Unsolicited goods?

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

A little bit complex this, I'll try and keep it simple.

Last November, I ordered about £100 of parts for my mountain bike from a reputable online supplier (due to an unlucky ride where lots of things got broken). I paid for the order with Paypal.

A day later, the online retailer - not me cancelled my Paypal payment, stating a problem with their payment system. I had an email to this effect, and my Paypal account shows the cancellation. I had done nothing to pre-empt this.

No problem, I made up a completely new order, with a different order number, and used my First Direct debit card to pay. This went through without any problems.

A few days later, I received the debit card order. Great, fine. Then I get an invoice from Paypal requesting payment. This is for the original order that they cancelled. I click the 'refuse payment' button on Paypal, as I now have the parts I need from them (and have paid in full), and do not need anything else.

Then, while I'm at work (during the same week), a courier delivers the Paypal order, the one which they had cancelled! They left it with a neighbour, so I couldn't refuse delivery.

I then get an email from them asking me for payment for the Paypal order. Of course I'm not going to pay them for an order they cancelled, as I've paid with my debit card and don't need 2 of everything.

So I send them an email explaining the situation, time goes by, I then get a reply asking me to return the goods. No problem, I'm happy to do that. I haven't opened the package (its still sealed right now). I tell them to instruct a courier to come and collect it, just let me know when its convenient and I'll have it ready. I am certainly not going to spend money and post it to them. Its their mistake, not mine.

I've received no further correspondence from them. The last email was on the 6th December 2007. I still have the package, sealed, untouched.

*

So to recap:

1) I pay for order via paypal
2) They cancel paypal order
3) I pay for new order via debit card
4) New order delivered
5) Old (and cancelled) Paypal order arrives
6) They ask for money for Paypal order
7) I refuse and ask them to collect Paypal order
8) No further communication from them


What do I do now? Were these unsolicited goods? Can I dispose of them as I wish? Morally I know I should email them and warn them, but why should I waste any of my time correcting their mistakes, and their ineptitude?

PasturesNew

As I understood it from years back, for unsolicited goods, if you make them available for them to collect and they have not done so after 6 months, they are yours.

But that was back in the 70s.

Update:

I checked and found this:

Goods sent to a person who has not requested them. The person receiving the goods does not have to pay for them. After 6 months the goods become the property of the person who received them. If the receiving party contacts the sender and asks for the goods to be picked up (and they are not), the receiving party becomes the owner of the goods after 30 days. Before the receiving party becomes the owner they must look after the goods and not dispose of them.

from http://www.compactlaw.co.uk/legal_glossary/u/unsolicited_goods.html

Vomityspice

To resolve the matter just write to them and give them 14days to collect there goods. Point out that if they do not then you will dispose of them. Send it registered so you are protected in acse they later make a claim.

If the parts are worth anything to them, they can arrange for a courier to collect.

dmg24

This does not strictly come under unsolicited goods, as the OP did request them, but the order was delivered twice. Unsolicited goods applies to where you get something at random, such as books 'on approval' that you have never asked for.

OP, contact them again, give them a call rather than email, it will get a quicker response.

superscaper

dmg24 wrote: »

This does not strictly come under unsolicited goods, as the OP did request them, but the order was delivered twice. Unsolicited goods applies to where you get something at random, such as books 'on approval' that you have never asked for.

OP, contact them again, give them a call rather than email, it will get a quicker response.

I looked into this a few years ago, in my case it was being sent another different printer as well as the one I'd ordered. I agree it isn't unsolicited but as far as I could make out then the law that covered it was still the one PasturesNew quoted. Six months after you've made reasonable attempt to make the sender aware and it's yours. I also agree that you shouldn't have to pay a penny to have it sent back. I disagree with Vomityspice though because if you do dispose of it after 14 days the retailer can still legally claim the loss from you because of the six month thing.

superscaper

Looking into it again I think I may (definitely ) be wrong. I think it comes under the category of "Uncollected Goods" and from what I can see there's no specified time limit other than the notice date you give them which actually makes vomityspice completely right.
http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/index/your_world/consumer_affairs/keeping_lost_found_and_uncollected_goods.htm#Uncollected_or_abandoned_goods

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

dmg24 wrote: »

This does not strictly come under unsolicited goods, as the OP did request them, but the order was delivered twice. Unsolicited goods applies to where you get something at random, such as books 'on approval' that you have never asked for.

OP, contact them again, give them a call rather than email, it will get a quicker response.

No, that isn't what happened - there are two separate orders for the same items. I have two order numbers.

The first order was cancelled by them. The second order went through normally.

I've already told them to come and collect them, and they haven't. I don't see why I should do any more.

superscaper

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers! wrote: »

No, that isn't what happened - there are two separate orders for the same items. I have two order numbers.

The first order was cancelled by them. The second order went through normally.

I've already told them to come and collect them, and they haven't. I don't see why I should do any more.

dmg24 is still right though, they're not unsolicited goods. Cancelled orders, mistaken orders etc come under the classification of uncollected and abandoned goods. Give them a reasonable specific date to collect them by as Vomityspice suggests and then you can keep them after that date if they do nothing about it.

dmg24

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers! wrote: »

No, that isn't what happened - there are two separate orders for the same items. I have two order numbers.

The first order was cancelled by them. The second order went through normally.

I've already told them to come and collect them, and they haven't. I don't see why I should do any more.

I do hope you don't take that bad attitude if they issue court proceedings. If you were to get a CCJ against you, explaining to potential lenders that you didn't see why you should do anymore would not get you very far!

Mistakes happen. Just give them a call. It takes no great effort to do that.

superscaper

dmg24 wrote: »

I do hope you don't take that bad attitude if they issue court proceedings. If you were to get a CCJ against you, explaining to potential lenders that you didn't see why you should do anymore would not get you very far!

Mistakes happen. Just give them a call. It takes no great effort to do that.

It's what I did in my situation. No responses from email so I phoned them up. They wanted me to post it (the printer), I stood my ground and said I shouldn't pay for their mistake even if they were claiming they'd "pay me back". So they arranged a courier to pick it up. Courier came, picked it up and that was that. Dramatic episode over.

Another time my mum ordered a mini fridge, it came slightly dented. So another one was sent and we'd asked about the old one being picked up. The courier had no orders to pick up old one. We had no further response from company when we told them about the other mini fridge. So in the end my mum gave it to me and we kept packaging in case they wanted it back. I threw away the packaging after about 18 months :rolleyes:. But we never sought from the beginning to keep it, the company literally had just abandoned it.

Tozer

Completely agree with DMG. Not 'unsolicited' goods. More goods provided by mistake. Technically, they have 6 years to recover them from you and you should take reasonable care of them whilst in your possession - they are the retailers products as you have not paid for them.

I would certainly not dispose of them. I would take all steps to get them to collect. Sounds as though a simple call would be all that is needed!