Use cases › Customer service
Handle returns according to your policy
Frederik Riskær Pedersen, founder of Maplith · Updated 3 Nov 2026
A return request often means checking the order, the delivery date and the policy in different places. Give the agent that context before it replies.
What the agent does with the context
Check the request against the order
Find the relevant order and confirm the match. A number mentioned in a message is a clue, not proof.
Apply the returns policy
Check eligibility before promising a return or a refund.
Ask when the policy requires it
Send the proposed action and its reason for approval. Wait for the decision before carrying it out.
Confirm what happened
Check the result in the shop or helpdesk, then record the outcome.
The value is fewer manual checks across the helpdesk and the shop, with a visible basis for each decision. Maplith supplies where the order and the delivery date are, which policy applies and what the agent may do; the agent does the work in your systems with the access you grant.
What does one case look like?
The case below is from Acme Commerce, a fictional online shop whose exports Maplith reads for the demo. The order, the reply and the times are illustrations; the policy gap is a finding the scan raised. In this example the shop has configured returns within the policy to run without approval; that is a setting for this example, not the default.
- 09:12
A customer writes to the helpdesk
They want to return a pair of boots. The order number is somewhere in the message, not in a field.
- 09:12
Maplith tells your agent what the case needs
Maplith identifies the shop and carrier data the agent needs and the returns policy that applies. The order number is in the customer's message, so the agent must confirm the match. The policy allows returns within 30 days; exceptions need approval.
- 09:13
Your agent looks up the order and drafts the reply
The agent checks the order and delivery date in your systems. The customer requested the return after 44 days, outside the 30-day policy.
- 09:14 · a person decides
The exception waits for approval
Accepting a return outside the policy is an exception. The approval request explains why it needs a decision and shows the proposed reply.
- Approved
The agent accepts the return, replies and sends a label
It records the accepted return, the reply and the reason for the exception. The item has not arrived yet, so nothing is refunded.
- Later
The item arrives, and the refund is its own step
When the shop registers the returned item, the refund is a separate action under its own approval setting. The agent asks first unless you have allowed it, and records the outcome.
Which cases need a person?
You choose which actions the agent can take without approval. Missing information or a request outside your policy may need a person.
| Case | What happens | When a person is needed |
|---|---|---|
| Return within the policy | The agent checks the order, accepts the return and prepares the reply and the label. The refund waits for the item. | When your action settings require approval for accepting a return or for the refund. |
| Return outside the policy | The agent explains the exception and requests approval. | Before an exception is accepted, and again before its refund. |
| Missing order information | The agent asks the customer for the order number. | If the order still cannot be confirmed, or your settings require review. |
What you need to set up
| Part | What | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Systems | Your shop and helpdesk, as exports or a read-only connection. The carrier too, if delivery dates live there. | Data sources › Systems |
| Rules | Your returns policy, as the document your team uses. Maplith reads the rules out of it. | Data sources › Scans, then Rules & know-how |
| Access | Your agent's own access to the shop and the helpdesk, and a Maplith connection that may act with approval. | Agents & access › Connections |
| Approvals | Reply: runs on its own. Accepting a return and refunding: each asks first, until you change it per action. | Agents & access › Policies |
How do you start?
Start with one return request. Connect your shop and helpdesk data, add the returns policy your team uses, and set which actions require approval. Then let your agent handle a case while you review the result.
Questions people ask
Do I need a developer or an agency?
You can begin with exports and a supported AI assistant. The work involved depends on your systems, the access your agent needs and the actions you want it to take.
Does Maplith answer the customer?
Your agent replies in your helpdesk using the access you grant. Maplith provides the context and rules, and stores the actions the agent reports.
What does Maplith store?
The map: which system holds what, how records match, and your rules. Not your tickets or orders as rows. Evidence behind a finding can quote example values. Hosted in the EU; AI model processing runs in the US.
Which helpdesks and shops work?
Start with exports from your shop and helpdesk. Check Systems and exports for supported formats and current connections.
Official sources
Set this up for one return request.
The walkthrough takes you from the first lookup to the record, with the approval in between.