I'm pretty sure most of this is misinformation. Having worked in retail before, there are defined and accepted processes about how returns are handled. For my employer (who was MUCH smaller than NewEgg), we had what was called a "Return To Vendor"(RTV) process (actually, there is an entire industry around this).
We/someone would simply fill out some paperwork describing the problem(s) and the vendor/manufacturer would credit either fully, or some percentage, of the cost - including little plastic items, machined items, chemicals, etc. (there are exceptions, not literally _everything_). The cost to my employer was administrative overhead. There is no reason NewEgg should have to hire people to test all returned equipment (that should be outsourced to refurbishment/remanufacturing firms).
So, NewEgg is not stuck here with no options, and a little good will can go a long way.
We/someone would simply fill out some paperwork describing the problem(s) and the vendor/manufacturer would credit either fully, or some percentage, of the cost - including little plastic items, machined items, chemicals, etc. (there are exceptions, not literally _everything_). The cost to my employer was administrative overhead. There is no reason NewEgg should have to hire people to test all returned equipment (that should be outsourced to refurbishment/remanufacturing firms).
So, NewEgg is not stuck here with no options, and a little good will can go a long way.