to think I shouldn't have to pay to return someone ELSE'S Amazon order?

[FenLondon]

Two packages turned up addressed to me - one for me, one for some poor chap in Iceland. Doing the decent thing I let Amazon know, and they've asked I return them. For my time and trouble I'll get a £5 evoucher. To be honest, I don't care about the postage, it'll be a couple of quid, but why should I go and queue to send the flipping things back when it's their mistake?

Erm don't you get a label and they come and get it or you drop it in a post box??

Can't decide if YABU.

Tell them no. They'll be forced to send the Irish chap a new item.

They cocked up, they should correct the problem.

I did ring them to ask for a lable (as I thought generally the way they worked was to let you print a freepost label and they deduct the postage off your refund), so they've sent that through but it's still postage to be paid. (else yes, if they sent me a freepost I would be being unreasonble!)

I'd tell them they can send a courier to collect it from x address between x hours, alternatively, they can send you a freepost/pre-paid label. If it's going back to Iceland, it may well cost more than £5. They should certainly pay the postage costs.

Definitely tell them you're not paying for postage - and an evoucher won't cut it (unless the Post Office takes them!). I think you can weigh the parcel on your kitchen scales and look up the postage cost online.

I had this with Amazon and received someone else's order at the same time as mine. They thanked me for my honesty and I downloaded one of their prepaid postage labels that they sent me. No cost to me at all.

Indeed - it'll go back to a UK address but given it's a couple of nice heavy programming books, it's not going to be an insignificant proportion of the £5!

Righteous indignation dispelled - thank you.

As a fellow Londoner who often has to queue for 20 minutes at the post office I definitely think you are definitely not being unreasonable. A trip to the post office and back with a long queue could easily add up to 45 mins, which considering it's not even anything to do with you is a massive pain in the backside regardless of postage costs.

agree, you don't have to do this anyway

it's unsolicited, so they need to sort it out or you get to keep it

so tell them to either send a courier for it, send a postage paid label so all you have to do is chuck it in the postbox or let you keep it!

interestingly this happened to my brother a couple of years back, but that time amazon did bugger all..... so he got a free mobile phone!

I received a package that I hadn't ordered. As there was no order number they gave me the address to send it to and refunded me the cost of postage the same day I emailed them the price. It was all done very efficiently and politely and I was very impressed with their customer service.

so I think my course of action will be to wrap everything up, put their label on and just shove in a pillar box with no postage. If they get it they can pay, if they don't, the guy in Iceland's going to get his stuff anyway as one of the items is non-returnable, and I'll have my small piece of sticking it to The Man.
HavingKittens - that's exactly it. I don't begrudge the postage, but the lengths I'll go to to avoid the post office even when it's my stuff...

Was it pushed through your letterbox or did you accept it personally from the postman?

The package was actually addressed to me so I wouldn't have refused it even if I had seen the postman - it was when I opened it (thought my order might have been split into two parcels) and found books I had no idea about, then the invoice for a totally different person.

Do you even have to put postage on it? Since it was sent to the wrong address, couldn't you just write "Not at this address, return to Sender" on the parcel and the Royal Mail will send it back to Amazon's dispatch address shown on the parcel? Then it will be up to Amazon to sort out any monies owing to the postman.

Just write Return to sender and post. That's what I do as sometimes I have ordered stuff and changed my mind. Royal Mail said if it is unopened it is fine.

simply RETURN TO SENDER - surely you haven't opened someone elses mail, so just writer RTS on the outside and drop off at PO or box.

oh sorry - I see it was addressed to you. No I wouldn't pay any postage - if they want it they can come and get it. I'm quite surprised Amazon are being like this actually. I've always has excellent customer support from them.

Their mistake - if they want the books back they need to provide you with a method of doing so whereby you aren't out of pocket.

Justcarrots - Im sure thats not quite right. If you order something and it is delivered to you and you accept it from the postman then if there is a charge to post it back then you should pay. Its irrelevant if youve opened it or not.

I had to return somthing to Amazon recently basically something I ordered got lost very held up in the big Christmas backlog. Eventually I sent an enquiry about it and they agreed that it appeared to have gone astray and sent me a replacement. The day after the replacement arived the original also turned up.

I was able to print off a pre-paid and addressed label from my orders page and return it for free.

Surprised you had to pay to return either of them.