Incorrectly Received a Second Gift Card - $500

Lantojamo on 28/09/2021 - 13:24

I cashed in some reward points for a $500 digital gift voucher which I spent a few days ago. Today I got a second card for the same value. It is a different card number and I checked online and its balance is $500. I also check the original and its all spent.

While I dont like taking advantage of someones mistake, $500 is $500 and I could put this to some good use. The companies in question are very large, so I dont have any guilt for taking money from a small company.

If I get caught, I figure the worse case scenario is I'm asked to return the product or pay back the money.

Has anyone experienced this before? What would you do?

Poll Options expired

  • 103
    Spend it quickly before they realise and cancel it
  • 53
    Report it
  • 9
    Donate to best OzB comment
General Discussion

Comments

  • bobbified on 28/09/2021 - 13:28
    +16

    Personally, I would contact them to let them know so they have an opportunity to have fix their screwup.
    If they don't respond in a week or so, then I'd start looking at what I could buy with it! 😁

    (btw, if it's Kogan, they can get screwed - I'd spend it straightaway! LOL)

    • antojamo on 28/09/2021 - 13:45
      +2

      Not Kogan.

      I could send an email and if they dont reply, its on them :-)

      • bobbified on 28/09/2021 - 13:49
        +4

        Not Kogan.

        Damn!

      • Caped Baldy on 28/09/2021 - 14:17
        +3

        I would spend it and not bother with a post if it was them or HN

      • squidz on 28/09/2021 - 14:54
        +2

        r u sending them to [email protected]?

  • savemore on 28/09/2021 - 13:37
    +2

    Knowing that someone else spent a $500 JBHiFi eGiftCard that I purchased earlier this year in NSW (when I live in SA), then I think you should contact the company and do the right thing. I will never see the $500 (despite reporting this to Australian Cyber Security Centre) and am still angry that it can be so easy for someone else to do this using a Gift Card.

    • antojamo on 28/09/2021 - 13:45

      That sucks.

    • dust on 28/09/2021 - 14:04
      +1

      How did this happen? Was the gift card delivered to the wrong person?

      • savemore on 28/09/2021 - 14:07

        The eGift Card was bought by myself on behalf of a friend, it was sent to their e-mail address in 2020, but they never received the original e-mail and they were re-emailed in January. I suspect that they had a virus on their computer and that someone was able to access their e-mail, in which case the January e-mail contained both the PDF and the Codes/PIN in the main message. When I went to use them in June they had both been spent (one was $50 and the other was $500) in 2 different stores in NSW.

        • Vieira4 on 28/09/2021 - 15:07
          +1

          This is why you never do favours for friends.

          • savemore on 28/09/2021 - 16:23

            @Vieira4: Done in good faith and already purchased $2000 previously. It was to help out with the purchase of a MacBook Pro when they had a 10% off Mac's sale. But you are correct, I'm out of pocket about $530 dollars.

        • Love a bargain on 29/09/2021 - 14:15
          +2

          If I'm gifting a eGC to a friend, I'd normally have it emailed to me first so that I can make sure it exists (as in, I've received it) and check that it's valid and correct before giving it to my friend.

  • herecomestheoost on 28/09/2021 - 13:41

    Go spend it.

  • djones145 on 28/09/2021 - 13:43
    +1

    bikies!

  • [Deactivated] on 28/09/2021 - 13:43
    +2

    Quickly buy another giftcard with it

  • Big Lenny on 28/09/2021 - 13:54
    -2

    happened to me with an online retailer
    they screwed up and sent me another $100 gift card, i quickly spent it and no have no regrets :D

  • monky on 28/09/2021 - 13:56
    +1

    A drop in the ocean for the Capitalist elite: They won't miss it. If you do feel bad about taking the money, just delete the email/card, but certainly don't let them know they wasted their resources.

    • jrt2020 on 28/09/2021 - 20:18
      +3

      This is called rationalisation which is one of the 3pillars of fraud

      • monky on 28/09/2021 - 20:25

        If it's fraud to ignore an email, I'm going to prison for a very long time.

      • coffeeinmyveins on 28/09/2021 - 23:03
        +2

        Like the fraud that billionaires and multi trillion dollar companies commit on a daily basis?

        This guy got a voucher for doing nothing wrong. If it was a small business sure, be honest about it. But I'm guessing this is woolies or Coles and they won't miss it

  • capslock on 28/09/2021 - 14:02
    +4

    There's a lot of red tape in big companies. There may not be a process on how to deal with your situation and you could just go around in circles. Perhaps consider it a windfall.

    • antojamo on 28/09/2021 - 14:07
      +1

      I was thinking the same thing. Also whoever received my email, may just end up trying to take the giftcard for themselves. Although I would never give them the card details, just mine.

  • screensaver on 28/09/2021 - 14:28

    I once got an egift card for 100 for a market research I had signed up for but didnt go. I waited sometime, at least 2 months, then used it.

  • ChipsChicky on 28/09/2021 - 14:55
    -4

    Well, whats your will come to you eventually.
    The authority you have is to decide that you wana get it in a legal way or illegal with a guilty conscious.

    Report it and mention that as its thr fault and you found and reported an error is thr system, you strongly feel that you are entitled to this gift card now as returning it would create a depression and bad for your mental health. Hopefully, they won't ask it back.

    • jaejae69 on 28/09/2021 - 18:12

      Well what if OP has accumulated such good karma in their life and what’s “coming” has now just come?

      • ChipsChicky on 28/09/2021 - 19:12

        You can give a 1000 reasons but it won't make it right.

    • thestig on 29/09/2021 - 08:40

      I wonder what Karma will bring to someone who suggests that someone else should lie about their mental health in order to hopefully keep a gift card. I hope for the best for you.

      • ChipsChicky on 29/09/2021 - 09:49
        -1

        Only a mentally ill person won't feel any depression by returning a $500 gift card.

        I haven't suggested OP that he must do it, he is clearly not willing to return the card and seeking loopholes in the system. His statements suggest that he will be depressed by returning it and there is no harm in saying that if returned, it will have a bad effect on him. Its upto company then to decide.

        While I dont like taking advantage of someones mistake, $500 is $500 and I could put this to some good use. The companies in question are very large, so I dont have any guilt for taking money from a small company.

        • thestig on 29/09/2021 - 10:24
          -1

          Depression is a mental illness, feeling disappointed about something is not depression.

          You stated that the OP should mention:

          returning it would create a depression and bad for your mental health

          Returning the gift card may make the OP feel disappointed. Suggesting that the OP should claim that a disappointment would create a depression and is bad for their mental health in order to guilt a company into allowing them to keep something that doesn't belong to them is trivialising mental illness for a benefit. Not illegal, but as you say:

          Well, whats your will come to you eventually.
          The authority you have is to decide that you wana get it in a legal way or illegal with a guilty conscious.

          I wish you all the best with your karma ChipsChicky…

          • ChipsChicky on 29/09/2021 - 11:16

            @thestig:

            1. Disappointment leads to depression. I have never seen a person getting depressed after happiness.

            2. You are IMPLYING that i said that HE SHOULD mention that. I haven't said that He SHOULD do it rather i meant, if he feels so, he can say this and its evident from his post the he will feel so. He is already not willing to return it and seeking for opinion.
              Its your own assumption that i said the HE SHOULD mention in such and such a way.

            3. I won't curse you in return. If that makes you feel happy, keep doing it.

  • mickyb80 on 28/09/2021 - 15:01

    Use it, then call them and tell them. :)

  • currentfad on 28/09/2021 - 15:05
    +4

    So you cashed reward points and either a multi-billion dollar bank/airline company gave out an extra $500. Your time and their administration cost to solve this will cost more than $500. Spend that shit.

    • Ocker on 28/09/2021 - 16:16
      -3

      Spend it and then face the prospect of a legal case and court order to repay the money.
      No different to a bank crediting funds to your account in error and you withdrawing/spending the funds - totally against the law.

      • currentfad on 28/09/2021 - 16:17
        +1

        Yeah mate, good luck proving that one.

        • Ocker on 28/09/2021 - 16:19
          -1

          Yep, and I am sure a good and highly priced lawyer would have a chance of getting you off. Why take the risk?

          • currentfad on 28/09/2021 - 16:20
            +2

            @Ocker: Emails are not attached to any legal document. Who's to say I wasn't hacked? Secondly, I can flog off a gift card to anyone. Who are you gonna prosecute, the person who unknowingly bought the gift card, or the mystery person who received it.

            This is more of a moral dilemma than it is a legal one in reality.

    • lachhelix on 28/09/2021 - 19:55

      I know someone who has experienced something similar
      They sent 2 lots of cards, then called and asked for 1 of them back a few months later and if they didn't, they'd be in negative rewards points…

  • iampoor on 28/09/2021 - 16:09
    +3

    Depends on your principles. It shouldn't matter what the company is or their size. I would report it.

    • capslock on 28/09/2021 - 16:11

      Even though you are poor and they are rich?

      • iampoor on 29/09/2021 - 08:05
        +3

        Yes. For me, being poor doesn't make it right to be dishonest with a rich party.

  • apsilon on 28/09/2021 - 16:34
    +11

    It'd depend on who the company was if I'm honest. Most have T&C on their cards saying it's treated like cash, lose it and it's gone they won't replace it. So if they lose it…. it's gone. Something about cake and eat it too.

  • ptndan on 28/09/2021 - 16:41
    +7

    There's laws that cover unsolicited goods that you receive by mistake (at least in NSW and Vic). You can read up on it here and here.

    In short, the business has a "recovery period" of 3 months from the date you received the gift card for them to retrieve it. If you use the gift card and the business asks for it back you are liable to repay it for the amount spent in cash, because gift cards are treated as cash.

    If you nofity the business in writing, that 3 month recovery period gets shortened to 1 month from the date you notified them.

    If the business still hasn't claimed the gift card after the recovery period, it's yours to keep.

    • antojamo on 29/09/2021 - 20:00

      I think this is fair approach. Although I might do a test email to their dropbox to see how diligent they are with checking the emails, otherwise just wait out the 3 months.

      • Love a bargain on 30/09/2021 - 10:19

        Why not just wait the 3 months? Less effort

  • TRAVELO on 28/09/2021 - 18:40
    -6

    keeping it is one way to receive a criminal charge.. All they have to do is report it to Police and they will be knocking on your door.. they have done that for much less value.

    A person who, by deception, dishonestly obtains property belonging to someone else, or obtains a financial advantage or causes a financial disadvantage, is guilty of an offence. Obtaining a financial advantage or causing a financial disadvantage, A financial advantage or a financial disadvantage may be permanent or temporary.

    A person who, by any deception, dishonestly:

    Obtains property belonging to another, or
    Obtains any financial advantage or causes any financial disadvantage.

  • Lexan on 28/09/2021 - 21:35
    +1

    Wait a month. If no one contacted you then feel free to use it.

  • harrribo on 29/09/2021 - 11:52

    —Donate it to a charity of your choice —

  • afah0447 on 29/09/2021 - 12:21

    Sit on it till a few days before the expiration date and see if they contact you or the error corrects itself. If not…then spend it.

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