Part Return and Restocking Fee Checklist for Local Service Businesses

1. Part-return source card

Copy/paste fields:

• Customer/job and work order:
• Part/material ordered, SKU/model, supplier, purchase date, invoice/PO, and cost:
• Why the return is being considered: customer cancellation, wrong part ordered, scope changed, manufacturer defect, damaged shipment, customer-supplied substitution, duplicate order, or owner courtesy review:
• Verified source: supplier return policy, written quote, invoice terms, manufacturer RMA, photos, technician note, customer approval record, owner decision, or accounting record:
• Return status: returnable / not returnable / RMA pending / supplier credit pending / restocking fee applies / freight charge applies / owner review needed:
• Fee or credit proof: dollar amount, percentage, supplier memo, shipping/freight cost, credit memo date, or not yet confirmed:
• Customer-safe fact we can say:
• Internal assumption we must not say:
• Allowed next step: supplier RMA / owner callback / revised estimate / partial credit review / paid diagnostic / wait for credit memo / no refund decision yet:
• CRM label: part_return_pending / restocking_fee_review / supplier_credit_pending / owner_refund_review / non_returnable_part / RMA_needed:
• Owner/reviewer and next check date:

2. Customer-safe update snippets

Supplier review pending: “Hi [Name], we are checking the part return with [supplier/manufacturer] before confirming any credit, fee, or schedule impact. We will update you by [date] after [owner/manager] reviews the supplier response.”

Restocking fee may apply: “The supplier record shows [verified fee/source] may apply to this return. We do not want to promise a final refund or credit until the supplier confirms the return and [owner] reviews the account.”

Not returnable: “Based on [verified source], this part appears to be non-returnable/special-order. We can still review [alternate option/revised scope/owner callback] so you know the next available path.”

Do not say: “you owe the fee,” “refund approved,” “supplier will credit it,” “we can return anything,” “manufacturer caused this,” “legal/accounting says,” “free replacement,” or “case closed” unless the written record and owner review support that wording.

3. AI draft prompt with guardrails

You are helping a local-service business draft a customer update about a part return, supplier credit, or restocking fee.
Use only the verified facts below. Do not invent supplier policies, refund approvals, restocking-fee amounts, warranty coverage, blame, freight charges, legal conclusions, customer intent, or part availability.
Facts I can verify: [paste part-return source card]
Create:
1) an internal summary for the owner/manager;
2) a customer-safe update under 650 characters;
3) missing facts/questions that must be resolved before promising a refund, credit, fee waiver, replacement, or schedule change.
If the record is unclear, write NEEDS OWNER REVIEW instead of a final decision.

4. Weekly review questions

• Which special-order parts lacked a clear return/restocking-fee note before the customer approved the work?
• Which supplier credits or RMA requests stayed open long enough to create customer confusion?
• Which customer-safe wording reduced escalation without promising unsupported refunds or credits?
• Should Local Lead Rescue add a part-return/restocking-fee lane with source proof, owner review, customer update cadence, and CRM labels?

Product bridge: Pair this with Local Lead Rescue supplier-quote approval, replacement-part approval, warranty-denial, chargeback-evidence, and customer-refund exception resources so part decisions are documented before customer replies go out.