Poles apart: European hotspots for returns fraud revealed as retail systems struggle to keep up
New analysis from ReBound Returns flags the European markets where retailers are currently most exposed to returns fraud, with Poland recording the highest average fraud rate of countries in the region.
Its data, analysing millions of returned items, showed that one in ten of returned items in Poland were flagged as potentially fraudulent. The Isle of Man followed at 8%, with Hungary and Greece both recording a rate of 7%.
In 2025, July saw the biggest spike in returned items outside of peak season. As return rates grow, the impact of returns fraud scales with it. Previous analysis by ReBound highlights how scaling up also increases potential losses from returns fraud: A mid-market fashion retailer with £100 million in annual sales, a 20% return rate, and a 5% fraud rate would face a projected loss of £1 million each year to fraudulent returns; For a large omnichannel retailer with the same fraud rate, the loss would rise to £3.5 million annually. At enterprise scale, with £960 million in sales and a 7% fraud rate, the projected loss reaches £20 million a year.
ReBound’s data of one million returned orders on behalf of retail clients between July 2025 and May 2026 found £29 million of potentially fraudulent returns.
Liselotte Reijrink, Sales Director UK & EU at ReBound Returns, says: “Pressure to refund quickly has pushed retailers into a ‘refund first, ask questions later’ approach that leaves them exposed to returns fraud. A blanket tightening of returns policies then risks punishing genuine loyal customers who would otherwise have been repeat buyers. Whichever way you look at it, brands are facing potential losses of millions each year caused by returns fraud, and most have no way of knowing how exposed they really are.
“Most returns systems have limited ability to flag risk before a refund is issued. By combining behavioural analysis and risk scoring at the point a return is initiated, with physical verification in regional hubs and connected data across every channel, retailers can catch fraudulent activity before it becomes a loss. This matters even more for international returns when verifying items gets harder when items need to cross borders.”
“If brands don’t have local warehouses or verification hubs, it can take days to assess a return, and brands don’t want to risk delaying the customer refund while the item is verified. Location can be a useful signifier within that model, but local fraud rates can shift dramatically and need to be considered alongside various other returns red flags.”
2026 RTIH Innovation Awards
Online returns will be a key focus area at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards.
The awards are now open for entries and celebrate global retail technology innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.
Our winners will be revealed at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London on Wednesday, 4th November.
Check out our 2025 winners here.
Our 2025 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The HAC on 16th October and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Tiff Stevenson.
In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “This is the awards’ fifth year as a physical event. We started off with just 30 people at the South Place Hotel not far from here, then moved to London Bridge Hotel, then The Barbican, and last year RIBA’s HQ in the West End.”
“But I’m conscious of the fact that, to quote the legend that is Taylor Swift, You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby. So, this year we’ve moved to our biggest venue yet, and also pulled in our largest number of entries to date and broken attendance records.”
He added: “This year’s submissions have without doubt been our best yet. To quote one of the judges: The examples of innovative developments across both traditional and digital retail spaces were truly remarkable.”
Congratulations to our winners, and a big thank you to our sponsors, judging panel, the legend that is Tiff Stevenson, and all those who attended our 2025 gathering.
