Quality & Trust
No warehouse check. So how does quality work?
It's the first question every retailer asks. Here is the complete, honest answer, backed by live data from our clients.
For the full consumer experience on both sides of a Forward: Consumer experience →
98%
of items arrive in good condition (positive or neutral buyer rating)
Live data from It Goes Forward clients, 2025
When we started, retailers assumed the problem would be used or damaged items. What we actually see in complaints: packaging, not product condition.
The system is designed so that behaving well is the easiest thing to do.
Forwarding is opt-in
Consumers choose to Forward. They are not forced into it. Someone who actively chose to participate is already more motivated to do it correctly than someone processing an unwanted obligation.
Refund depends on the buyer's rating
The sender only receives their refund after the buyer confirms the item arrived in good condition (or automatically after 3 days with no dispute). This directly aligns the sender's financial interest with sending a good product.
Bad actors are filtered out
Ratings, rewards, and behaviour-based filters apply across every transaction. Consumers with a pattern of complaints are blocked from Forwarding again. The system improves with every transaction.
Every Forward goes through multiple quality gates before the buyer receives anything.
Step 1
Only 'like-new' items are eligible
When a consumer initiates a return, Forwarding is only offered if they declare the item is in like-new condition. If the return reason is 'damaged' or the item does not meet eligibility criteria, the option to Forward is simply not shown. The consumer goes straight to the conventional warehouse return.
Step 2
Only suitable products are offered
Forwarding is only available for single-item returns: this ensures the original packaging can be reused and prevents mix-ups. Our system also uses data to assess whether resale is likely for that specific item before offering the Forward option at all.
Step 3
Photos required before the label is issued
Before the sender receives a shipping label, they are required to submit photos of the item. This creates a documented record of the item's condition at the time of Forwarding, and it signals to the sender that the condition is being taken seriously.
Step 4
Consumer-grade expectations, clearly set
Buyers purchasing a Forward know they are buying a returned item, similar to buying on Vinted. The experience and expectations are set accordingly: the item is not warehouse-fresh, but it is like new. This framing eliminates a large category of disputes before they happen.
Step 5
Buyer rating triggers the refund
The sender's refund is not issued immediately. It is triggered by the buyer confirming the item arrived in good condition, or automatically after 3 days if there is no dispute. This means the sender has a direct financial reason to pack and ship the item carefully.
Step 6
Automatic warehouse fallback
If the sender does not ship within 3 days of receiving the label, the system automatically redirects to conventional warehouse fulfillment. The buyer's order is fulfilled normally. No manual intervention required from the retailer.
Step 7
Right of return is unchanged for the buyer
If the buyer receives a Forwarded item and is unhappy with it for any reason, they have the same right of return as any normal purchase. They can return it to the warehouse or Forward it again (if condition still qualifies). The retailer's standard return policy is fully preserved.
What the data actually shows
98%
of items arrive in good condition (positive or neutral buyer rating)
It Goes Forward live client data, 2025
4.8/5
average buyer rating on Forwarded purchases
It Goes Forward live client data, 2025
65%
of buyers choose to purchase a Forward when offered
It Goes Forward live client data, 2025
0
cases of fraud recorded across all live client transactions to date
It Goes Forward live client data, 2025
The complaints we do receive are about packaging, not product condition. Consumers occasionally use non-original packaging or fold items less carefully than a warehouse would. We are continuously improving guidance to senders to address this. It does not affect the product condition itself.
Fraud: what we monitor and how we prevent it.
The most common fraud concern is a consumer buying their own Forward, effectively getting a refund while keeping the item. We monitor for this and block it. Consumers cannot purchase a Forward for an item they themselves returned. All transactions are cross-referenced at the account level.
- Consumers cannot buy their own Forwarded item
- Collusion between accounts is detected and blocked
- Behavioral patterns flag repeat bad actors automatically
- All Forwards are tied to verified accounts in the retailer's system
- Fraud monitoring runs on every transaction: no manual review required from the retailer
The warehouse isn't a perfect quality check either.
The assumption underlying the quality concern is that warehouse returns are reliably quality-checked. In practice, many returned items pass through warehouse processing quickly, with limited per-item inspection. Items are re-listed based on return reason codes, which consumers fill in themselves. The difference with Forwarding is not that quality control disappears. It is that quality control shifts: from a warehouse checker to a combination of financial incentives, photo documentation, buyer ratings, and behavioural filtering.
What clients say after going live
“Why was no one else doing this, it's a no-brainer.”
Peter Schuitema
Co-owner, Kuyichi
Kuyichi went live in February 2025. 43% of their consumers choose Forwarding over conventional returns.
Still have questions about quality? Let's talk through your specific situation.
Every retailer has different products, customer bases, and risk tolerances. Book a call and we'll walk through exactly how quality control works for your webshop.
Or read our full objections page for concerns beyond quality. All common concerns →