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Customer wants to cancel an order: reply templates

A cancellation request needs an answer before the next fulfillment run, even if the answer is 'it has already shipped'. Check the order status first, then say what you can do now and what happens to the payment.

Check fulfillment status first

Open the order and look at the fulfillment status rather than the payment status. An order can be paid and unfulfilled, which means you can still cancel it cleanly. If a label exists, check whether the carrier has scanned the parcel. That scan is the point where a cancellation turns into a return.

If the order is unfulfilled, cancel it in Shopify before you reply. Then the email can say the cancellation is done rather than that it will be done.

If it hasn't shipped, cancel and confirm

Say the order is cancelled, give the amount and say where the money goes. If you can stop the fulfillment in the same minute, do it before you write. A confirmed cancellation is a short email; a promised one invites a follow-up. Write the confirmation while the order screen is open, so the refund reference and the amount are in front of you. If the payment was taken on a card, the refund goes back to that card; if it was store credit, the balance returns to the customer's account.

If the customer used store credit or a gift card, say how that balance is restored. Those refunds can look different from a card refund and the customer will check.

If it has shipped, give the return path

Don't pretend a shipped parcel can be recalled. Give the tracking link, say when it should arrive and explain the return or refusal option. If the customer can refuse delivery, tell them how that works with the carrier.

For a subscription cancellation, separate the current order from the recurring charge. Say which one is cancelled and which one still ships, so the customer doesn't have to ask twice.

Copy-paste reply templates

Cancelled before fulfillment

Hi [first name],

I've cancelled [order number]. Nothing has shipped, and I've refunded [amount] to your original payment method today.

Your bank usually shows the refund within a few business days. You don't need to do anything else.

Thanks,
[your name]

Already shipped

Hi [first name],

I'm sorry, [order number] shipped before your message arrived. It's with [carrier] now: [tracking link], due on [date].

You can refuse the parcel when it arrives and I'll refund [amount] when it comes back, or keep it and start a return with this label: [return link].

Tell me which you'd prefer.

Thanks,
[your name]

Subscription cancellation

Hi [first name],

I've cancelled the subscription on [order number]. The order already charged will still ship on [date], and no further payments will be taken.

If you'd rather cancel that shipment too, reply before [date] and I'll stop it.

Thanks,
[your name]

When to escalate to the owner

  • A refund above the amount you set as the inbox cap.
  • A cancellation of a custom or made-to-order item.
  • A legal threat or a chargeback warning.
  • A request to cancel an order that has already been delivered.
  • A customer who has cancelled and reordered the same item twice.

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