However a shopper starts a return, by describing a broken item, wanting a different size, or just saying "I want to send this back," Arbyn never decides the outcome and never moves any money on its own. Every return is reviewed and resolved by you or your team. What Arbyn does, and how much of the process it runs before handing it to you, is entirely your choice, set once in Settings.
What it does
Arbyn recognizes a return request the moment a shopper raises one, and then follows whichever of your four handling styles you've chosen: a fully guided flow it runs itself before handing you a request to approve, sending the shopper straight to your own returns page, sending them to Shopify's self-serve returns, or simply escalating every return to your team from the first message. In every one of these, the actual refund, exchange, or credit is completed by a person on your team, in Shopify, never by Arbyn.
Where to find it
Go to Settings, Guardrails, and open the Returns action. Choose one of:
Off. Arbyn doesn't run any part of the return itself. It acknowledges the request warmly and escalates the conversation to your team right away.
Arbyn Returns. Arbyn runs the full guided flow in chat, order lookup, item selection, reason, an optional photo, and resolution options, before handing you a request to approve or decline. This is the option described in detail below.
Direct to returns page. Arbyn verifies the shopper's order, then sends them to your own returns page to start the return there. It doesn't collect a reason, a photo, or a resolution itself.
Shopify self-serve. The same as above, but Arbyn sends the shopper to their Shopify account to request the return through Shopify's own self-serve returns, if you have that turned on.
If you choose the guided Arbyn Returns option, you'll also configure the details that shape the flow: which return reasons you accept, which resolutions you offer (refund, exchange, store credit, replacement), whether a restocking fee applies, and how many days after delivery a return can be started.
How it works
When Arbyn runs the full flow ("Arbyn Returns"). This is the deepest option, and it works like this:
Arbyn confirms which order the shopper means, verifying the email on file before revealing any order detail, and lets them pick exactly which item or items they're returning if the order has more than one.
It asks the reason, using friendly, tappable options rather than raw internal codes, damaged, wrong item, doesn't fit, changed their mind, and so on.
For reasons where a photo actually proves something, a visible defect, the wrong item arriving, or a sizing issue, Arbyn asks for a quick photo. For a simple change of mind, it doesn't bother asking for one, since there's nothing to verify.
Based on the reason, Arbyn shows the resolutions you've actually enabled. Reasons that are your store's fault, like a defective or wrong item, offer a full refund or a free replacement, with no restocking fee. Reasons that are the shopper's preference, wrong size, style, simply changed their mind, offer exchange, store credit, or a refund, and your configured restocking fee (if any) is disclosed honestly at this step, not hidden until later.
If the shopper picks exchange, Arbyn shows what's actually on their order and asks what they'd like instead, size, color, or a different item entirely, and attaches that to the request. If they pick store credit, Arbyn tells them plainly that your team's approval is what applies the credit to their account.
Before anything is sent anywhere, the shopper sees an editable review, order, reason, resolution, and an optional note, so they can double-check or correct anything before it goes to your team. Nothing is filed until they confirm it here.
Once confirmed, the request is sent to your team and the conversation is flagged for your attention. Arbyn tells the shopper their request has been sent for review; it never promises a specific outcome at this point, since that's your call.
What you see and do. The return request shows up right on that conversation, with the order, the reason, the resolution the shopper asked for, any items they'd like instead on an exchange, and the photo if one was provided. You Approve or Decline it, along with a note, required either way, which becomes the reason shared with the shopper on a decline, or extra context handed to Arbyn for its next reply on an approval. Any optional note the shopper added while submitting their request appears separately as an internal note, visible to your team only, never sent back to the shopper. Approving or declining here is what tells Arbyn to send the shopper their outcome message. For a refund or exchange, completing the actual money movement or exchange is still a step you take yourself in Shopify. Store credit is the one exception: the moment you click Approve on a store-credit resolution, Arbyn applies the credit to the shopper's account itself, right then, as part of completing your approval, rather than leaving that step for you to do by hand. Your approval click is still what authorizes it; Arbyn never issues it without that click. See the store credit article for the full detail on when a store can and can't use this.
When you'd rather Arbyn just point the way ("Direct" or "Shopify self-serve"). In these two modes, Arbyn still verifies the shopper's order first, confirming it exists and the email matches, but it doesn't collect a reason, ask for a photo, or offer resolution choices. It simply tells the shopper where to go, your own returns page, or their Shopify account for self-serve returns, and lets your existing returns process take it from there.
When it's off entirely. Arbyn acknowledges the request and hands the whole conversation to your team immediately, without attempting to gather any details itself.
The EU, EEA, and UK right of withdrawal. Customers in these regions have a legal right to change their mind on an online order within at least 14 days of delivery, without giving a reason, regardless of how you've configured returns above. If you add a link to your store's dedicated withdrawal page in Settings, Arbyn confirms the order and sends a qualifying shopper there directly, since this legal process doesn't require a reason the way an ordinary return does. If you haven't provided one, Arbyn explains the right honestly, helps the shopper through your normal return instead, and offers to bring in your team if they'd like to formally exercise it. Either way, Arbyn never turns this into a negotiation: no demanding a reason first, no survey, and no discount offered to talk someone out of it.
Checking the status of an existing request. If a shopper asks about a return they already filed rather than starting a new one, "did my return get approved," "where's my refund," Arbyn shows them the live status of that specific request instead of restarting the whole flow.
Good to know
Arbyn never decides the outcome, in any mode. Approving or declining a return is always your call. For a refund or exchange, completing the money movement is a step you take yourself in Shopify. For store credit, your Approve click is also the step that applies it, Arbyn does the applying, but only once you've clicked Approve, never before and never on its own.
The resolutions Arbyn offers always match what you've actually turned on. If you don't offer store credit, for instance, Arbyn simply never shows it as an option, so a shopper is never offered something you don't actually provide.
A restocking fee, if you charge one, is disclosed up front. Shoppers see it as part of the resolution choice itself, not as a surprise after they've already committed to a decision.
A note is required whenever you approve or decline a request. On a decline, it becomes the reason shared with the shopper. On an approval, it's extra context handed to Arbyn so its next message reflects anything specific you want the shopper to know.
The statutory EU, EEA, and UK right applies regardless of your Returns setting. Even a store with returns switched off entirely still owes a qualifying customer their legal 14 days, and Arbyn treats that as a floor, never something your own policy can shrink below.
FAQ
Can Arbyn issue a refund or send store credit on its own? Never on its own, and never before you've decided. Arbyn gathers the request and, once you approve or decline, tells the shopper the outcome. For a refund or exchange, you complete that step yourself in Shopify. For store credit, your Approve click is what applies it, so it happens automatically at the moment you approve, not before, and not without that click. Some stores can't use store credit at all, see the dedicated store credit article for when that applies.
What if a shopper's reason isn't one I accept? Arbyn only offers to start a return for reasons you've configured as accepted. If a reason falls outside what you've enabled, the conversation is handled honestly rather than a return being started for something you don't take back.
Does the restocking fee apply to every return? No. It only applies to change-of-mind resolutions (exchange, store credit, or refund for reasons like sizing or a change of heart), never to returns that are your store's fault, like a defective or wrong item, which are never charged a fee.
What happens if I choose "Direct to returns page" but haven't added a URL yet? Arbyn never sends a shopper to a broken or missing link. Without a URL configured, it falls back to helping the shopper as best it can and offering your team's help instead.
Does the EU withdrawal right override my own return window? Only ever upward, never down. If your own policy already offers longer than 14 days, that stays exactly as it is for every customer. The statutory right simply guarantees that a customer in the EU, EEA, or UK gets at least 14 days, even if your general policy were ever shorter.