AIBU to “steal” this?

You are absolutely right and if anything does happen, social services would definitely get involved and not be to thrilled that a mother knew someone was a huge risk to her children and yet she encouraged him to visit their home and then engaged in illegal activity with him. She’s a greedy idiot. This is not stealing to feed her family, it’s stealing for luxury goods she and her family could do without. People always make the same excuse, that they would steal anyway! No they wouldn’t if everyone was honest and didn’t buy if off them!

You’re stealing to order.

You think you’re poor and want a handout because you can’t afford fancy washing balls.
You have no idea about true poverty.

You’d probably turn up to a food bank having had your nails done. And not see what’s wrong with it.

For me, It's less about the stealing and more about letting/encouraging a junkie to keep calling to your house when your have DC. That's grim OP!

Yeah you're a scumbag sorry

What if he gets caught and tells police he is stealing to order for you?

I‘ve only heard about them today, so not entirely sure what OP meant - maybe something like this:

https://airpure.com/products/incrediballs-washing-balls-starter-pack

But then, it says it’s detergent, softener and brightener in one, but she seems to have used them in addition to the other stuff?

Sorry @inamarina missed that post. What the Jeff are laundry balls?! And no, basic bog standard powder and FC are all you need.

The baby formula is a red herring here though she can go to the food bank and get other things to be able to put that money toward formula or get food vouchers to buy baby formula. She can stop spending so much money on laundry products no one needs and just buy regular detergent. The argument that you need to steal to feed your hungry baby is not really genuine here. If someone had a hungry child and they stole a loaf of bread, who would have the heart to prosecute them? But the OP is trying to justify being part of an illegal theft ring she is paying him to steal scented laundry balls. She's not a passive party in this scenario. She has a relationship with him. She's involved in the theft.

It is morally reprehensible and people should stop twisting themselves into knots trying to justify it.

No justification for knowingly buying stolen goods.

And I wish the term 'shop-lifting' were never used. It's theft, pure and simple. 'Shop-lifting' makes it sound like a minor misdemeanor. It's a crime. And we honest shoppers pay for the actions of the thieves.

But she doesn’t seem to be „really properly tight for money“, otherwise she wouldn’t be buying overpriced laundry balls! Gosh, why do people keep saying it…

Food banks often don't hand out Formula because it's a high value item.

Well yes, it is morally a bit of a sore spot. However, I know what it is like to be really tight for money, properly tight, and I wouldn't judge you for it.
I would be concerned about him being at your house though.

She's not poor though, is she? She can afford to spend £10 per week on laundry products.

Then go to a food bank before you end up in jail and not seeing your baby at all for being part of an organized theft operation, ffs.

"Can’t afford to even eat"? But have three children and buy fancy, unnecessary laundry aids?

What the thief is doing with the money has nothing to do with it really.

Your post is incredibly depressing. I hope you are never on a jury. Aren't we meant to teach our children that stealing is wrong? Would the OP be OK with one of her children, when a teenager, burgling a large house "because they’re rich and they can afford it"?

Some things are just right or wrong, and this is plain wrong.

Are you actually having a laugh? Your attitude is what causes these social issues.

😂😂😂😂😂

Do you shoplift then? Would you think it ok for your children to just take what they want? Theft is theft, from a shop or anywhere else and it’s WRONG!

Yes actually, it is!

a tenner a week cheap???? on what planet? oops sorry misread your post

I am on cost cutting measures. Bought a big box of washing powder. No softeners or extras. As for stains I soak the stain in a bit of Asda washing up liquid, leave it for 30 minutes and then throw it in the wash as normal. I have been doing this for the last year. To be brutally honest if you're buying pods and softener then that doesn't seem to me to be the signs of someone who is feeling a real pinch.

As for the baby food, there are plenty of examples of products out there that look legit, packaged and stamped, but are far from it eg perfumes and medications, I can't understand why you would even contemplate this.

I used to work in an area that had some rather dodgy types, I inadvertently complained to someone about some youths tormenting me in that area. This man was going to get the local senior hoodlums to put an end to it for me. I politely refused and said it was fine it would pass. If you lie with dogs you will get up with fleas...there is always a quid pro quo.

I wouldn't buy anything you would eat or drink off him, certainly not baby milk. How do you know it's OK and the real thing?

Do you know he's stealing this stuff or do you just assume he's stealing it? I mean he may well be, but how does he steal so much in bulky items? And you 'believe' he's a drug user (not an addict?), so you don't know that for certain either.

Everyone likes a bargain, but you could actually ask him where he gets it all from, he may buy it at a wholesale warehouse (or end of line running out of date stock) to sell on. It doesn't sound very cheap at £10/week for laundry stuff. Probably still illegal, likely not paying tax or VAT, etc.

So if you left your baby’s pram outside for a few minutes, he took it and sold it to someone down the road for far less than it would cost you to get a new one, you’d be ok with that?

That's because the prices rose for the manufacturers so those price increases were passed on to the supermarkets (all of them) and then onto us as consumers. Thefts are not a set amount across the board, ASDA for example may be doing a better job of controlling theft than Tesco, if Tesco increase their prices to try to cover the additional losses from theft they will then lose custom to ASDA.