Target quietly makes big change to store policy after customers have abused it for years

Target has made a big change to one of its best known policies after customers abused it for years.

Its return policy is something of legend, but the gravy train has ended after years of retailers reporting people returning well-used or shoplifted goods. 

In recent weeks, the retail giant quietly updated the policy on its website in a bid to let customers know it will not be taken advantage of any longer.

'Target reserves the right to deny returns, refunds and exchanges including but not limited to prevent fraud, suspected fraud or abuse,' is the new line that has been added to the top of  returns policy.

Years of customers abusing the policy - returning items that have been stolen or are several years old  - are behind the move.  

A spokesperson for Target confirmed to The Street that the language had been adjusted.

But they added that the policy, which allows for most unopened items in 'new condition' to be returned within 90 days, has not itself changed. 

'Target wants to make clear to customers who abuse the very generous returns policy that their days are numbered. 

'Fraud or deception will not be tolerated. Staff are now on the look out for fraud.' a source told DailyMail.com.

Last year. US retailers lost $101 billion due to returns abuse, a recent report from the National Retail Federation found. 

A half of retailers said they had experienced shoppers returning 'used, non-defective' products, according to the report. 

Moreover, 44 percent said shoppers had even tried to return 'shoplifted or stolen' merchandise. 

And 37 percent said they had seen some attempt to return products that were purchased on 'fraudulent or stolen' payment methods. 

Target has been increasingly victimized by theft, closing nine stores in four different state to 'theft and organized retail crime.'

Target employees have long complained about customers abusing the company's generous returns policy. 

'I  had so many people coming in with bogus returns, it was ridiculous,' one former employee recalled on Reddit. 

'One guy brought back a USED ink cartridge he said was too big for his printer, it was obviously used and I shook it, told him it was empty.'

Another employee recalled a customer who shoplifted items and then attempted to return them.

'I had someone try to use their inmate ID for a return. Would you believe that they had just taken the items off the shelf before coming up to me?' they wrote on the thread. 

'Something pretty common at my store is people trying to return a bunch of old shaving razors, facial cleanser and personal care products all at the same time' a third added. 

Other retail giants such as Costco have generous returns policies that even allow its customers to return half-eaten food. 

But even those policies have limits, and items such as cigarettes, alcohol and batteries are not included. 

It is not the only change Target has made this year. Shoppers will no longer be able to pay using a check, the store said in May..

The payment method has been falling in popularity in recent years - but it is still popular among some seniors. 

Cards have become the dominant way to pay - whether in physical for linked to digital wallets on smartphones - but customers looking to avoid cards opt for cash.

The Minnesota-based retailer - the seventh biggest in the US - announced it will 'no longer accept personal checks starting July 15,' citing 'extremely low volumes.'

Fewer and fewer retailers are accepting personal checks. Aldi and Whole Foods have banned them completely, as Target is doing. Others will only accept them at some registers. 

'When it comes to payments, checks are something of a relic,' retail expert Neil Saunders of Global Data told DailyMail.com.