I was recently confronted with a different return policy at two different stores.

At Best Buy I was used to being able to return an item with the receipt within 90 days, this changed when I was told it was 30 or 60, I forget. Anyway, I was able to exchange the item instead, but I sure did have to talk to a few people to try and exchange it and I was glad I kept the receipt.

The second time was at Wal-mart, they have a policy where, if you don’t have the receipt, they will return the item for the current price. However this policy has changed to that you are not allowed to return an item more than twice without a receipt. On the third time, they will not refund the money. So keep your receipts!

Over at Consumer World there is a good post on Retailers Tightening their Return Policy, along with a few of the new policies for different online and offline stores. The site also offers a good tip if your return isn’t accepted:

Consumers who have a problem returning a gift, should first contact the store manager or customer service department of the retailer. If a satisfactory resolution is not obtained, then a complaint can be filed with the state Attorney General’s office or local consumer agency.

You may even get what you need from the retail stores corporate office as well.

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Dawn C. is site owner of Frugalforlife.com and is residing in Colorado with her spouse, Teri, of 11 years. Dawn can be reached at Frugalforlife@gmail.com