To have been charged for- and sent - an item I didn't buy

[Dontgetitt]

Briefly, before Christmas I bought a Tymo hair curler cost £69 for my daughter - some dodgy Chinese company but with a business address in California

On about Jan 20 I'm sent a second curler. I look at my Amex account and realise I've been charged £69 for a second one. I look through emails and in junk find a receipt for a second payment on about Jan 12 to Tymo

I didn't make this payment and the clincher is in the time between the two "orders" - someone started using my Amex dodgily to make big orders from Sainsbury's, Amex alerted me to this and the card in qurestion was cancelled.

The second order to Tymo is charged using the cancelled Amex card, yet somehow has gone though ....

I KNOW I didn't order the second curler, I don't want one and on the day in question I was out all day, not noodling around shopping online and accidentally filling baskets (I wouldn't have done this anyway because I have no need to revisit the Tymo website ever).

I reported to Amex pointing out this was with my cancelled card but today got a letter saying basically you made the order - tough luck.

It's now too late to return the unwanted curler and anyway it has to go to China tracked at my expense, which would cost £££.

Do I have to just suck this up? Has something like this happened to someone else?

I don’t know that it’s fair to refer to Tymo as a “dodgy Chinese company”. They’re a legitimate business selling hair tools 🤷‍♀️

When you received the second curler did you actually try speaking to them about the fact you weren’t the one who placed the order?

Why is it too late to return it? How come you didn’t just return it at the time if you didn’t want it?

Yes, I emailed them twice

Because while I have been waiting for Amex to investigate too much time has passed and the returns window is closed.

I didn't return it immediately as I would have done in other circs because the cost of returning it tracked to China is huge, so given I hadn't bought it I wanted Amex to investigate too

If a transaction has gone through after the card was cancelled then Amex should sort this.

The returns window shouldn't count if you didnt actually order it though.

Of course, but according to the company I did order it

Indeed, so I can't understand why they seem to be ignoring this part of the process, which is key. When I called them about it initially the woman agreed this meant I couldn't have bought it ...

There is a process called Chargeback. I have used a few times for dodgy or wrong charges.

your bank should have a form to complete or phone. Identify all the items and do the chargeback claims.

they give the sender the opportunity to sort it out but every time so far I have had the money back.

good luck

Credit card providers have methods by which they can identify IP addresses and whether the order was placed from a device you’d usually use to place orders. If they’re informing you that they believe you placed the order then I’d imagine it will be on this basis. Did anyone else have access to your devices?

I've been trying chargeback but been told no ...

Amex seems to be saying the evidence I placed the order is because my address was correct. If they have evidence of IP addresses I'd love to see it because I was out that day and time when the order was placed. No one else had access to my devices that would have ordered a curler. I'll call them and ask if they can provide IP address evidence

If that’s the case you should be able to ask for a Freedom of Info request
on all transactions including time processed and IP addresses etc.

From Amex? I can see the timings but would like to see the IP address

Actually, just looking at the letter from Amex, the IP address has been redacted.

I'll ask for that.

I don't see how I can have ordered something I don't want with a card that was cancelled at a time when I was out the house and not on my phone (I was at a show)

You won’t be able to do a section 75 because it’s under £100.

I did successfully dispute a duplicate transaction via my bank. I made one purchase but two amounts were taken. I contacted the company but they said they only received one, despite two being on my bank statement. The bank refunded but said the company had three months to challenge. This was on a credit card and was under £100.

Personally I’d try and sell it on using marketplace or similar. Possibly less aggravation then going after the bank and/or seller and might even be less loss than paying for it to go back to China.

Freedom of information doesn't apply to private companies

I'm a bit confused. It's one thing to use your card details and address but how did they get into your Tymo account on the website? They must have had your email and password?

But there is an IP address on the info re the transaction they've sent me, which has been redacted. Why? Because that's key.

@NewTricks2026 You're right it might just be easier to sell on, but it's the bloody principle.

FOI doesn’t apply to private companies. The OP would need to make a subject access request to access (supposedly) her own transaction data, including IP, though I very much doubt AmEx have this.

I am also confused. I'm assuming Tymo had all my details including the old credit card details and put through another order. Possibly a glitch, but I can't seem to prove anything.

Go back to Amex. Whether you ordered it or not is not the issue here. Your card was cancelled due to fraud therefore noone including you should have been able to use the card to buy anything.
Amex are at fault here, allowing a transaction to go through using a cancelled card. Complain on that basis.

Did you never get a confirmation email for the order after the second one went through?

I did but I found it AFTER the item had arrived when I was confused and trying to work out what had happened, in my junk folder, so didn't see it in advance