Cash on Delivery is the dominant payment method across South Asia, the Middle East and much of Africa — but it comes with a serious problem. Return-to-origin rates as high as 30–40% are common, driven by fake orders, buyer’s remorse, and outright fraud. Every RTO shipment costs you the label, the packaging and the carrier fee.
Smart Rules for COD Eligibility
The TheForge Smart COD Control plugin lets you define exactly when COD is available. Block it for new customers, high-value orders, specific postcodes, or product categories. Only offer it to customers with a solid order history.
OTP Verification
Before a COD order goes through, the customer enters a one-time PIN sent to their phone. Fake phone numbers fail immediately. Customers who aren’t genuinely expecting the delivery don’t complete the verification. RTO rates drop dramatically.
Order Value Limits
Set a minimum and maximum order value for COD. High-value orders carry more risk — nudge those customers toward prepaid methods instead.
Pincode / Postcode Blocking
If certain areas consistently generate high RTOs, block COD for those pincodes entirely. Paste in a list and the plugin handles the rest.
Fee for COD
Add a small handling fee to COD orders to cover the risk and nudge customers toward prepaid payment methods.