need a responsible person to sell to Northern Ireland or the EU from Great Britain?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Since 13 December 2024 a product offered to customers in Northern Ireland or the EU needs a responsible economic operator established in the EU or Northern Ireland. The listing must also show the manufacturer's name, postal address and electronic address, that person's details, a picture and identifier, and any safety warnings.

Question 15

How much do A2X and Link My Books cost a month for a small UK online shop?

Accepted Answer

On 1 October 2026, one Shopify store with 150 orders a month was £18 on Link My Books and US$29 on A2X Mini. A shop with 400 orders across Shopify, Etsy and eBay was £41 a month on Link My Books and US$115 on A2X Multi 2K. Adding a channel moves the price more than adding orders.

Question 16

How much will Royal Mail pay my shop for a lost Tracked parcel, and how long do I have to claim?

Accepted Answer

Royal Mail's business claims page pays a lost Tracked parcel at what the item cost the shop, not its sale price, up to £150 on a business account or £75 on Tracked postage bought online without one. The claim opens 7 working days after the due date and must be made within 30 calendar days of that date. The customer's refund does not wait for the claim.

Question 17

Do I add my Etsy, eBay and Shopify sales together for the £90,000 VAT threshold?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The test is £90,000 of taxable turnover in any rolling 12 months across everything the business sells, counted on sales, not payouts. In our example the sales reports total £91,300 while payouts total £84,900. A shop that goes over at the end of September 2026 must register by 30 October 2026.

Question 18

Can I give customers a discount in return for leaving a review?

Accepted Answer

A discount for any honest review is lawful only if the review is labelled as incentivised and reflects the customer's genuine experience. A discount for a five-star review is banned. Since 6 April 2025 it has been a banned practice to commission a review that hides its incentive, and the CMA can fine a business up to 10% of global turnover.

Question 19

Can I use ChatGPT to answer customer emails for my online shop, and will it train on my customers' data?

Accepted Answer

Yes, for drafting. On 1 October 2026 ChatGPT Business and Claude Team said they do not train on your chats by default; the individual plans, ChatGPT Plus and Claude Pro, leave it to a setting you must switch off. Remove the customer's name, address and contact details before pasting, and decide refunds and complaints yourself.

Question 20

How much do ChatGPT Business and Claude Team cost a month for a two-person online shop?

Accepted Answer

On 1 October 2026, billed annually, ChatGPT Business was £15 a user a month and Claude Team £18 a seat, so two people pay £30 or £36 a month. Both plans start at two seats. Microsoft 365 Copilot Business was from £13.80 a user and Google Workspace Business Starter £5.90, both before VAT.

Question 21

When does the 14-day return period end for an online order delivered on Black Friday 2026?

Accepted Answer

At the end of Friday 11 December 2026. The cancellation period runs for 14 days after the day of delivery, so only orders delivered on or after 11 December are still inside it on Christmas Day. A faulty item delivered on Black Friday can be rejected for a full refund until 27 December 2026.

Question 22

Can I deduct money from a refund if a customer returns an item used, worn or damaged?

Accepted Answer

Yes, on a change-of-mind return, if the handling went beyond what a shop would allow and you gave the cancellation information before the order. Regulation 34(9) lets you deduct the loss in value, up to the item price. The standard delivery charge is still refunded, and the balance is due within 14 days of the return arriving.

Question 23

What does an online product listing have to show before I can sell to customers in Northern Ireland or the EU?

Accepted Answer

Under Article 19 of Regulation (EU) 2023/988 the listing itself must show the manufacturer's name, postal address and electronic address, the responsible person's details where the manufacturer is outside the EU, a picture and product identifier, and any safety warnings. It has applied to offers to Northern Ireland and the EU since 13 December 2024.

Question 24

If a customer's return parcel goes missing in the post, do I still have to refund them?

Accepted Answer

Yes. For a change-of-mind return the refund is due 14 days after the shop gets the goods back or, if earlier, 14 days after the customer supplies evidence of having sent them, under regulation 34(5) of the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013. The claim against the carrier belongs to whoever bought the return label.

Question 25

How much does it cost to sell on Amazon UK in 2026?

Accepted Answer

On Amazon's UK pricing page on 1 October 2026 the Professional plan was £25 a month before VAT and the Individual plan £0.75 an item, plus a referral fee of 15% of everything the buyer pays in most categories. A shop selling 150 items a month at £21.50 with delivery pays £6,105 a year before VAT, 15.8% of its sales.

Question 26

Is Amazon's Professional selling plan cheaper than the Individual plan for a small shop?

Accepted Answer

From 34 items a month, yes. On Amazon's UK pricing page on 1 October 2026 the Individual plan cost £0.75 for each item sold and the Professional plan £25 a month, both before VAT. At 33 items the Individual plan costs £24.75; at 34 it costs £25.50. The referral fee is charged on top of either plan.

Question 27

Can I refuse refunds on personalised or made-to-order items in my online shop?

Accepted Answer

For a change of mind, yes: regulation 28(1)(b) of the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 removes the 14-day right to cancel from goods made to the customer's specifications or clearly personalised, and you must say so before the order. For a fault, no: the customer can still reject a faulty or wrongly made item within 30 days for a full refund.

Question 28

How long does an online shop have to keep its order records?

Accepted Answer

A sole trader keeps them for at least 5 years after the 31 January return deadline for the tax year, so an order delivered on 14 November 2026 is kept until at least 31 January 2033. A limited company keeps them for 6 years from the end of its financial year, and VAT records are kept for at least 6 years.

Question 29

Can my online shop refuse refunds on sale items bought on Black Friday?

Accepted Answer

No. GOV.UK says customers have exactly the same rights to refunds on sale items as on full-price ones. An online order can be cancelled within 14 days of delivery whatever it cost, and a faulty item can be rejected for a full refund within 30 days. Take any 'no refunds on sale items' line out of the policy before the offer starts.

Question 30

Who has to prove an item was faulty when it was delivered, my shop or the customer?

Accepted Answer

For the first six months, the shop. GOV.UK says you must repair or replace an item returned within 6 months unless you can prove it was not faulty when the customer bought it. After 6 months you can ask the customer to prove it was. Customers have up to 6 years to make a claim, or 5 years in Scotland.