If an item is sent in error how long do I have to wait before I can dispose of it?

Energize

When retailers send me products in error such as sending me two tv's instead of one, how long do I have to wait after contacting them before I can dispose of the property?

Some websites seem to say 30 days, but I can't find an official legal reference for that figure.

marliepanda

6 years.

You need to contact them twice, giving them a reasonable time frame to collect the item.

After that you may 'dispose' of it but only reasonably. AKA you cannot bin it and you cannot sell it to your friend for £1. Any money you get from selling, again, belongs to the company for 6 years.

Energize

That seems completely unreasonable and contradicts what I've read on the consumer rights websites, do you have any official reference for that figure?

mije1983

Energize wrote: »

That seems completely unreasonable and contradicts what I've read on the consumer rights websites, do you have any official reference for that figure?

Have a look here


Specifically:

You can’t keep, sell or get rid of the goods until you have sent two written notices to the owner, if you are able to trace them.

and

You should keep the money until six years have passed. At this point, the owner of the goods has lost their legal rights to take action to get their money or the goods back.

Although this is about traders leaving goods with you, the same principles apply.

ThumbRemote

To clarify, they can pursue you for the money for the product for 6 years.

If you have followed the process of informing them and giving them chance to collect, you can dispose of the TV for a sensible price (ie you could sell on ebay, but you can't just sell it to a friend for a £1). They may subsequently ask you for the money, so be prepared for this.

Edit - Cross-posted with mji1983, the link there is good too.

marliepanda

Energize wrote: »

That seems completely unreasonable and contradicts what I've read on the consumer rights websites, do you have any official reference for that figure?

Why is it unreasonable? DO you think its reasonable to be able to 'dispose' of someone elses property after 30 days?

Can you please link these consumer rights websites which say you can do this after 30 days, so we can say what they are actually talking about and why it does not apply to your situation...

Energize

marliepanda wrote: »

Why is it unreasonable? DO you think its reasonable to be able to 'dispose' of someone elses property after 30 days?

Can you please link these consumer rights websites which say you can do this after 30 days, so we can say what they are actually talking about and why it does not apply to your situation...

What is unreasonable is to not bother to collect goods you sent to someone by mistake and then expect that person to act as a free storage facility for large goods, or to then expect them to go through the process of selling the goods and then transferring the money back to you as a free sales agent.

Now what the first responder said and what they linked to is slightly different, it's not 6 years it's a reasonable amount of time after which they could take legal action to recover the money, and I imagine that a judge would generally dismiss such a claim. However I still think it's absurd that the law does not automatically declare unclaimed property as abandoned after a period of time.

mije1983

Energize wrote: »

.Now what the first responder said and what they linked to is different, it's not 6 years it's a reasonable amount of time after which they can ask for the money, which is fine.

Erm......

You should keep the money until six years have passed. At this point, the owner of the goods has lost their legal rights to take action to get their money or the goods back.

Seems pretty certain it's 6 years to me? Where does it imply it's not? I think you are getting confused with keeping the goods (a reasonable time), and them being able to chase you for the money (6 years).

What I linked to and what I said were the same. The quotes were from that link!

Edit: I see you edited your post after I replied so to save double posting I will add my comments here.

The law says 6 years so that's what it is. You asked for the legal reference and that was given to you by 3 posters. Whether or not is is good, bad or ugly is not the point. It is what it is. You say a judge would generally throw out such a claim, but I'm not sure what basis you have for that assumption.

If you wish to sell/dispose of the goods then go for it. They may never come back to you about it but at least you now know legally where you stand.

Energize

I asked how long until I can dispose of the property, that link says a reasonable amount of time after contacting them. You said 6 years.

6 years is simply the period after which they can no longer take legal action, in reality a judge would dismiss the case.

ThumbRemote

Energize wrote: »

What is unreasonable is to not bother to collect goods you sent to someone by mistake and then expect that person to act as a free storage facility for large goods, or to then expect them to go through the process of selling the goods and then transferring the money back to you as a free sales agent.

Note that you are under no obligation to inform them that you have sold the TV. They have to ask you for the money.

But I agree with you, it's a ridiculous situation where you can end up with a duty of care for someone elses goods.

Energize wrote: »

Now what the first responder said and what they linked to is slightly different, it's not 6 years it's a reasonable amount of time after which they could take legal action to recover the money, and I imagine that a judge would generally dismiss such a claim. However I still think it's absurd that the law does not automatically declare unclaimed property as abandoned after a period of time.

The statute of limitations is 6 years. You can imagine what a judge would do, but 6 years is the letter of the law.

mije1983

Energize wrote: »

I asked how long until I can dispose of the property, that link says a reasonable amount of time after contacting them. You said 6 years.

6 years is simply the period after which they can no longer take legal action, in reality a judge would dismiss the case.

It would have been unhelpful for anyone to just say 'a reasonable time for disposal', and leaving the answer like that, without then informing you the company can chase you for up to 6 years for the cost as it could have given you a false sense of security about the situation. At least you have the knowledge of the legal stance now (which is what you asked for).

The law is clear at 6 years under the statute of limitations, so I don't think anyone would be able to say with confidence that a judge would throw the case out.

As I said earlier though, if it's a big company/small price item, the chances are it's not worth their while to get it back.