Do I alert a store to their over-refund?

May 29, 2008 2:53 PM

I returned two items to a store and was refunded $37 extra. The refund did go back to my credit card and is on my statement. Will the company notice and take it back?

Should I tell them? Or will they notice and correct the mistake themselves?

The reason I think they will notice is that I returned 4 items to two different stores. One was without receipt. Two were from online. One was with receipt that I bought when I returned the two from online. When I returned those two the manager did not account for the online discount of 10% and gave me about $37 extra, which has already gone onto my credit card.

On all of these they recorded my name and phone number because the items were all over $150 or so. I'm worried I'm now going to be on some list in their shrink department and they'll come after me for the $37! Or do something like cancel my store credit for the first refund.

Am I being irrational to worry about it? Wouldn't most people just keep the extra money?

I should go tell them, right?

posted by jesirose to Shopping (11 answers total)

Tell them. Goodwill toward you is worth more than $37.
posted by Inspector.Gadget at 3:01 PM on May 29, 2008

Tell them. It's the right thing to do.
posted by The corpse in the library at 3:04 PM on May 29, 2008

It doesn't matter what most people would do. What matters is your morals and what you can live with. Tell them -- besides their goodwill, is the worrying worth $37 to you?
posted by katemonster at 3:05 PM on May 29, 2008

I should add the only reason I haven't just gone over there is that it's a ways from me so I have to drive there and if I drive out there and they just tell me to keep it anyway, I'd have wasted my time and gas money.

Whenever I have seen a mistake like that before and caught it in store, usually they just let it go.

Yeah I'm going to go over there, because it is the right thing to do, but now I have to go spend my gas and time because they made a mistake, you know?
posted by jesirose at 3:08 PM on May 29, 2008

I read you as being concerned that you're being a chump if you give up the bonus $37. Not in my view.

Assuming you don't report yourself, I can't say whether they would notice. If they do notice it, I guess they will probably just take steps to restore the charge, without assuming that you noticed the bonus and decided to rip them off.
posted by Clyde Mnestra at 3:11 PM on May 29, 2008

Then just call them on the telephone.
posted by astruc at 3:11 PM on May 29, 2008

Could you call them instead of driving there?
posted by dosterm at 3:12 PM on May 29, 2008

"I have to drive there and if I drive out there and they just tell me to keep it anyway, I'd have wasted my time and gas money"

pick up the phone. call them. say: "you refunded me $37 extra. what would you like me to do?"

problem solved.
posted by klanawa at 3:12 PM on May 29, 2008

And now I feel like a moron.

Thanks AskMe. :) (Seriously, cause I never would have thought of that. I don't know why.)
posted by jesirose at 3:23 PM on May 29, 2008

You should go back and tell them of their error. Not only is the ethically correct thing to do, but it will be in benefit of you and the cashier who helped you. Some stores will find the error and take it out of the persons check and that really blows. Having worked in customer service for many years I was always grateful for someone's honesty and not so grateful when they just took what was not theirs and ran. you will feel so much better about yourself and that person will also be thankful And even if they are not, who cares, in your heart you know you did the right thing.
posted by eve28 at 6:41 PM on May 29, 2008

Of course you should tell them. Think of it as an Abe Lincoln moment.
posted by mumeishi at 2:05 PM on June 2, 2008