Story originally appeared in US News & World Report on the Dec. 23, 2020. Excerpts from the story below. To see the full story visit USNews.com.

“A lot of retailers are extending their returns windows in order to spread out the foot traffic related to returns,” says Jim Hull, senior director of industry strategy, retail, at Blue Yonder, a digital supply chain platform. In many cases, that gives consumers until the end of January to decide whether to return an item. The extended time not only helps with social distancing in stores but may also slow the flow of packages heading back to warehouses through the mail.