[mothered]

How does amazon keep track of returned items?

In a nutshell, yes.

They keep record of every return, transaction, conversation, email transmitted and so forth.

I can imagine that. But I mean, they scan the ASIN of the item, which is the same for the hole batch  of same items, you can see the ASIN of the item if you open your  Invoice for the order. But do they actually keep track of the serial numbers? For some items probably they do, but I think you should see it in your order summery, as when you order a phone you see the IMEI listed in the order.

Internally, they do keep record of every dispatched Item and everything associated with It.

Whether they utilize the Information accordingly, Is a different story. At times they're Inundated with claims, and simply do not have the manpower to handle the Influx of requests.