How Do I Handle Refund Requests and ‘Where Is My Refund’ Questions?
Answer refund questions from the order itself, and refund only within the limit you set. AeroChat verifies the customer against the order in Shopify and tells them whether a refund was issued, when, for how much and to which payment method. For new requests, it checks your rules, refunds small amounts you allow, and passes anything bigger to your team with the order and the customer’s photos. It works on WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, web chat and email.
Why refunds turn into long threads
Two kinds of message come up on the Shopify Community. The first is the customer who says they never got their refund, while Shopify shows it as complete. Someone has to find the order, check the refund date and method, and explain that the bank has it. The second is the request itself: a damaged item, a missing piece, a late parcel. Stores with outsourced agents want refunds above a certain size to go to a manager first.
The details make it slower. Merchants ask how to work out a partial refund when only some items from a discounted order come back. Sellers of digital downloads ask how to handle requests when nothing can be returned. Each case needs the order open and the policy in mind.
The usual fixes and their limits
- Answer by hand from the admin. You open the order, check the refund and reply. It is accurate, and it takes a few minutes every time.
- Send a refund confirmation email. Shopify can notify the customer when you refund. Many customers still ask again because the money hasn’t shown on their statement yet.
- A returns or refunds app. These manage the return and refund flow. They add a fee and still leave the “where is my refund” questions to your inbox.
- A macro in a helpdesk. A saved reply explains bank processing times. Your team still has to look up the order to know which reply fits.
How to handle it in chat with AeroChat
When a customer asks where their refund is, AeroChat verifies them against the order in Shopify and reads the refund on the order: the date, the amount and the payment method. It tells the customer exactly that, and that their bank decides how quickly it shows on the statement. If no refund has been issued, it says so and checks whether a return is still open. For a new request, it follows your rules: it asks for a photo of a damaged or missing item, refunds up to the amount you set, and hands anything larger or unusual to your team with the details attached.
Customer: I returned my jacket two weeks ago and still don’t have my refund. Order #4520 (example)
AeroChat: Let me check. Can you confirm the email you ordered with?
Customer: noor@example.com
AeroChat: Thanks, Noor. We refunded US$120 to your Visa card on 3 November (example). Your bank decides how fast it shows on your statement. If it isn’t there in a few more days, your bank can trace it with that date and amount.
In Shopify: nothing changes. AeroChat read the refund on order #4520 to answer.
Copy this into AeroChat
When a customer asks about a refund, follow these steps.
- Ask for their order number and the email or phone number they ordered with. Verify them against the order in Shopify.
- If a refund was issued, tell them the date, the amount and the payment method it went to. Explain that their bank decides how fast it appears on their statement.
- If no refund was issued yet, check whether a return is open and tell them its status. Never promise a refund date.
- For a new refund request about a damaged or missing item, ask for a photo. If the amount is US$40 or less (example), refund it to the original payment method and confirm the amount.
- Hand everything else to our team with the order number, the reason and the photos: refunds over US$40, partial refunds on discounted orders, digital products, and any customer who is upset after two replies.
Reply in the customer’s language.
Change the refund limit and the cases that go to your team to match your refund policy before you paste it.
What to connect
- Your Shopify store. Built in. Install AeroChat from the Shopify App Store and connect your store. Order lookup verifies the customer’s email or phone first and reads payment, fulfillment and return details. Issuing a refund runs through Shopify’s Admin API in the workflow you describe.
- Your refund policy. Add it to AeroChat’s knowledge, including what you refund without a return and what you never refund.
- Your team’s hours. Set them in the dashboard, so refunds above your limit reach someone who can approve them.
Questions
Can AeroChat issue refunds on its own?
Only up to the amount you write into the recipe, and only for the cases you list. Everything else goes to your team.
Can a manager approve bigger refunds?
Yes. AeroChat hands the conversation to your team with the order and the reason. Your manager approves and refunds in the Shopify admin as usual, and the customer gets the answer in the same chat.
What does it say when the refund is done but the customer hasn’t received it?
It gives the refund date, amount and payment method from the order, and explains that the bank controls when it shows. That is usually what the customer needs to follow up with their bank.
Does this work with returns?
Yes. See starting a return in chat, where AeroChat opens the return request for your team to approve.
Using a different system? If it has a public API, it connects to AeroChat the same way: describe what you want, paste in its key, and it runs.
Can’t find your tool? Message us in the chat on this page and we’ll tell you how it connects.
Answer refund questions in seconds
Install AeroChat, paste the refund recipe, and ask your own store chat about a refunded test order.
7-day free trial.