US logistics giant UPS has projected it will have handled more than 60 million returns packages during the peak season between 14th November to 22nd January. This will be its highest volumes for returns ever and 10% more than 2020.

Research by the logistics giant has shown that 27% of US adults expect to make a return during the holiday season, and 21% had already made one before Christmas.

These figures reflect a general jump in deliveries and collections across the whole of the last mile sector in Europe and the US.

“I think that this is a trend that we’ve seen over several years, that returns have increased,” Director of Media Relations Jim Mayer Mayer said. “Last year, it was about 55 million (returns). We looked at the trend lines, made the forecasts and we were looking at 60 million or more than 60 million this year.”

UPS has previously published research that suggests 79% of customers who have a positive returns experience are more likely to buy from the same retailer again. Some 84% of them expect online retailers to offer a free returns option, even as costs of returns are increasing – some figures suggest the returns process costs $33 for a $50 item.