unordered merchandise as a free gift

[SteveDC]

I have seen the same themes in several threads, so I wanted to start a separate thread to let people know that if you receive merchandise you did not order, you may legally keep it as a free gift, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

I see the following recurring themes:

1. "I ordered one and received three!"

2. "I canceled the order, but Lenovo shipped it anyway!"

If the above ever happens to you, please refer to the following information from the FTC:

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/pro ... rderd.shtm

Don't be bullied by Lenovo or your credit card company. Know your rights.

[erik]

sorry but this doesn't apply to erroneous orders in which you physically submitted your billing information on an SSL-secured website.   if lenovo shipped you a computer completely out of the blue and then sent a bill, the link you posted would apply.   however, multiple and/or canceled order shipments are always due to multiple order submissions from website/browser errors and are protected under various laws on both your end and lenovo's.

you cannot legally keep multiple/canceled thinkpads just because they were erroneously sent to you.   if this were the case then people would simply place multiple orders at the same time, claim they were sent in error, then try to keep all of them for free.   nice try but it just doesn't work that way.

[rkawakami]

The third Q at the FTC site sums it up:

Q. What should I do if the unordered merchandise I received was the result of an honest shipping error?

A. Write the seller and offer to return the merchandise, provided the seller pays for postage and handling. Give the seller a specific and reasonable amount of time (say 30 days) to pick up the merchandise or arrange to have it returned at no expense to you. Tell the seller that you reserve the right to keep the merchandise or dispose of it after the specified time has passed.

Along with having the company pick up the return shipping tab, be sure to have it insured or registered so that there's proof of it being sent. Also, get a receipt from the shipper. In other words, CYA.

[ezlynx]

This reminds me of the time I ordered a color laser printer (some years back) and some toner cartridges.

What did I get? Two printers and three sets of toner cartridges (this was hundreds of dollars of merchandise).

I called them and sent back most of the extra toner, bought a couple. As for the printer, I had printing problems so they let me use the unopened one.

They never followed through on picking up the used one so I have another printer, not working, for parts.

Initially I called them because I was afraid their ordering system had gotten screwed up and imagined them sending multiple orders to everyone. I guess it was just me though.