UPS says holiday package returns are at their peak now for first time ever
If you found yourself at a United Parcel Service drop-off site today, you were part of history.
UPS has declared Dec. 19 National Returns Day, when the shipping company processes more returned holiday packages than any other 24-hour time frame.
This is the first time the day has occurred before the end of year.
UPS expects to handle 1.5 million returns on this particular National Returns Day, ahead of its usual early January peak of 1.3 million.
According to the company: “Consumers who got a jump on online shopping in the days before Black Friday are expected to begin returning more than 1 million packages each day in December, jump-starting the holiday returns season earlier than ever.”
It wasn’t all about buying for others. Some deals turned out to be too good for consumers to pass up for themselves.
“The spike is driven by self-gifting due to retailer promotions, express shipping for deliveries and returns, simplified returns processes and advanced re-stocking and management systems,” the company said.
UPS expects to deliver 800 million packages (including those returned) nationwide for this holiday season.
This story was originally published December 19, 2018 at 11:01 AM.
