Returns Logistics for Inbound Parcels and Pallets
Return labels, inbound routing, and receiving for goods coming back from customers or stores to a stated Vandelta or shipper facility.
Inbound Labels and Routing When Goods Come Back
Returns logistics is the inbound side of parcel and freight. A customer or store gets a return label or a bill of lading. The package or pallet is scanned into the Vandelta network and delivered to the address you name — a warehouse, a fulfillment building, or your dock.
Single returns use a prepaid or collect label from your account. Volume programs use a returns contract: authorized RMA numbers, routing guides, and receiving appointments. Unlabeled cartons without an RMA are held or refused.
A return is still a shipment. Restricted items, declared value, and international returns follow the same rules as outbound. Export returns may need brokerage.
What Returns Logistics Includes
- Return label creation from a Vandelta account
- Inbound Ground or other parcel service you select
- Pallet returns billed as LTL when the program requires it
- Tracking on the return tracking or PRO number
- Delivery to a stated returns address
- Optional receiving into Warehousing and Fulfillment when that building is on the contract
How to Run a Return
01
Authorize the return
Issue an RMA or order ID so receiving knows what is inbound.
02
Create the inbound label or bill
Print a parcel return label or book LTL to the returns dock. Declare value if the goods still have cost.
03
Receive and close
Scan at the destination. Exceptions (empty box, wrong SKU) are noted on the receipt.
When Returns Logistics Is the Right Service
Use returns logistics when
- Customers or stores send goods back to you on a regular basis.
- You need a prepaid label instead of asking them to buy postage.
- Inbound should land at a Vandelta fulfillment building or your dock.
Use another service when
- You are sending new goods outbound — book parcel or freight.
- The inbound is an import from another country without a returns program — use International Export and Customs Brokerage.
- You only need extra declared value on an outbound — use Insurance.
RMA, Packaging, and Destination
Returns fail when the inbound address cannot receive freight or the carton has no label.
- Authorization
- RMA or order reference printed on the label or packing slip. Blind returns are often refused.
- Packaging
- Original or equivalent carton. Leaking or unsecured product is not accepted.
- Destination
- A dock or door that can take the service you booked. Parcel returns cannot default to a freight-only dock.
- International returns
- May need a commercial invoice and brokerage. Treat them as an import, not a domestic Ground label.
Related Trade and Shipping Services
- Warehousing and Fulfillment
Inbound returns can put away into inventory when the building is on contract.
- Ground Shipping for Everyday Packages
Common service level for domestic return parcels.
- Declared-Value Coverage for Shipments
Declare value on the return if the goods still have cost.
Issue a Return Label or Set Up a Volume Program
Create a one-off return from your account, or talk to sales about RMA routing and receiving.