Why Coverless Books are Stolen

If you've ever been puzzled by the page in most books that says, "If you bought this book without its cover, it has been stolen," here is the reasoning:

When books do not sell in a store, they are returned to the publisher for store credit. However, rather than waste space and money on mailing unwanted books, the store will only return the book's cover and recycle the rest of the pages. If these coverless books are sold, the publisher is out some money, since they have already given the store credit for the book.