Money Moral Dilemma: Should I sell my unwanted prize or give it away for free?

Defoe

Offer them a Mammoth Mattress voucher or a fish slice instead .....you know they'd love either

DaybreakGirl

If the so called friend was a real friend she would not have asked for the television as real friends would be pleased for them winning a prize. I would not give her the television set either sell it or give it to someone deserving of it, I am sure there are plenty of unusual but deserving people who would be only too happy to receive such a nice gift. If this were me she would not be my friend anymore.

dawn_b

Has the friend helped you out in the past, either in kind or with money? Are they family? Are they struggling with a load of kids to look after, or stuck indoors, and no current telly? If the answer is no, then the only moral dilemma is whether you say they can f off to their face or behind their back.

jenniewb

MSE_Sarah wrote: »

This week's MoneySaver who wants advice asks...

​I won a prize in a recent competition but I don’t want it. My friend was interested in it so I suggested selling it to them at a price. They think I should give it to them for free as I won it. What should I do?

Unfortunately the MSE team can't always answer money moral dilemma questions as contributions are often emailed in or suggested in person. They are intended to be enjoyed as a point of debate and discussed at face value.

If you haven’t already, join the forum to reply!

[purplesignup][/purplesignup]

That's not a friend, that's a free loader! If this happened to a friend I knew, I'd assume they'd want to sell rather than give the TV away, if I wanted it I'd want them not to suffer a loss so I'd offer something by way of payment and if I could not pay then no TV.


Sell it, if they want it that badly then they can make an offer of either payment or payment in kind, it's then up to the seller if they want to accept or feel they'd get a better or more suitable deal elsewhere.


Never mix business and pleasure; it's too complicated and there are too many emotionally filled side effects.

Ebenezer_Screwj

Your friend has one hell of a nerve, it is your television and you can do what you like with it. Sell it on elsewhere and buy something you really want.

Cape_town

Sell it for half retail price. that way you win half - she wins half..

Primrose

Maybe you should keep quiet about items you win then you wouldn’t have the dilemma of having to deal with other peoples’ feelings of entitlement. It’s like lottery winners who win a big prize, opt for publicity and then complain when the begging letters start arriving

ChamomileTao

I don't tend to tell people what I've won these days until after I - and I alone - have decided what to do with it. I have things in my home that I couldn't possibly have afforded to buy but I've won them, I also have things I have bought by selling my winnings - some stupidly expensive software once transmogrified into a fridge freezer. I remember a long time ago a work colleague becoming excessively miffed because I'd turned down their offer to buy something I'd won and sold it on eBay instead for a good deal more, which I knew I would. They even tried a bit of coercive control by telling me I had agreed to sell it to them at the lower price, and I'm afraid they got squished in front of witnesses by a simple retort of 'I didn't agree to anything' It was a new job and I didn't realise it at the time but I was standing up to the office bully so I got a bit of kudos from it lol.

beckle_82

I would definitely sell it, even though you've not paid for the item you've still earnt it by taking the time and effort to enter the competitions in the first place!

If my friends/ family particularly want something I've won I will ask them to make a donation to charity in exchange. Unless of course it's a big prize like a TV or a phone!

Bristow

You won it, therefore you deserve a prize. Offer it to your 'friend' for less than the full price but at such a point that you can buy yourself something you would like. If the 'friend' doesn't want it under such conditions, then sell it anyway and quietly drop the 'friend'.