Assistants cite your refund policy, so it has to exist

Why this weakens matching

When a shopper asks an AI assistant about returns, it reads your published policy. With none, it cannot vouch for you.

Shopify tells merchants to keep policies complete so agents can answer return questions correctly.

How common it is

We scanned 19 established Shopify catalogs covering 3,562 products. This appeared in 11% of those stores, affecting 0.1% of all products scanned. These are brands with staff and agencies, so it is not a small-merchant problem.

How to check it yourself

• Open Settings, then Policies, and check the refund policy is published rather than drafted.
• Keep it specific: windows, conditions and who pays return shipping.

The fix

Publish a refund policy in your store settings.