Writing a returns page an AI assistant can read

If you are about to switch on an AI assistant, the returns page is the first page to rewrite. Returns are among the questions customers ask most, the answers carry money, and the typical returns page is written in a way that an assistant reads badly: long paragraphs, exceptions at the end, legal terms where customers use everyday words.

The reason is mechanical. An assistant doesn’t read the page top to bottom. It cuts the page into short fragments and, for each question, retrieves the few fragments that look most relevant. A rule and its exception in two different paragraphs can end up in two different fragments, and only one of them gets read. We explain the mechanism in how an AI assistant answers.

Here is a before-and-after with a made-up electronics store.

Before

Returns policy

At Volt & Co we want you to love your purchase. If for any reason you are not completely satisfied, you may return your item to us within the statutory withdrawal period, in accordance with our Terms of Sale. Items must be returned unused, complete with all accessories, manuals and original packaging, which must be in resaleable condition. Refunds will be processed to the original payment method upon receipt and inspection of the goods.

Please note that the following categories are excluded: software and media where the seal has been broken, electric shavers and hair clippers for hygiene reasons, made-to-order items and items purchased on clearance where indicated. Return shipping is the responsibility of the customer except where the item is faulty. For faulty items, please see our Warranty page.

Ask an assistant reading this “how long do I have to return something?” and it will likely find “within the statutory withdrawal period” and either say it doesn’t know the number or fill it in with the most common policy it has seen, often 30 days. Ask “can I return a shaver I opened?” and it may find the first paragraph and say yes.

After

Returns: the short version

You can return most items within 14 days of delivery for a refund. Exceptions are listed below.

What can’t be returned: opened software and games; electric shavers and hair clippers once unsealed (for hygiene); made-to-order items; clearance items marked “final sale”.

Condition: unused, with all accessories and the original box.

Return shipping: you pay for return shipping, unless the item is faulty or we sent the wrong item. Then it’s free.

Refunds: to your original payment method, within 14 days of us receiving the item.

Faulty items: you’re covered by the legal guarantee for 2 years. See Faulty items for how to report a fault.

Exchanges: we don’t do direct exchanges. Return the item for a refund and place a new order.

Same policy. Every rule now sits in a short block with its own heading, every number is written out, and the exceptions name the products in customers’ words.

The seven rules behind the rewrite

1. Numbers in text. “14 days”, not “the statutory period”. The assistant can’t look up what you meant.
2. One topic per block, with a heading in plain words: what can’t be returned, return shipping, refunds, exchanges.
3. Exceptions named, not described. “Shavers and clippers once unsealed” rather than “items excluded for hygiene reasons”.
4. Customers’ words. Refund, send back, money back, exchange, swap. Use them once each.
5. Say what you don’t do. “We don’t do direct exchanges” prevents an assistant from inventing an exchange process.
6. Separate returns from faults. Change-of-mind returns and faulty goods follow different rules; mixing them is the most common source of wrong answers.
7. One page. If returns rules are also in the FAQ, the terms and a banner, make sure they say the same thing, or remove all but one.

Check it

After the rewrite, ask the assistant:

• “How long do I have to send something back?”
• “Can I return a shaver I opened?”
• “Who pays for the return?”
• “When do I get my money back?”
• “Can I swap it for a different colour?”
• “It stopped working after a month, what do I do?”

Each answer should match one block of the page. If one doesn’t, that block needs its heading or wording sharpened.

EU rules give online buyers 14 days to withdraw from most purchases, with specific exceptions, and a minimum two-year legal guarantee for faulty goods.¹ Your store can offer more, but the assistant can only repeat what your page says clearly. If you’d like help rewriting the pages an assistant depends on, that’s the first step of Assistant Setup.

Footnotes

1. European Commission, Your Europe, “Guarantees and returns”, europa.eu/youreurope. ↩