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AIBU?

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Original poster

Should I tell Tesco I basically stole £300 from them?

370 replies

loamy · 19/09/2025 20:25

Just checked my banking app and had around £300 more than I was expecting. Turns out that one of our shops was cancelled by dh but it still showed up for delivery. Husband wasn’t in so son accepted the order AND we got the refund. So it’s actually funny because our texts shows us getting our wires crossed. Husband thought I had unilaterally decided to reorder. He asked “so you did decide to do the shop in the end” and I answered in the affirmative as I very coincidentally happened to go into M and S for some bits my daughter wanted to try. And it was that I thought he was referring to. I thought her was being sexy cause dd went a bit overboard with the cookies, dips etc

Anyway, it’s been about three weeks. I guess this has slipped through.

Wouls you tell Tesco? I’m surprised that the idea of being sneaky flashed in my mind.

It was a pricier shop as DH ordered a few nicer bottles of wine to enjoy for a family event.

OP posts:
Athreedoorwardrobe · 19/09/2025 20:43

No. Fuck them. They owe it you.
The amount of times they've done me over delivering things that were broken or out of date.. or saying they'd delivered things they hadn't. They owe me 300 quid at this point. So you can have this one on me!! A gift from the gods of fortune!

Sirzy · 19/09/2025 20:45

I would leave the extra in my bank for a few weeks incase they claim it otherwise would let it go

Bluevelvetsofa · 19/09/2025 20:46

Of course Tesco won’t care. It depends whether you care OP and if it makes you feel guilty. If it was someone stealing £300 of food from the store, would you feel the same?

ThatCleverCoralCrow · 19/09/2025 20:48

Yes I'd tell them... Would you walk out of Tesco shop with a trolley full of a £300 shop without paying?

HateThursdays · 19/09/2025 20:50

They made the mistake. I wouldn’t tell them. They aren’t going to go out of business for it and it won’t effect the persons job. It was probably just a computer glitch and nobody will notice.

The most that could possibly happen is they do notice it and take the money, but I think that’s highly unlikely. It will just be recorded as wastage. They throw out thousands of pounds worth of wastage food out every day (I worked for them), I wouldn’t give it another thought.

OrangeSmoke · 19/09/2025 20:54

The thing is though you didn't want the order - you cancelled it - so I don't really see why the fair outcome is that you pay for it, it's their error. Okay so you've used the food and benefitted but I really wouldn't say the onus is on you to sort this out.

CoffeeCakeAndALattePlease · 19/09/2025 20:55

No, I wouldn’t. You cancelled it and they delivered by error. Their mistake.

if I’d been the one to answer the door I’d have refused the delivery and said why. But my kids wouldn’t have known to do that and like your DS they’d have unwittingly accepted it.

Confusemumqq · 19/09/2025 20:56

I would just leave it and see if they realise. In the past I would not have been able to sleep as I would feel guilty but time has taught me don’t bother. Once I realised the corner shop didn’t scan an item as it wasn’t on my receipt, I only noticed when I got home! I promptly drove back to the store which was 4 miles away with my kids in tow, struggled to get parking and had screaming kids with me to be met with a moody cashier who just ignored me, not even a thank you or just polite conversation! I even posted on mumsnet at the time under a different username to be met with abuse that what did I expect him to do.

JoeTheDrummer · 19/09/2025 20:57

It’s not the same as walking out a shop without paying.

This was their mistake & it’d be a bloody nightmare trying to get someone in a call centre to sort it. It’s not your job to fix their accounting errors.

lifeonmars100 · 19/09/2025 20:58

But you didn't steal it, you did not go into one of their stores and stuff £300 worth of products under your coat and in your pockets and then leg it out of the door. You cancelled it, they did not update their system and the order turned up, there was no intention on your part fo defraud Tesco. Technically it is theft because you have not paid for the things but I would have no qualms abotu keeping the stuff as they should have better processeses . , They are a massive company who made £2.3 billion in profits last financial year, it is not like a small independent business who would be really affected by such a loss.

sassyduck · 19/09/2025 20:59

No. Keep your mouth shut
It's their fault. Don't waste your precious time on them.

TerrysCIockworkOrange · 19/09/2025 20:59

Literally wouldn’t give it even another seconds thought. And you can ignore the PP saying to keep the money ring fenced, there is literally no way they could ever claim it back as the mistake was theirs, not that they’d even bother trying. However, if you are the type to feel guilty about this sort of thing to the point you can’t function, you could make a generous donation to your local food bank

Icanttakethisanymore · 19/09/2025 21:00

It would not even occur to me to tell them.

ChippyChipsChippyChips · 19/09/2025 21:00

The reason why I wouldn’t tell them is that you cancelled it. You shouldn’t have to pay for a shop that you cancelled. You can’t return the order now and they wouldn’t have taken the actual physical order back anyway. There actually isn’t a way to put this right that doesn’t leave you incorrectly out of pocket.

Rituelec · 19/09/2025 21:01

I wouldn't say anything in this situation

TwoTuesday · 19/09/2025 21:01

As they've issued a refund already how would you ask them to recharge you?

Growlybear83 · 19/09/2025 21:02

Of course you shouldn’t tell them. But I’d be inclined to set the money aside for a few more weeks just in case it somehow gets discovered.

morbidcuriosity · 19/09/2025 21:02

My first thought would be, dam wish I had ordered more.. haha..

see it as a win and think no more about it!!!

Whiskeyandkittens · 19/09/2025 21:05

Its probably already been written off.
We had similar with Sainsbury's- we had top-up gift cards with 5% off through a work scheme and loaded them up for a big monthly shop - got there to do our shop and the gift card system had gone down and we didn't have any other way to pay. Sainsbury's took out gift card details and said they would take the amount (around £200) when it was back up and running and let us take our shop. We waited - and waited - kept the amount on the gift card for months still expecting it to vanish at any point and it never did!

DH also got a free Musclefoods delivery that was delivered anyway after he cancelled- he rang to tell them and they said just to keep it!

autienotnaughty · 19/09/2025 21:05

Small business I would. Tesco I’d take the win.
Next once didn’t take payment for my sons suit and just charged me for a carrier bag. Never said a word.

B1anche · 19/09/2025 21:06

I probably would tell them because I am hyper-compliant and would be worried about being found out! I wouldnt judge anyone for not mentioning it, though, because, well, it is Tesco.

SouthLondonMum22 · 19/09/2025 21:08

I wouldn't after 3 weeks, no. It was a mistake on their part.

It would be different if it was immediate and/or you made the mistake.

AutieAdult · 19/09/2025 21:08

I would because I expect there will be accounts at some point and the dispatcher may get into trouble. Tesco corporation won’t miss the money. It doesn’t mean they won’t try to get it back.

perhaps that is coloured by me being able to afford it. If my finances were worse it might be different.

NotToday1l · 19/09/2025 21:08

ThejoyofNC · 19/09/2025 20:27

I wouldn't say anything but I guarantee people on here will be along soon to tell you they couldn't sleep at night unless they begged Tesco to take their money.

Agree

BlueSeagull · 19/09/2025 21:09

Small business yes I would, Tesco no I wouldn’t.

if it helps 10+ years ago we had a arm chair delivered instead of the sofa we had ordered. The delivery guy left it said it would be collected when the right sofa was delivered… the sofa came and they couldn’t take the chair we didn’t chase and the chair was never collected.

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