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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

What would you HONESTLY do in this situation?

559 replies

Friends1996 · 09/04/2025 12:24

Say you ordered a few items from a big online shop (clothing), then successfully cancelled the order, and was refunded.

A few days later, you ordered a single item of clothing from the same place. Today that item was delivered, however they had also sent the items you had cancelled and was refunded for (probably around £120 worth of stuff).

Would you contact them about it or would you keep quiet, see if they emailed you about it and if you didn’t hear anything say 3-4 weeks down the line, just keep the items as normal? This is a place you regularly order from, spending between £300-400 a month.

What would you HONESTLY do?

OP posts:
Supersimkin7 · 09/04/2025 13:18

Contact them. They don’t turn up
to collect imho.

ButterCrackers · 09/04/2025 13:18

Let them know. They might say keep the things because of the cost of sending it all back. You’d then feel ok wearing the items. If you are asked to send them back postage paid by the sender perhaps you’ll get a money off discount for your honesty.

Hoppinggreen · 09/04/2025 13:19

Allaboardtheraveytrain · 09/04/2025 13:14

I suppose you're right. Philip Green definitely wasn't a thief and you'd be definitely wrong for not being honest with him

Show quote history

Did OP order these clothes from Philip Green then?

junecat · 09/04/2025 13:19

Happened to me. I rang and told them and they said to keep it. Mine was a duvet so they may have thought the size / cost to return wasn't worth it 🤷‍♀️

Doitrightnow · 09/04/2025 13:19

I have been in this situation several times and I contacted them.

More than 50% of the timetable they told me to keep it.

Riaanna · 09/04/2025 13:20

Have been in this situation. I told them. They asked me to return. I wasn’t able to so asked them to collect. They didn’t. I chased. They still didn’t. I gave up and kept them. Just left them in original condition for 6 months before I plucked up the courage to actually wear!

ohpoowhatnow · 09/04/2025 13:20

Depends what kind of company it was … small business then return. Large corporation then keep

StrangerThings1 · 09/04/2025 13:20

Friends1996 · 09/04/2025 12:28

Why would you donate to charity when it’s clothing you wanted and they said to keep them? That’s a bit bizarre

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Thought the same 😂
I suspect she wouldn’t actually do that though

Lougle · 09/04/2025 13:21

I ordered an expensive duvet. I got two. I contacted the company and the lady asked if I could take one back to the nearest branch of the company. I said I wasn't prepared to do that, because it wasn't my error, but they were welcome to arrange a courier, or I could keep it. They arranged a courier. All good. Would never have said nothing.

DontCallMeKidDontCallMeBaby · 09/04/2025 13:21

Allaboardtheraveytrain · 09/04/2025 13:14

I suppose you're right. Philip Green definitely wasn't a thief and you'd be definitely wrong for not being honest with him

Show quote history

But Phillip Green didn’t take the hit? I worked as an FVM for Arcadia, and prior to that on the shop floor. Our overtime budget was directly linked to our stock loss. Higher stock loss meant fewer hours for the staff, who were on small contact and relied on extra shifts.

StrangerThings1 · 09/04/2025 13:22

ohpoowhatnow · 09/04/2025 13:20

Depends what kind of company it was … small business then return. Large corporation then keep

Think I would be the same, especially if I had been ordering 300/400 worth of products from them monthly as the OP says she does

jeomeollibyeoldul · 09/04/2025 13:22

similar thing happened to me once where i received extra goods in an order. i just kept them -- never heard anything more about it

BeatleBattleInABottle · 09/04/2025 13:22

I would (and have in the past) genuinely contact them.

The fact you're asking means that you wouldn't enjoy the items even if you did keep them.

A couple of times shops have said just to keep the things but most of the time they send return postage for you to send it back and are normally quite thankful.

Once they sent me a discount as a thank you. The discount was more than the actual item which made no sense. 😂

Although another time, a shop expected me pay to return something and got really arsey when I refused. They even threatened legal action! I replied quoting distance selling (or whatever it is). The next day I got an email with a return label attached with no explanation in the body. I couldn't print it so I emailed them asking them to post it. No reply but a few days later I got a return label in the post with a letter saying that they expect to have received it back within 7 days. No please or thank you. I admit I purposely waited until day 10 to even post it. 🤣 Never heard from them again and needless to say, I won't shop with them anymore. Dicks.

nomas · 09/04/2025 13:22

StrangerThings1 · 09/04/2025 13:20

Thought the same 😂
I suspect she wouldn’t actually do that though

Show quote history

I would keep them if I wanted them and the company said I can keep them.

But I do know people who would donate them to charity even if they wanted them.

Some people are just like that, honest and good to the core.

Anjelika · 09/04/2025 13:22

I'm a big believer in what goes around comes around. I would tell them as a few months down the line you might be on the losing end of something similar eg not being credited for a return. I had the same thing happen with a book I'd ordered and I sent it back. They sent me a prepaid envelope to send it in.

ghostyslovesheets · 09/04/2025 13:23

Habitat sent me a beautiful bowl and lamp twice - I contacted them and they said to keep them - made great presents that Christmas- honesty works.

WhoMeMissYesYouMiss · 09/04/2025 13:25

Friends1996 · 09/04/2025 12:24

Say you ordered a few items from a big online shop (clothing), then successfully cancelled the order, and was refunded.

A few days later, you ordered a single item of clothing from the same place. Today that item was delivered, however they had also sent the items you had cancelled and was refunded for (probably around £120 worth of stuff).

Would you contact them about it or would you keep quiet, see if they emailed you about it and if you didn’t hear anything say 3-4 weeks down the line, just keep the items as normal? This is a place you regularly order from, spending between £300-400 a month.

What would you HONESTLY do?

They are not free. We all pay for them with increased prices. Same with shoplifting, no retailer is taking on the cost of shrinkage without passing it on to consumers.

Myblueclematis · 09/04/2025 13:26

They'd have to be returned, if I kept them I would never enjoy wearing them knowing I'd had a refund.

ilovesooty · 09/04/2025 13:27

singlewhitetrashheap · 09/04/2025 12:52

lmao

All these holy people saying they'd let the company know. What a load of bollocks. You'd keep them and you know it.

Who are you to tell other people what they'd do? If you have no reservations about keeping stuff you haven't paid for, you do you, but don't say that other people's moral code aligns with yours.

BadBones60 · 09/04/2025 13:29

Definitely would advise them of their mistake. To do otherwise is theft and I'd never be able to use

PLHJ84 · 09/04/2025 13:29

TheJollyMoose · 09/04/2025 12:27

I would honestly tell them their mistake and have them arranged to send back because I’m not a thief.

This

AuntieDen · 09/04/2025 13:29

I take the easiest way of contacting them (generally email, sometimes online account message but only if I will get a copy on the account to screenshot), ask for them to advise me if they would like to collect the item, give a date to hear from them by (normally a month for me but I think legally you only have to do 14 days) and then ignore it unless they respond.

I think every time but once I have been told to keep the extras, annoyingly the once they asked for a return was when they sent a box of 20 items I had ordered 1 of and they would have made great Christmas presents. I said I would return if they sent a label and I might take a week or two to drop at the post office, and then didn't hurry because I was grumpy about it.

Whether I personally keep the thing is a different issue, its normally more than one of something when it happens to me so generally I don't want it and give it to a friend/charity shop. If it happens with the online shop its always nice to get a freeby though (and they have never once said they'll collect, even when it was a bottle of gin!)

BringBackVanillaIceCreamMonsterMunch · 09/04/2025 13:33

A few weeks ago I ordered a few things from M&S and opted to pick the order up from my nearest shop. I picked a date but they hadn't arrived and got an email saying that the order would arrive a couple of days later. Not a problem, I waited and picked the items up. Then I had an email saying I'd been refunded. I tmthought at first I must've been charged twice and the refund was correcting that. I waited to see if that was so and when it became apparent that I'd received the order AND a refund for them, I contacted M&S. They replied and said that it was a glitch at their end and that it was my lucky day! So I had the items for free. I couldn't in all conscience have not tried to rectify it. If it happened again, I'd still be honest.

MolkosTeenageAngst · 09/04/2025 13:34

I probably wouldn’t do anything as I hate this kind of admin, I often forget to return items even when I don’t want them because I hate having to get in contact with companies. If I still wanted the items I’d just put them aside for a bit and see if the company got in touch and would be prepared to return or pay for them when/ if they noticed their mistake. I’d probably wait until I made my next order and if that went smoothly without the company contacting me I’d crack on and open the items and happily wear them.

Bluevelvetsofa · 09/04/2025 13:35

I imagine those people who are happy to keep things they haven’t paid for, would not be quite so happy if the things they ordered didn’t arrive and the company didn’t respond to their queries about where the goods were.

It doesn’t matter to me whether it’s £10, or £1000. I’m not comfortable keeping something I haven’t paid for.