Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Store refunded me then sent the goods ....

259 replies

veredd · 21/11/2021 15:49

I ordered some Christmas presents from a well known online retailer.
It cost £150
The parcel was meant to be here last Monday and it didn't arrive.
They said it was lost and refunded me £150 (it's back in my bank ) so I re ordered the items.
Now the first parcel has turned up that I've been refunded for.
What would you do?
Do I tell them?
Or do I return the second order and get a refund and keep this order that's already been refunded
Or is that awful ?

OP posts:
tallduckandhandsome · 22/11/2021 09:48

@veredd ah OP, you missed out on the John Lewis glitch thread.

You could have made thousands.

Nanny0gg · 22/11/2021 09:51

@veredd

Do you really think the company is going to miss £150 after they wrote it off so quick Imagine how many missing parcels they deal with per week.
But you do know the company won't pay?

They just put their prices up to cover losses.

girlmom21 · 22/11/2021 09:52

@veredd

Do you really think the company is going to miss £150 after they wrote it off so quick Imagine how many missing parcels they deal with per week.
They did it so you didn't give them a negative review. What happens if 1000 people do the same as you in the run up to Christmas?

It's not their fault if the courier loses the parcel, but it's suddenly not £150, it quickly builds up to £150,000.

JurgensCakeBaby · 22/11/2021 09:55

This just happened to me with a toaster and kettle, courier said they had delivered to wrong address and have tried but couldn't retrieve, company claimed from courier and re-sent the items, both lots then arrived. Contacted store they said the claim has been processed keep both lots. I don't need two kettles and two toasters! I've given one set to our elderly neighbour who is on a tight pension, she has a kettle and toaster but both are very old and the kettle had wires a bit exposed near the plug. She was delighted. Contact them they might let you keep them anyway.

HoseMeDownWithHolyWater · 22/11/2021 09:59

Did you post because you wanted everyone to tell you to keep it?

Youknownothingsnow · 22/11/2021 10:01

Similar thing happened to me with folio society. I ordered a £75 book as a Christmas present to oh. It didn’t arrive, so I contacted them to say as such.
I had also paid express delivery. They sent it out again next day delivery and refunded my delivery charge. The parcel arrived the next day. Then about two weeks later the original arrived and I contacted them, they said to keep it!

Polmuggle · 22/11/2021 10:06

But OP, would you use that argument to justify taking from the shop?

Sticking something under your humper/the pram and saying "they won't miss it, I need it more"?

JingsMahBucket · 22/11/2021 10:07

@girlmom21 £150,000 is literally a drop in the bucket for a massive retailer — at least for this financial line item in their budget. Depending on who it is, the company makes that amount in purchases every 5 seconds.

@veredd I hear you about being broke. Keep going and ignore the people calling you terrible names. They’re just angry and want to lash out at someone.

girlmom21 · 22/11/2021 10:09

@JingsMahBucket oh so it makes it ok then?
Theft isn't ok because a company is doing ok.
Theft isn't ok because you're a bit skint.

SexyNeckbeard · 22/11/2021 10:17

Scummy thieving behaviour. Guess you posted because you wanted people to agree that you were in the right - hasn't gone your way has it?

SusieBob · 22/11/2021 10:20

[quote JingsMahBucket]@girlmom21 £150,000 is literally a drop in the bucket for a massive retailer — at least for this financial line item in their budget. Depending on who it is, the company makes that amount in purchases every 5 seconds.

@veredd I hear you about being broke. Keep going and ignore the people calling you terrible names. They’re just angry and want to lash out at someone.[/quote]
Literally a drop in the ocean until a shop can't afford to pay it's wage bill eh? Then who suffers?

Still no actual justification for keeping something without paying for it.

ShowOfHands · 22/11/2021 10:22

It doesn't matter if you are dealing with a huge company or a tiny independent seller. Likewise, doesn't matter how little money you have in your bank account. Either you're willing to commit theft or you aren't. It's morally no different to any other theft.

I am skint. Completely broke this month in fact. I've managed not to steal from anybody.

SummerOfComedy · 22/11/2021 10:25

Not quite the same experience, but I had a leaflet come through the door which was part of a catalog that I had at the time.
They were offering a rug for £25. I had wanted this particular rug for a while and I knew that the price should of been £250.
I ordered it anyway (expecting to see the 'real' price on the receipt) but they billed me for £25. The rug was beautiful.
My conscience was bothered, so I rang them and told them what had happened.
The lady on the phone saw the leaflet and admitted they had made a mistake, but she said to keep the rug anyway!
☺️

Fidgetty · 22/11/2021 11:28

Do you just help yourself in shops?What's the difference?

No because that would be clearly illegal and I wouldn't risk a criminal record. This was an administrative error that isn't the OPs fault and so if it was me I wouldn't be bothered taking time out of my day to fix it for them.

Honestly the moralising hysteria over something so insignificant is ridiculous.

AntiCornLawLeague · 22/11/2021 11:32

@Fidgetty

Do you just help yourself in shops?What's the difference?

No because that would be clearly illegal and I wouldn't risk a criminal record. This was an administrative error that isn't the OPs fault and so if it was me I wouldn't be bothered taking time out of my day to fix it for them.

Honestly the moralising hysteria over something so insignificant is ridiculous.

I think the administrative error argument doesn't work in this case, as op is planning to return the goods for money. Think that does veer in to theft / fraud tbh.
lnsufficientFuns · 22/11/2021 11:34

Some of you are total skanks

Pinksoda15 · 22/11/2021 11:37

This happened to me. Small business. I offered to send one order back, they told me to keep both. I left them a glowing review on Google.

pigsDOfly · 22/11/2021 11:45

Yes, it's an error, yes they might tell you to keep it, but that's there decision to make.

Amazing how much casual thieving seems to be justifiable in some people's minds.

DrSbaitso · 22/11/2021 11:46

@SummerOfComedy

Not quite the same experience, but I had a leaflet come through the door which was part of a catalog that I had at the time. They were offering a rug for £25. I had wanted this particular rug for a while and I knew that the price should of been £250. I ordered it anyway (expecting to see the 'real' price on the receipt) but they billed me for £25. The rug was beautiful. My conscience was bothered, so I rang them and told them what had happened. The lady on the phone saw the leaflet and admitted they had made a mistake, but she said to keep the rug anyway! ☺️
I may be wrong, but I think that legally they couldn't do anything once the sale was made. They could have changed the advertised price when you went to pay, but not after you had.

It's about when contracts become binding. An advertised price is an invitation to buy, but a contract hasn't been agreed at that point. It would of course look terrible for the business if they didn't honour it at the till, but legally they don't have to; if you hold them to the advertised price before paying, they could say you're legally obliged to buy anything you pick up in the shop, if the sale contract is binding at that point.

Since they actually billed you £25 at the point of sale, I don't think they could do anything after that.

Original poster
veredd · 22/11/2021 11:52

I actually don't feel guilty now at all.
Everyone's different
That company have messed me around no end,spending that long on "chat" to go around in circles.
Ive posted them back for a refund using my other order number
Let's see what happens
If they refund great
If they don't nothing lost

OP posts:
SusieBob · 22/11/2021 11:57

Ah, so one of those "help me justify my shitty behaviour" threads then.

DrSbaitso · 22/11/2021 11:57

If I got held in an interminable queue I'd email them. Hardly an arduous task.

I think if you got refunded for a lost order and then returned the second one for a second refund, it'll be pretty obvious what you're doing and they might not even believe that the first order was ever genuinely lost. I don't know what, if anything, they could do about that, but I don't think you'll be fooling them.

iloveruby · 22/11/2021 11:58

I'm with you OP.

I had a parcel which I had paid to be delivered on a certain day, it wasn't. Spoke to company who promised it would be there next morning, again it wasn't.

I rang up and asked for a refund and to cancel the order which they did and then the parcel arrived which I kept.

I haven't had any problems sleeping so far...Wink

SusieBob · 22/11/2021 11:59

@pigsDOfly

Yes, it's an error, yes they might tell you to keep it, but that's there decision to make.

Amazing how much casual thieving seems to be justifiable in some people's minds.

It's because it's easy. These people wouldn't have the guts to walk into a shop and take something without paying for it, but because they can do it from the comfort of their own homes without risking much they think it's fine.

Obviously it's exactly the same thing morally.

pigsDOfly · 22/11/2021 12:03

SusieBob Yes, exactly the same.

And I've just noticed I wrote 'there decision' when it should have been 'their decision' oops.