Recommendation and Return Rates out of Control?

Experienced just this during the holiday buying season.  Due mainly to the fact that a product recommendation was greatly overstated on Amazon,  discovered later by a closer look at reviews, which led to what looked like a very expensive refund.  Made me think, if the recos are unreasonably meant to drive saves, but too often lead to returns or refunds,  lots of waste emerging.

Are return rates out of control?   by Tom Ryan in Retailwire.  With further comments.

UPS expects a whopping 26 percent year-over-year surge in the number of returns it processes on January 2, National Returns Day. Those levels would represent the seventh consecutive record number of returns.

The surging rate of returns is occurring largely due to strong online growth. Estimates for returns of online purchases range from 15 to over 30 percent, with items such as apparel and footwear at the high end of that range. The return rate for physical stores ranges from three to 10 percent.

UPS touted solutions it provides to manage the return process, including numerous drop-off points and pre-paid labels for consumers. For retailers, UPS offers visibility to anticipate impacts to inventory and the ability to route returns for repair, repackaging or restocking.  ... '