‘Hoe is that possible?’: Home Depot employee leaves clueless customer stunned with a little-known secret

A simple trip to Home Depot turned into something unexpected for TikToker Noah Osborne when a store employee told him about a return policy he had no idea existed. What started as a quick errand became a viral moment that got people talking about how the store handles plant returns.

Osborne, known as @notnoahosbrne on TikTok, went to the store just to return some light bulbs. After he finished his return, a Home Depot employee told him to hang onto his receipt in case he wanted to bring back anything else he bought. That’s when Osborne mentioned he had also picked up a plant during his shopping trip.

The employee then shared something that caught him completely off guard. She told him he could bring back plants within a full year if he had his receipt. Even better, she said he could return plants without a receipt for up to three months and get store credit. “How is that possible?” His shocked reaction showed just how surprised he was to hear this news. 

Most shoppers have no clue about this return option

It turns out the employee was telling the truth. Home Depot’s official policy says they guarantee perennials, trees, and shrubs for one year after purchase. This includes tropical plants, cacti, and succulents too. The best part is that the policy works even if your plant dies, as long as you kept your receipt and bring it back within the time limit.

Regular houseplants, flowers, and succulents can be returned within 90 days of when you bought them. But if you bought perennials, trees, or shrubs, you get a whole year to decide if you want to return them. All you need is your receipt. You don’t have to worry about keeping the original tags or even the pot it came in. Unlike some retail workers who get called out for suspicious behavior at the register, Home Depot staff seem happy to tell customers about this policy.

There are a few things to keep in mind about how returns work. You can only get your money back if you return the plant within 90 days. After that window closes, you can swap your dead plant for a new one or get store credit instead. One thing the policy doesn’t cover is cut flowers and flower arrangements, so don’t try to return those.

If you order plants online and they show up dead or damaged, Home Depot will send you a replacement for free. You just need to call their customer service within three days of getting your delivery. This works for houseplants, perennials, trees, holiday trees, wreaths, and garlands.

People flooded the comments on Osborne’s video, which got more than 269,000 views, to share their own stories about this policy. Someone who used to work at the customer service desk said people would bring in just roots and some dirt in a plastic bag and still get their money back. Another person said the garden worker at their local store tells every single customer to save their receipt and return plants within a year. While some people at other jobs might need help dealing with tough workplace problems, Home Depot workers seem to make a point of letting shoppers know about this helpful option.