Knowingly stealing - food shop delivery

[Ponter]

We order from one of the main supermarkets. On the day of the delivery (last week), I decided to cancel the shop as many of my plans had changed so i didn’t need some of the stuff that had been ordered.

Anyway, the food van turned up and I had a hunch that if I accepted the order I could get the groceries and still get the refund. Which is exactly what happened. It was a risk but I still needed majority of the groceries ordered so thought I’d chance it. We had similar happen once before but we were honest in that scenario.

Even if the supermarket comes back and want me to rectify the error/pay up I can do so - that’s no problem.

I know it’s wrong but I believe the majority would do the same.

Be honest would you?

This literally happened to a colleague and the shop prosecuted her. Unfortunately my line of work you can't have any conviction and she was gently told to resign.

No you didn’t “chance it”
You knowingly stole!! And now you’re trying to justify it even though you have been told how bang out of order you are

Bit of an awks one no you shouldn't have done it.

Are you struggling for money and felt like it was the only way to feed yourself and family?

If so can kind of see why you would.

But if you can afford the gear you've nicked and just did it for the fun of it then not really an excuse. You should have refused the delivery and explained.

Surely this is a joke post?

If the van turned up then the obvious thing to do would be to reject the delivery and tell the driver the order had been cancelled.

Vile.

You knew this was a possibility/probability when you cancelled the order, hoped it would happen and then took advantage. I’d understand if you hadn’t expected it, and just didn’t think when it arrived but this was different. You’re out of order. You were hoping to be able to defraud and did.

You cancelled at very short notice in hope it would still turn up and now you are delighted to get it for 'free'

Im sure if you really cancelled, the shop didn't turn up AND you didn't get a refund, you'd be the first on the phone complaining!

I’d do it for a small number of items but not for a massive shop. I’d feel too guilty! But I don’t think you’re a terrible person OP.

One time after we’d unpacked our delivery we realised one of the baskets was somebody else’s shopping. We didn’t contact the supermarket about the mistake, we just kept the shopping. I trust that the people whose shopping it was got a refund! I don’t feel great about it… but I don’t feel terrible about it, either.

I've had that happen a couple of times, @TheBerry, and each time I've rung the supermarket to let them know. In my experience, if there's perishable food in the bag, they always tell you to keep it - they can't pick it up again, and deliver it to the person who ordered it, because they can no longer guarantee it's been stored at the right temperature.

The only time they sent the driver back was when he'd wrongly left us two bottles of very nice wine. 😪

If you had cancelled and the van turned up with the shopping and you had paid for it that would have been fine IMO. Taking it for free is not ok. Could you ring them back and explain you changed your mind and wanted the order and paid with your card?

But the trouble is that stealing from big supermarkets means that the costs are driven up and this means that those of us who are disabled/elderly/struggling do end up paying more. Not all of us are eligible for food banks and some of us are still struggling. We are the invisible poor and we aren't seen because it seems that we are just about managing.

How could they convict her without proof? She accepted a delivery that she had paid for, and could surely say she thought that the arrival of the delivery meant that her attempted cancellation had just failed. If it was me I probably would not have noticed the refund until I got my credit card bill.

And surely the store asked her for payment before contacting the police. Did she refuse?

Really? Not sure what crime has technically been committed but if the shop still insisted on delivering the goods knowing that the customer has cancelled then it's up to the store to contact the customer direct and arrange collection at a time that is convenient to her. It was their mistake to still deliver the goods and I suspect legally it's their responsibility to organise the return? Regardless of the above surely the shop has her payment details and could have charged her card anyway....

I would absolutely do the same as you don’t care if everyone asks where my morals are 🤣 big chain supermarkets prices are extortionate and every little helps and all that

I wouldn't go that far. Accepting a delivery is a positive act. But I would have done it, because I'd assume that if I sent it back I would have to pay for the perishables anyway.

a bit harsh one might say! It's hardly infanticide!!

You might try not scanning a few items next time you do a self checkout shop then or perhaps you do that already?

Every little helps…

A part of those extortionate prices that we all pay is to cover the cost of theft/shoplifting, @Mamabear487. It doesn’t come out of their profits, it comes out of our pockets.

Good points, well made. I am.sincerely hoping this post is a wind up.

But if prices go up due to what is technically theft it's us who will feel the pinch. Us, who are are struggling with cost of living.

I really dont believe the supermarket doesnt marry up delivery or picking notes with orders and payments. If they didnt the staff would be nicking stuff to sell on faster than you could say knife.
You hear about scam artists trying a small scam like this, and repeating it on many individual companies, getting caught, so i believe some information sjharing about thieves must go on.

Oh well, that's all right then.

So now you're a twat that won't get your comeuppance?

You do know how supermarkets generate their profits, yes?

Seriously, how stupid are some people...

The test of a person is how they behave when no-one can see them, when they won't be found out.

OP, you know something about yourself now.

You are decent human being.