Return Fraud and RFID's.

[The Wicker Man]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong here, but if you went and returned an item to a store that hadn't legitimately been bought, it would come up in their database as either 'Not sold' or 'Stolen' if it was noticed missing from their inventory. This would, as far as I can gather, mean that they would deny you a return for the item.

Now, what if one were to subtly destroy the RFID chip before taking the item back to the store to make the return? Would they refuse to refund the value of the item based on the dysfunctional RFID tags? I'd assume that so long as everything looked legitimate and there was no immediately apparent damage to the product they'd just assume it messed up somewhere.

Does anyone have any idea what would happen?

[Th0r]

I think it would depend on both the item and the store in question.

What item is it and where would the RFID tag be placed?

[Vallen]

What?
They don't scan the rfid, They scan the barcode.
Just deactivate it in the store so the alarm doesn't go off when you leave with it.
There's no reason they wouldn't accept a return if you have a receit.

[The Wicker Man]

I think it would depend on both the item and the store in question.

What item is it and where would the RFID tag be placed?

It's a suit Jacket, and the RFID is embedded in the paper tag that also has the bar code and price on it. The store in question is a very well known high street department store.

Oh, and @ Vallen: I think you're confusing the RFID with the EAS tag? I've walked out of the said store with the RFID labels multiple times without setting off any alarms. They work at 860mhz (or around that), which is at a different frequency to the EAS tags.

The RFID tag is only used for the purposes of stock control, and allows the store to see what has and has not been sold. While the RFID tag only contains a number, that number links back to a central database that all branches of the store can access.

[Th0r]

Is forging a receipt a possibility?

Chances are if you've got a receipt for the suit and you return it to a different store to the one it was stolen from (But part of the same chain.) they'll give you a refund even if it comes up as not being sold because they'll assume it was an error with staff members at the other store..

[The Wicker Man]

Is forging a receipt a possibility?

Chances are if you've got a receipt for the suit and you return it to a different store to the one it was stolen from (But part of the same chain.) they'll give you a refund even if it comes up as not being sold because they'll assume it was an error with staff members at the other store..

The receipts unfortunately contain a reference bar code which would trace back to what would be an irrelevant or non existent transaction.

Also forging a receipt is probably not worth it considering the minor profit margin here (?150-?200 a go), although on a larger scale it would become a more plausible option.

The store in question fortunately has a very good returns policy where they'll give you in-store credit without a receipt. It's just if the RFID was defunct their suspicions may be raised.

[Th0r]

I would think they would assume it was some kind of error with competence, or rather lack of it. Years ago I had to refund some clothes that I purchased at a now defunct store and there was some problem with the tags. They didn't care less (Had a receipt.) and blamed it on their negligent co-workers.