to wonder where the boundary lies...

[PeapodBurgundy]

between bargain hunting and theft?

Inspired by a post on a bargain hunting page on FB. In a nushell there was a glitch on a website, somebody posted it on this page, cue a flood of people ordering this product without actually paying for it. Somebody else flagged it up to the company and for some unknown reason posted to the same page that she'd done this, and has been flamed by the masses for (according to some) pretty much taking the toy from their children's Christmas stocking.

It's set the coggs turning, where is the tipping point between getting a fluke good deal, and just plain stealing? I've benefitted from a glitch before (a multi buy offer where a £1 per item discount still worked), at the time I took the view that they were a huge company, and should have been more thorough when checking their promotions. This particular glitch has made me wonder differently though, perhaps because the company has received literally not a penny for the items, and some have actually been shipped (they've realised and cancelled all remaining orders following either this lady's email or an influx of orders or both )

Where do others draw the line?

[HashtagTired]

I’ve heard about these glitches before at places like Tesco and they haven’t honoured the deal stating that it’s a glitch. These bigger companies will have online T&Cs that will allow them to withdraw from the sale and I’m not sure if the smaller ones will. I’m clearly no expert in this and only read about it on similar Facebook pages where people have said that the deal hasn’t been honoured.

I wonder if the small company in your case can do the same.

I’ve never been fortunate enough to be presented with the option of a glitch. I think it would depend on the company though, as to whether or not I would expect it. And if I did get it, and they withdrew, I certainly wouldn’t be angry or miffed that I didn’t get it.

[EssentialHummus]

If it was Tesco etc I’d go for it without hesitation. If it’s a small business that could go under from someone’s silly error, I don’t think I’d take advantage. I think it would be legal to do so afaik, but it’d feel morally wrong.

[shouldaknownbetter]

I got a money off code with a magazine.. it was quite substantial, 20 pounds no min spend. I used it and tried the code again it still worked. so I used it again several times. Their error, didn't feel guilty. (It was a big national chain)

[Nanny0gg]

I shall be accused of being prissy and pious here, but shoplifters use the excuse that it doesn't matter if it's a big company, as 'they can afford it'.

Just sayin'...

[confusedlittleone]

I'm also going to point out that it's not the CEO that suffers from continual thefts in large companies it's the people at the bottom of the food chain that do.

[DeadMorose]

You’re talking about rainbow triceratops from Build-a-Bear, aren’t you? You’re a bit mistaken about the size of the company, I think. They’re not a tiny company and won’t go bankrupt because of one toy being sold for free.
I think YABU.

[SilverySurfer]

Well it's theft isn't it, no matter how you look at it.

DeadMorose are we to assume you have done similar? You don't need to be religious to acknowledge 'do not steal' as a basic moral principle. Shoplifters and the like are responsible for a percentage of the hike in prices so if someone has no morals, everyone pays.

[GeillisTheWitch]

If it was Tesco etc I’d go for it without hesitation. If it’s a small business that could go under from someone’s silly error, I don’t think I’d take advantage

Tesco have had their share of financial troubles in the not so distant past www.theguardian.com/business/live/2015/apr/22/tesco-loss-dave-lewis-greece-bailout-eurozone-live and if a company like Tesco is forced to close stores through financial losses that's a whole lot more people losing their jobs than with your small local business.

[PeapodBurgundy]

I am DeadMorose but I didn't say anything about the size of the company, I know they're not a small business. I'd also like to add that I didn't order one. I was just wondering what other people thought about glitches and the like, this one has made me feel a little uncomfortable is all.

The deal has been honoured for some but not others, which is why I think a lot of people are annoyed about it.

The glitch I benefitted from was from Boots, so again it was a huge company, but I'm feeling a little guilty over it now

[ThePants999]

People think of big companies like they exist in a vacuum, and hurting them is hurting nobody. Or that it's just some fat cats who suffer. But a significant proportion of the shares of these big companies is held by

• pension funds, i.e. our own pensions are dependent on company profits
  
• unit trusts, i.e. our own savings are dependent on company profits
  
• insurance companies, i.e. the premiums we pay are partially dependent on other companies' profits.
  
  Never mind the employees whose entire livelihood depends on their employer remaining profitable!

[EssentialHummus]

I don’t regret my Tesco comment. Simply, I don’t see that even a £1mil loss caused in this way would really affect them. If it’s in the context of broader financial mismanagement, which does affect them, that is not my doing. That large a business = capacity to spot and avoid this kind of thing in the first place, imo.

[PeapodBurgundy]

That was the way I felt with the coupon glitch EssentilaHummus a company that large you would have thought that they'd have the foresight to not run both promotions side by side by side (the multi-buy was a Boots offer, the coupon code was from Cow & Gate, but the code was exclusive for Boots, so they must have known the offer was running)

It's not sitting so comfortably now that I'm thinking further into it (not having a dig at you, just me opinion )

[DeadMorose]

No, I didn’t benefit from this particular glitch. However, I did get towels from Studio, when there was a glitch, so two huge towels were £0,49. I got 6 sets, so 12 towels for less than 3 quid.
I don’t think it was theft and at the time when everything is so expensive, it is a huge help.
I don’t agree with buying something just because it’s bargain though. If you didn’t need it before seeing the price, you won’t need it after realising it’s a bargain.

[PeapodBurgundy]

That's very true! I did need the porridge (he's still eating his way through it now, I make oaty bars with it for snacks, it's come in well and it saved me a fortune when n maternity leave when funds were tight).
That FB page makes me uncomfortable quite often actually. I'm all for a bargain, and I won't pay more than I have to for anything, because it means I can afford to stay home for longer with DS, so it's been a real help at times. There seems to be a lot of people who will clear the shelf of anything cheap, just because it's cheap, not because they actually need it. They're as entitled as anyone to buy whatever they want, but i can sometimes seem a little greedy if people who DO need whatever it is are losing out on a bargain. That being said, I have a freezer full of yellow sticker bread so I suppose in a way I'm guilty of that too.

[LinoleumBlownapart]

It's not theft if you accidentally got something you intended to pay for. If you don't speak up or rectify it, it is not theft but it is dishonest. If you order something that you never intended to pay for because you are aware of the glitch then that's not really theft either but it is certainly fraud.

[washingmachinefastwash]

Is this the bargains and coupon page?

[PeapodBurgundy]

Is it Washing