Question about duplicate order received

carlmango11

Hi,

Can anyone tell me if you have any legal obligation to pay (or more correctly, be charged for) an item you received by mistake? I can only find references to US law (where there's no obligation).

Basically I ordered something that I needed by a specific date. The site said if I order by a certain date it would arrive on time. This is the only reason I ordered it and wouldn't have if it wasn't going to arrive on time.

It got closer to the date and it still wasn't here so I spent the next 2 days trying to call the company. No one aswered and then eventually it was just engaged. On the morning that I needed the package I finally got through to someone who told me to ring back in 10 minutes as he had just arrived in the office. Rang back in 10, phone engaged.

Then the package finally arrives (too late - useless). But they've sent out 2 of the product by accident. Then they email me saying if I don't return the second one they sent out they'll charge me for it. They've offered to pay postage but it's still an effort reboxing it and bringing it to the post office just to fix the mistake a company made - when they made the mistake of not sending out my parcel on time I was ignored but as soon as it's related to their stock I hear from them straight away. I don't exactly feel like going out of my way to help a company that screwed me over.

So anyway, is it legal for them to charge me for the duplicate I didn't order? I want to be clear on this before I sent of a letter of complaint and I can't seem to find any decent information online.

Thanks

whippet

they are offering to pay for postage back etc and you won't return it .. I would say yes they are entitled to charge you for the second item.

the problems with the original order have nothing to do with this situation.

If they charge your card and you look for a 'chargeback' i would imagine the bank would side with the supplier as you received the product and they have made reasonable efforts to have you return it.

Just do the decent thing and send it back.

carlmango11

So what about the money I wasted on their failed promise of delivering on time? Do you suggest I do the right thing and hope they do the same? That they don't go back to ignoring my calls?

Cabaal

carlmango11 wrote: »

So what about the money I wasted on their failed promise of delivering on time? Do you suggest I do the right thing and hope they do the same? That they don't go back to ignoring my calls?

So what you're saying is you want to keep the second item as "compensation" then?

Can I ask whats the price range of these items?

carlmango11

Cabaal wrote: »

So what you're saying is you want to keep the second item as "compensation" then?

Can I ask whats the price range of these items?

Essentially, yes.

€60 each.

whippet

carlmango11 wrote: »

Essentially, yes.

€60 each.

you are not entitled to compensation unless this was specified at the time of order .. which I would sincerely doubt.. online retailers are at the behest of the reliability of third party couriers and as such will not offer compensation.

You will have to send the item back or pay for it. The supplier has made reasonable efforts to allow you send it back without cost and you are just not co-operating .. as such they will charge your card and you will have a fruitless job to argue your side with your card company for a chargeback.

keithclancy

Your better off just sending it back.

If you don't want the whole thing anymore just tell them you'll send everything back and get a refund for for the whole lot.

GarIT

whippet wrote: »

If they charge your card and you look for a 'chargeback' i would imagine the bank would side with the supplier as you received the product and they have made reasonable efforts to have you return it.

The bank can't side wit anyone, that's not how it works. If the card holder requests a charge back they get it end of. The rest is then up for the company to take to court if they wish.


OP you will have to return the second item but you should be compensated for your time. Or you could get them to send a courier to collect it from your door.

keithclancy

GarIT wrote: »

The bank can't side wit anyone, that's not how it works. If the card holder requests a charge back they get it end of. The rest is then up for the company to take to court if they wish.


OP you will have to return the second item but you should be compensated for your time. Or you could get them to send a courier to collect it from your door.

No, the card company starts an investigation into the matter and it can fall on either side.

Also you are not entitled to be compensated for your time as there is no prior agreement on this between you and the retailer.

GarIT

keithclancy wrote: »

No, the card company starts an investigation into the matter and it can fall on either side.

Also you are not entitled to be compensated for your time as there is no prior agreement on this between you and the retailer.

I've never heard of banks investigating anything. Anytime I've heard of chargebacks being done the bank does it without question.

There is no agreement for the OP giving it back either. If i wasn't being compensated for my time I wouldn't bother giving it back. If they want it they can collect it, the OP doesn't have to run around sorting their problems. It would be unreasonable for the OP to be left out of pocket to help a company.

keithclancy

GarIT wrote: »

I've never heard of banks investigating anything. Anytime I've heard of chargebacks being done the bank does it without question.

There is no agreement for the OP giving it back either. If i wasn't being compensated for my time I wouldn't bother giving it back. If they want it they can collect it, the OP doesn't have to run around sorting their problems. It would be unreasonable for the OP to be left out of pocket to help a company.

It used to be part of my job.

Cabaal

GarIT wrote: »

There is no agreement for the OP giving it back either.

Grand, but the seller is entitled to charge for an item the op wishes to keep,

seagull

Tell them there's an admin fee to cover the time and effort it will take you to repackage the item and take it to the post office. I'll leave it up to you to decide what the rate is, and how long it will take.

carlmango11

keithclancy wrote: »

If you don't want the whole thing anymore just tell them you'll send everything back and get a refund for for the whole lot.

I'll probably go ahead with this. Thanks.

dudara

You can't keep an item because you decide you want compensation. The retailer has offered to pay the return postage, which is very good of them, and I would oblige.

In relation to the package that didn't arrive on time, that was a failure to deliver as expected. So I would be seeking to return for a refund, again at their cost.

athtrasna

Did you receive the second order? Do they have proof that you did?

uck51js9zml2yt

you have a cooling off period for goods bought online. tell them your sending it all back

slimjimmc

Stephanie Savory Shotgun wrote: »

you have a cooling off period for goods bought online. tell them your sending it all back

Generally if you invoke the cooling period the retailer is entitled to require you pay for shipping.

In the OP's case 2 situations have arisen which, imo, mean he can return both items without paying shipping costs,
1) the original order apparently was not fulfilled as agreed* therefore he can reject the order and get a full refund including all shipping costs.
2) the second item is unsolicited but the retailer has requested return at their expense. The OP has no right to the second item.


* this assumes the retailer had committed to deliver by a deadline, rather than the much more fuzzy "endeavour to deliver" by the deadline.

P. Breathnach

slimjimmc wrote: »

... the original order apparently was not fulfilled as agreed* therefore he can reject the order and get a full refund including all shipping costs.
...
* this assumes the retailer had committed to deliver by a deadline, rather than the much more fuzzy "endeavour to deliver" by the deadline.

It can be quite difficult to have a contract for sale of goods rescinded on the grounds of lateness. It has to be established that "time is of the essence" of the agreement. That means that the purchaser would need to have made it clear at the time of ordering that if the goods were not delivered by a certain date, the purchase would be cancelled.

If I ordered a bouquet of flowers for delivery to Herself on her birthday, and the florist messed up and delivered to following day, I might not have a winnable case. If, however, I had specified when ordering that it was a birthday bouquet for delivery on that particular date, then I would probably have a case for rescinding the contract.

Thoie

dudara wrote: »

You can't keep an item because you decide you want compensation. The retailer has offered to pay the return postage, which is very good of them, and I would oblige.

In relation to the package that didn't arrive on time, that was a failure to deliver as expected. So I would be seeking to return for a refund, again at their cost.

I wouldn't necessarily say it was good of them to pay the return postage for an unsolicited product. While some people are saying "just go to the post office", I know in my own case that's a considerable inconvenience. I'd be inclined to ask them to send a courier to collect it from my office, and suggest they collect the first item at the same time, and give me a refund.

My reading of this section is that the second parcel would be considered as unsolicited goods, and you have to make it available to the company to collect for six months. If they fail to collect it within six months (and you've given them notice in writing of where they can be collected, and the fact that it's unsolicited) then you can keep it.

What's not spelled out there is what the story is when it's an obvious mistake (maybe they thought the first had got lost in the post, so sent you a replacement). Be reasonable, and let them know the item is available for collection in x place from 9-5 Monday to Friday. Don't tell them they can collect it from the top of Everest on the third Tuesday after the first full moon after a bank holiday between 2 and 2:10

keithclancy

Thoie wrote: »

I wouldn't necessarily say it was good of them to pay the return postage for an unsolicited product. While some people are saying "just go to the post office", I know in my own case that's a considerable inconvenience. I'd be inclined to ask them to send a courier to collect it from my office, and suggest they collect the first item at the same time, and give me a refund.

My reading of this section is that the second parcel would be considered as unsolicited goods, and you have to make it available to the company to collect for six months. If they fail to collect it within six months (and you've given them notice in writing of where they can be collected, and the fact that it's unsolicited) then you can keep it.

What's not spelled out there is what the story is when it's an obvious mistake (maybe they thought the first had got lost in the post, so sent you a replacement). Be reasonable, and let them know the item is available for collection in x place from 9-5 Monday to Friday. Don't tell them they can collect it from the top of Everest on the third Tuesday after the first full moon after a bank holiday between 2 and 2:10

Irish Law doesn't matter.

He bought it from the US.

Thoie

keithclancy wrote: »

Irish Law doesn't matter.

He bought it from the US.

Maybe the OP can clarify - the only mention of the US I saw (though I haven't fully put my thinking brain on yet) is this:

carlmango11 wrote: »

I can only find references to US law (where there's no obligation).

I got the impression that he'd ordered it from Ireland (based on the "morning" phone call), but that his googling had only found him US laws.

carlmango11

Thoie wrote: »

I got the impression that he'd ordered it from Ireland (based on the "morning" phone call), but that his googling had only found him US laws.

That's right. I ordered from Ireland but the law info I found was US federal.

I contacted the National Consumer Agency. If it's not delivered within a pre-agreed timeframe you're entitled to a full refund with postage charges covered. I'll just return the two of them and might request they collect them from the office.

Thanks

runawaybishop

carlmango11 wrote: »

That's right. I ordered from Ireland but the law info I found was US federal.

I contacted the National Consumer Agency. If it's not delivered within a pre-agreed timeframe you're entitled to a full refund with postage charges covered. I'll just return the two of them and might request they collect them from the office.

Thanks

You don't need to go to the post office to send it to them. Tell them they can arrange collection and you will facilitate, you don't need to be put out any more.