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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To keep these clothes that weren't charged for?

465 replies

MinecraftWonder · 29/09/2015 20:03

Yesterday I went shopping and picked up a new coat each for the dc (at Matalan if it's relevant)- total cost was £45.

I got to the till, went in my bag and didn't have my purse Angry Blush
So I apologised, said i'd nip home and the man on the till put them behind the counter for me.

Returned a couple of hours later and picked up some packs of pants by the till when I was queuing, which were a fiver. Handed them over and asked for the coats behind the till that had been put by for me (this was a woman). She put everything in a bag for me, I paid with my card and out I went.

Anyway, it's only tonight I've pulled them out of the bag along with the receipt - and I have a receipt for £5.05 (the pants and a 5p bag charge). The coats weren't charged for. I didn't even check the amount at the checkout, just stuck my card in and paid.

WWYD? I feel really guilty even though it wasn't my fault. I don't know if the second person who served me just made a mistake or thought maybe they were already paid for (but why would they be?!). They've not got security tags on so one of them must have taken them off.

So keep and look at it as good luck or be honest and go back and pay for them? Opinion is currently divided in my house!

OP posts:
SometimesItRains · 29/09/2015 20:38

Actually, I don't think it is theft, although first year law was a long time ago. There was no intention as OP thought she was paying for the goods and only realised after that she hadn't.

My usual approach is individual shop own up, big chain don't. But this is quite a big freebie and so I think I would probably go back and offer to pay. You never know, they may let you off - last time we pointed out in a restaurant that they hadn't added something to the bill, they said that as we'd told them they were happy to stick with the original bill; we left a decent tip instead.

catfordbetty · 29/09/2015 20:39

Give £25 to you favourite charity. Everyone wins. Except Matalan who won't notice.

ilovesooty · 29/09/2015 20:39

The manager presumably has loss of stock as part of his/her performance appraisal.

Don't bother going back if that doesn't concern you and you're fine keeping stuff you know you didn't pay for.

BathshebaDarkstone · 29/09/2015 20:39

I'd go back but I'm hyper honest, to my own detriment.

ShowOfHands · 29/09/2015 20:39

"Hey Barbara, did that woman come in and pay for those coats?"
"Pay? I thought she'd already paid. Shit."

It doesn't really matter if it's victimless, though it's not really victimless at all.

Either you want to commit theft or you don't. If you want to, just have the balls to say "I don't give a shit about doing the morally right thing". Don't justify it.

kungfupannda · 29/09/2015 20:41

Go back!

Staff putting things behind the tills and then handing them over to people they know as part of a cheaper transaction is a fairly well-known fraud technique. I'm a criminal lawyer and have represented several people who've been caught doing this. Some big stores have CCTV behind the till to catch out staff members who are involved in this sort of thing. Selfridges had a real spate of it at one point.

There's less chance of a staff member getting into trouble in this situation, as there were two different people involved, but they could finish up being investigated if the CCTV shows something that looks like a fraud. And if they do investigate on that basis, you could it's not inconceivable that you could have the police knocking on your door - if they have the CCTV and your card details (and stores/police are entirely capable of marrying up the two) and it looks like one of those staff member/customer frauds. I did once deal with fraud where they caught the staff member first and then tracked down the customer.

I'm not trying to scaremonger - chances are nothing will come of it, but it is by no means guaranteed - particularly if that store has had problems in the past - and it's not worth the risk. You don't want to finish up having to defend what started off as a genuine error.

ShowOfHands · 29/09/2015 20:42

It is theft. Theft is the dishonest appropriation of goods (she didn't pay for them) with the intention to permanently deprive (not intending to return them).

It is theft at the point you realise you didn't pay and don't take reasonable steps to rectify the situation.

pinkje · 29/09/2015 20:43

Surely you are supposed to check the amount before putting your PIN in so you are a bit complicit in this.

I would do as a PP said; call the store and explain. They may tell you to forget about it.

You sound like you have a conscience and that you'll feel guilty any time the coats are worn.

MrsTedCrilly · 29/09/2015 20:43

Definitely keep it, it will barely make a dent to them but will probably come in very handy for you..

Bearbehind · 29/09/2015 20:43

If you go back it's very likely you will end up paying for them- don't think they'll just waive the charge.

It's very different with food as it's not booked in and out as such.

If they 'give' you the goods they'll have to write them off and many store managers just don't have that kind of authority.

AwakeCantSleep · 29/09/2015 20:44

About a year ago, John Lewis refunded me twice for a returned item (pair of shoes), once in store and then again via their online business. The shoes cost £120, they refunded me £240 in total. I actually had a lot of bother to get a refund in the first place (quality issues with the shoes). I still rang them, and asked them to charge the £120 back to my card. Keeping the money would have been like theft, and I don't steal.

The person at JL I spoke to about this said they would have never found out about the missing £120, due to the store and the online business being separate entities. That doesn't make it right to keep the money though IMO.

MoonSandwich · 29/09/2015 20:46

I would phone and offer to pay. It would be wrong to keep them. I wouldn't have to think about it. Confused

OP, I wonder why you are posting? Are you hoping someone will give you a good reason or excuse to keep them. I suspect that you want to keep them but are know that you shouldn't and are looking for a way to justify it.

The size of the company is irrelevant. It's either morally ok or it's not.

I'd phone and see if you can pay without going back to the store.

AnchorDownDeepBreath · 29/09/2015 20:48

ShowofHands is right, it is theft. They'd have six years to pursue you for payment, as they would in most of the cases here. Whether they find out or not is irrelevant, really. If they do, they can pursue you, and it's not victimless. Even if the victim is a corporation, there is one.

Casmama · 29/09/2015 20:49

I would phone and offer to pay- I would feel bad that my kids were in stolen coats even if the theft was unintentional and I didn't realise until afterwards.

WeAreEternal · 29/09/2015 20:49

I couldn't live with myself if there was even a small chance that someone could get into trouble over the mistake, their job could be on the line, or even worse someone who relies on that minimum wage income to feed their family could have to pay back the £45 that they mistakenly didn't charge me.

It's also possible that when they realise the mistake they will try to track you down to get the money you failed to pay, which I can't imagine being too difficult when you paid with a card.

SalemSaberhagen · 29/09/2015 20:49

You seem like you have decided already and just want us to make you feel better.

IMO, you should go back. I wouldn't be able to handle the guilt. Then again, I did also give a bank teller the extra £100 back she had mistakenly given me, and queued up for 20 minutes in Superdrug to pay for the £3 eyeshadow they had put in the bag without scanning (I noticed once outside).

Goingtobeawesome · 29/09/2015 20:50

The self service till Gave me 20p too much change yesterday. I handed it in. Staff member was very appreciative.

Just remembered I only paid for one bottle of 50 p water months ago. She zapped both but only one went through. I will have to pay next time I go, which is about three times a year.

99percentchocolate · 29/09/2015 20:51

The items probably won't be missed until stock take by anyone bar the employee who held them and the person who later served you, but £45 is a lot to under charge someone and will certainly lead to disciplinary procedures if a manager overhears what has happened or if the first employee is spiteful and decides to report the second.
I don't really know why you are asking for opinions though when you've obviously already made up your mind.

ShelaghTurner · 29/09/2015 20:53

I would go back. Otherwise whatever the technicalities, I'd be looking at them all winter and calling them the stolen coats in my head.

Go and put your coat on, dd.
Which one Mummy?
The stolen one.

It would just pop out!

Moln · 29/09/2015 20:53

Can you be sure the woman on the till won't get into trouble for this?

I know in some places the staff considered to be responsible for a loss sale/non payment has their wages docked.

wanderingwondering · 29/09/2015 20:53

I'd phone as well.
Years ago I bought a sunglasses case. Just before the shop assistant scanned it I happened to glance inside and saw a pair of (expensive) sunglasses inside.
He scanned the case and I paid the £10 for it and walked out. Lasted all of 10 minutes before my guilty conscience got the better of me and I went back and told them that the sunglasses had been inside.
The guy hardly even said thank you. Grrr.
I still wish I hadn't looked inside the case first!

celtictoast · 29/09/2015 20:54

Go back. It can make someone's day when they meet someone who has chosen to be honest. It restores a little faith in humankind.

99percentchocolate · 29/09/2015 20:56

And yy to the pp who mentioned CCTV - I've never worked in a store (regardless of size) that didn't have it pointing at the tills.

Senpai · 29/09/2015 20:58

You would be surprised at the level of security and technology loss prevention has in big chains like that. I wouldn't assume it's a victimless crime. If the employee is caught handing you the bag with the coats in it at best she'll get grilled on paying better attention and then written up, at worst she'll get let go.

Cameras might catch her, they might never even get checked or noticed. We had a barista over here fired because she gave her friend a free drink. Stores do monitor their inventory closer than you might think.

Either way you're taking a gamble with her livelihood.

Bearbehind · 29/09/2015 20:59

CCTV in big retail stores actually shows what is being scanned through the tills as it records the images in order to prevent employees deliberately doing what has happened here.

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