Uber Adds Returns to Package Delivery Service

Uber’s package delivery service is now also a package return service.

The delivery/ride-hailing giant announced Wednesday (Oct. 4) that it wants to help customers avoid the hassle of returning goods in the mail via its Uber Connect program.

According to a news release, Uber Connect now offers a “Return a Package” feature, allowing users to have a courier pick up prepaid and sealed packages — up to five at a time — and drop them off at a local post office, UPS, or FedEx.

“At Uber, we’re investing in making more use cases as effortless as tapping a button to get a ride or ordering dinner to your doorstep,” Wendy Lee, the company’s director of delivery product management, said in the release.

“Now, we’re bringing something new to the Uber and Uber Eats apps — a way to save time and effort in getting packages shipped.”

Uber says the offering lets users track their packages in real-time via its app, with couriers sending a visual confirmation or photo of the receipt after drop-off. The program is available now in more than 4,950 cities around the country.

The company says the offering is targeting younger consumers who find making physical returns inconvenient.

“According to research from the National Retail Federation, 79% of shoppers under 30 think mail returns are somewhat or very annoying,” the release said. “And with the busy holiday shopping and gifting season fast approaching, we know returns are inevitable — whether it’s the wrong size, the wrong color, or the wrong gift idea entirely.”

And as PYMNTS wrote earlier this year, a number of retailers have been tightening their returns standards, which could be a risky move considering the way consumers already feel.

When it comes to online returns — defined here as a retailer offering free online returns via printable shipping labels — 33.4% of American consumers consider the feature very or extremely important, according to recent PYMNTS intelligence.

“Given its popularity, it is not a stretch that the retailer pullback on returns to boost margins may come at the expense of customer loyalty,” that report said. “However, limiting returns is a risk some merchants are willing to make, given the cost incurred on their end to process them. In 2022 alone, an estimated 16.5% of all merchandise bought online was returned.”

Uber’s new offering comes a little less than a month after reports that the company was developing “Chore,” a service in the same vein as TaskRabbit that would let users hire people to carry out random jobs.