Enabling Package Protection with Onward

This guide outlines the Checkout+ package protection program, including merchant benefits, customer coverage, and onboarding steps.

Date: June 16, 2026

Table of contents

• Things to keep in mind
• Why choose Onward
• The revenue opportunity
• Use cases and operational benefits
• Access the Checkout+ program
• How it works

Portless partners with Onward to provide Checkout+, a package protection program that offers coverage for delays, loss, and damage. This option can be enabled at checkout to provide added assurance for both merchants and customers.

Checkout+ helps you improve customer satisfaction, reduce support tickets, and even earn additional revenue, all with zero cost to you.

Things to keep in mind

• Portless does not handle invoicing or payments. Onward manages these directly.

Why choose Onward

• Zero cost to your team. Customers choose whether to add protection to their order at checkout and pay for the protection themselves. This means you gain the benefits of claims handling and revenue sharing without operational overhead or financial risk.

• Increased average order value. Customers who add protection spend up to 15% more.

• Reduced support tickets. Onward manages lost, stolen, and damaged package claims directly. Customers submit claims through Onward, removing the need for your team to investigate or resolve shipping issues. With a 97% approval rate, most claims are resolved quickly without back-and-forth communication. This frees your support team to focus on higher-value customer interactions.

• Exclusive partnership benefits. Portless merchants receive:

  • 25% revenue share from net premiums collected
  • Priority support from the Onward team
  • Delay protection (customers receive $10 store credit for qualifying delays)
  • White glove onboarding, profit from day one

• Creating a new revenue stream. Every protected order creates a revenue opportunity. Instead of absorbing the cost of lost or damaged shipments, brands can earn revenue from protection purchases. This transforms post-purchase operations from a cost center into a scalable revenue stream.

The revenue opportunity

Brands that enable Onward can turn post-purchase protection into a revenue-generating feature rather than a support cost.

You can estimate the potential impact using the ROI calculator. The calculator estimates how much additional revenue a brand can generate after enabling Onward. The projection is based on two components that together average about 4% of GMV:

• Revenue share from customers who opt into protection at checkout
• Operational savings from reduced support workload and claims handling

This makes order protection both a customer experience improvement and a net-new revenue driver.

Use cases and operational benefits

• Supporting high-value product brands. Brands selling higher-value items such as jewelry, electronics, or premium apparel can reduce checkout hesitation by offering protection. Customers gain confidence knowing their order is covered. In practice, two out of three customers opt in when protection is offered, which can reduce cart abandonment while increasing revenue per order.

• Improving experience for discreet or sensitive purchases. Brands selling intimate wellness, personal care, or discreet health products often face a unique customer experience challenge. Customers who feel uncomfortable contacting support about a missing or damaged item can submit claims privately through Onward. This allows them to resolve issues discreetly while maintaining privacy.

The result is:

• Less friction for sensitive purchases

• Higher conversion rates

• Fewer awkward support interactions for both customers and support teams

• Handling seasonal spikes. Seasonal or holiday merchants often experience sudden increases in order volume, which leads to more delivery-related support tickets. Onward absorbs these claims during peak periods. Claims are typically resolved in under two minutes with a 97% approval rate, helping prevent support team burnout during high-traffic seasons.

• Supporting international growth. Brands expanding into international markets face longer transit times and more shipping uncertainty.

Offering comprehensive package protection on cross-border shipments can:

• Increase customer confidence at checkout
• Reduce friction for international orders
• Increase average order value by up to 15%

Access the Checkout+ program

All active Portless merchants can view the Package Protection section in the Merchant Portal. From there, you can:

1. Review the program overview and benefits.

2. Click Learn More.

3. In the pop-up window, click Let’s Go to view the Package Protection Partnership Agreement.

4. Read, tick the I have read, understand, and agree to this Addendum box, and click the Start signing button to receive an introduction email connecting you, Portless, and Onward to start onboarding.

There are no setup fees, installation costs, or ongoing charges. Onward manages all payments and invoicing directly with you.

How it works

To get started, submit your interest through the Merchant Portal. Onward will contact you to review basic requirements, confirm eligibility, and schedule onboarding. During this process, Onward will complete the service setup; no merchant-side technical implementation is needed.

• Customers can select package protection at checkout
• Coverage activates once the order is shipped
• Claims are submitted and handled directly by Onward
• Merchants receive their portion of the associated premiums