What is RTO (Return to Origin)?
RTO is a parcel that the courier could not deliver, or the customer refused, and that is sent back to the seller.
Updated
Meaning
English
RTO is a parcel that the courier could not deliver, or the customer refused, and that is sent back to the seller.
Roman Urdu
RTO woh parcel hai jo courier deliver na kar saka ya gahak ne lene se inkar kiya, aur woh wapas bechne wale ke paas bheja jata hai.
Also called return to origin, return to sender, returned parcel, refused order.
Example
An online store dispatches 500 COD orders in a month and 60 come back as RTO. It paid delivery and return charges on all 60, and 8 came back with damaged packaging that cannot be resold as new.
How it works
RTO is one of the biggest hidden costs of selling online in Pakistan. Common causes are fake or impulse orders, wrong addresses, customers who are not reachable, and slow delivery. Each RTO costs the shipping both ways, packaging, and sometimes the product itself if it comes back damaged.
Reduce it by confirming orders before dispatch, checking addresses and phone numbers, asking for advance payment from customers with a history of refusals, and shipping fast. When a parcel comes back, check it in, put sellable goods back into stock and record the loss on the rest.
In Nafaa
Nafaa's COD page lists parcels that came back, and online order customers carry a risk badge based on their history, with a blocklist for repeat problems.
Related terms
- COD (Cash on Delivery)
Cash on delivery means the customer pays when the order is delivered, not when it is placed.
- COD Reconciliation
COD reconciliation is matching the cash a courier collected for your orders with the payments it actually sent you, order by order.
- Sales Return
A sales return is goods coming back from a customer after a sale, with the stock put back and the money refunded, adjusted in khata or exchanged.