wrong order and much more valuable made in error by them, unsolicited gift?

vinie

Hi, thank you in advance for your advice, I will try to make my question concise and clear.

made an order by telephone and paid for it with my debt card from a uk retailer which has stores nation wide.

next day i receive a box with a more valuable item. it had my name and address on it and i signed for it.

I used the item sent then exchanged it for something else with a co worker.

no communications were made for 2 weeks by either me or them then i started receiving a campaign of calls where i was mostly at work and unable to speak.

after a few days of me ignoring the issue the head of operations as he stated calls me from yet another mobile number and left me a voice mail saying if i don't call back by the end of today they will start 7days court proceeding.

now I did not ask for that item and i still have not received my original much lesser in value item (im happy to forget it and this issue just to end) but i have used the item they sent then i exchanged it with someone in the same profession as i am as its a tool for work.

I wasn't sure what to make out of the item sent to me but it was hard to resist not using it.

I read a lot about this kind of issue and almost all forums says i had the right to keep it as its an unsolicited gift but in couple of places it says its not unsolicited gift as its made in error and its still their property (couldn't paste the link but look up wiki, obligations imposed upon the supplier, consumer protection, distance selling) there is one line where it says wrong delivery is not unsolicited gift) but that's their prospective not mine..

this is unrelated but it has been a funny xmas a few days before i made that order i came back home at 3 am and a few meters from my house i found this DHL box with security seal on it..it had a 180 euros trousers from italy..it had the recipient number so i called it then picked it up and they were amazed how it ended up on the street.. my point is..i do not have poor ethics but this is just happened, i had something i couldn't resist not trying as i had to open the box and wasn't sure if its some sort of gift or what on earth it was doing with me and i just accepted it...

I'm really getting stressed about this now and did not wish for this upon myself,
and would appreciate an advice, however please advice if you are well informed with legal backing, my sincere gratitude thx.

merlot123

You should return the item at their expense, it's not yours to keep, its a mistake, you haven't paid for it. Once you send it back, then you should receive the original order.

If you haven't got it any longer cause you exchanged it with a co worker for something, then I think you are going to have to admit that and pay for it.



merlot123

Gavin83

Legally you have to give them the option to collect it at their expense and in a way that is convenient to you. If you no longer have it then you'll have to pay for it. If you can get it back I'm not sure what the position is since it's been used, but someone else might be able to fill you in. They do have to send your original order though.

McKneff

I dont know where youve been reading that it's okay to keep and use but you are sadly mistaken.

I would sort it sooner rather than later or your credit is going to be trashed.

Nilrem

IIRC it's not an unsolicited gift, as you placed an order and the wrong item has been sent.
It's a mistake, which you should give the retailer the chance to correct at their expense (IE they have to pick it up, at a time that is convenient to you, but reasonable to them), in much the same way that if they'd sent a cheaper item you'd expect them to sort it out.

It would only be an unsolicited gift if it arrived without you having any contact with them, or having placed an order.

IE: You order an Xbox 360 basic and they send a set with Kinect and half a dozen games, or you order a 24" TV and they send the 42" version instead (but bill you for the 24") it's not unsolicited, it's a mistake*.

IF you receive something from a company you've never heard of, or contacted and they then try to bill you for it, it's unsolicited.

I've had similar issues in the past with retailers, and have always contacted them to let them know, sometimes they're happy to just let me keep the better item, sometimes they'll arrange collection, and sometimes I get the impression they're very surprised at someone trying to sort it out rather than sitting on it.


*And quite an easy one for a retailer to make given that with a lot of things like TV's there will be a load of models from the manufacturer with only one or two characters changing from one model to the next (IE Abc24B might be the 24" version with black surround, whilst Abc24W might be the white version, and Abc32B might be the 32" version with black surround).

vinie

it's not what i wanted to hear but that doesn't mean it's not the truth...
I can't afford it by any measure and don't have it...going to jail ? ...Ahh crazy this is.. I didn't theif it nor its my mistake...I should have returned it but between being busy and subconsciously not wanting to I didn't...
ps what is 7 day proceedings?

merlot123

What is the price difference of what you received and what you ordered? If they take away the original order price from the actual item delivered, could you ask them for a repayment plan to repay the rest.

Do you have stuff to sell on Ebay to make up the difference?

You need to contact them and come to an arrangement, otherwise if they do take you to court, you could end up with paying fees etc.

vinie

McKneff wrote: »

I dont know where youve been reading that it's okay to keep and use but you are sadly mistaken.

I would sort it sooner rather than later or your credit is going to be trashed.

thx for the reply, here among many other places
http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/nireland/consumer_ni/consumer_common_problems_with_products_e/consumer_problems_with_delivery_e/consumer_unsolicited_goods_e/youve_received_goods_or_services_you_didnt_ask_for_distance_sales.htm

vinie

merlot123 wrote: »

What is the price difference of what you received and what you ordered? If they take away the original order price from the actual item delivered, could you ask them for a repayment plan to repay the rest.

Do you have stuff to sell on Ebay to make up the difference?

You need to contact them and come to an arrangement, otherwise if they do take you to court, you could end up with paying fees etc.

the item i ordered is 45 pounds, they sent me an 1820 British Pounds..
its just not reasonable for me to sell anything for their error thats if i had a sell-able items. thx

merlot123

vinie wrote: »

the item i ordered is 45 pounds, they sent me an 1820 British Pounds..
its just not reasonable for me to sell anything for their error thats if i had a sell-able items. thx

What do you mean "not reasonable for me to sell anything for their error" you received an item by mistake and then sold/gave/exchanged it for something else with a co worker. The co-worker must of given you something for this item, could you not sell that?

One way or another you are going to have to find the money to pay for this item.

vinie

merlot123 wrote: »

What do you mean "not reasonable for me to sell anything for their error" you received an item by mistake and then sold/gave/exchanged it for something else with a co worker. The co-worker must of given you something for this item, could you not sell that?

One way or another you are going to have to find the money to pay for this item.

yes it is unreasonable in my opinion, when you wrote by mistake that means someone made a mistake, when someone or something makes a mistake then they take responsibility for it unless its a 5 years old child, i dont mind paying for the cost of the item in instalments if it's absoloutly correct that im obligated to legally. if it was a person it would be a diffrent story and would see it diffrently. i bought an item in the past from an identical retailer and it was faulty and i needed it badly..when i took it back they said they have to send it somewhere, examine it then maybe exchange it for me... and i couldn't buy another one..so i was screwed, I do not have any feeling of guilt here..its purly a legal matter now.