Question about honesty

[WillowTheWhisp]

This question came up elsewhere and I was wondering just what the general reaction is amongst AccyWebbers.

Supposing you sent for something by post/phone/internet and you'd ordered 10 of them but when they arrived you found there were more than 10. What would you do?

Would your response change depending on the amount of extra or the value of the items?

 

[Tealeaf]

I'd damage the surplus ones then send 'em back saying I was not satisfied & could I have my money back please.

 

[WillowTheWhisp]

Now there's one I hadn't thought of!

 

[chav1]

i would wait until they asked for it back and if no one contacted me within 30 days i would sell the surpluss

not what i would describe as honest but hey at least i gave them a chance to correct their mistake and most losses like that are tax right offs so everyones a winner lol

 

[cashman]

wouldnt waste a phone call, would keep them for a suitable time,and if they didnt contact me= tough - their loss lol

 

[SPUGGIE J]

I would send back as quick as so that with the luck I have I dont get a bill for whatever it was.

 

[T.C.]

Surely, anything sent through the post is the responsibility of the sender,therefore it is up to them to inform you of their error, and re-collect their goods in a specified time or they become the property of the recipient. I'mhttp://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb001_ZBxdm226YYGB sure I've read that somewhere.

 

[SPUGGIE J]

Personally I would err on the side of caution that way there are no comebacks on me.

 

[Sara]

Would probably ring up and ask them to send money/SAE to return items, but hope they would either say keep them or not bother sending out a reply.

 

[Tinkerbelle]

I'd have to send them back, I'm too honest

 

[SPUGGIE J]

This could turn out to be an intresting poll. What will be the top hitter I wonder and is it going to be a suprise?

 

[Margaret Pilkington]

I would have to ring up and let them know......my conscience has a very loud voice.

 

[shillelagh]

Depends on what it was! But mainly i'd ring up and ask them what i should do with them. That way its in their ball court. If they said send them back i'd tell them to send a courier for them i wouldnt pay for their mistake.

 

[entwisi]

I think legally you have to tell them but it is there responsibility to collect at your convenience. Depending on value a lot of companies do not collect as it costs them too much. I believe Dell are one. I have heard of people who order printers with systems and then ring up to say they want to return it. Dell have been known to tell them to keep them(They wer only £29 though)

 

[Phylum]

Depends whether I signed for them or not I'm afraid.

 

[grego]

I would keep the excess or send back and ask for refund! This happened to me once were I was sent 2 pairs of trousers, so I kept 1 pair and then phoned the company and got a refund on the other pair, I know this is dishonest but I thought its their mistake.

 

[grannyclaret]

it would depend,,,,if they were garden gnomes and my name was meldrew,????????????????
i think one was planted in the loo

 

[Neil]

I have emailed a someone on ebay in the US when they sent my item and another. They said it was not worth returning it. But when being a naughty boy I totally forget for 3 months to sent some satellite TV equipment back that was not even supposed to have been sent to me. They even sent me a paid envelope to send it back. The interesting thing was, in with the package was a receipt showing that I had payed by paypal. I checked and I had not paid. I had used the firm before so they must have stuffed up somewhere. When I came accross the package again I ended up using it, once I found out what it was for

So that must make me honest sometimes. Then again I had a receipt proving I had paid for the other items.

 

[lettie]

I have been on the receiving end of a couple of extra CD's which I didn't order. I rang the company and offered to send them back if they paid for it. They did pay for the returns, I wouldn't have kept the CD's as they weren't to my musical taste. I suppose I am honest but not mug enough to pay for someone else's mistake..

 

[jambutty]

If anything arrives through your letterbox or at your door that you haven’t ordered it is best to accept the delivery and then inform the sender. If you refuse to accept delivery you will still get an invoice and demands for payment even if the goods have got back to where they came from. Most likely the goods will not get back to the sender. Couriers and postmen/women are not as honest as they used to be and items not accepted by the recipient have been known to get ‘lost’ on their way back.

You treat the surplus as unsolicited goods and as such you are allowed to keep them – IF – you notify the sender that the received goods were not ordered by you. If they are not removed from your premises within 3 months you can consider them as a gift and you will be quite entitled to keep them. You are under no obligation to send them back at your own expense. Your obligation stops at notifying the sender.


On three occasions this year I have received an overpayment into my E-Gold account. I emailed the sender (an HYIP) offering to return the surplus less E-Gold charges and on each occasion they emailed me back to say thanks for notifying them of the overpayment and I could keep it for my honesty. One overpayment was for $25, one for $5 something and one for $11 something but this one deducted the $11 something from my account to balance the books as it were. Cheapskates!!!