What to Do With Amazon Packages You Didn’t Order
You open the door, and there is a clearly marked package from Amazon on the welcome mat. The fact is that you did not order anything from them, and upon closer examination it becomes clear that this delivery is not for you. What should you do?
Simple delivery errors happen all the time. If this is a simple case of a wrong address / correct street and you know who the package is for (for example, a neighbor), you can go to their house. If it’s small enough, put it in their mailbox . If not, knock on the door and hand it over. Otherwise, simply place it in front of the door with the shipping label facing up so that it is clearly visible.
If you don’t know the recipient, well, Amazon gave you a gift. According to the FTC , any items mailed to you that you did not order can legally be saved as a free gift. This applies to Amazon or any other retailer who ships items and includes any wrong items sent to your address, even if the package is correctly addressed to you. Most likely Amazon will tell you to keep the item if you contact support. Hope you get something good!
Okay, but tell me you don’t need this item or the talking cartoon cricket on your shoulder won’t let you keep it. In this case, you can contact Amazon and offer to return the item. Just make sure Amazon pays for all aspects of return shipping – it’s illegal. This means that you give them “a reasonable amount of time (say 30 days)” to pick up the item and return it, and you don’t have to pay a cent for any of that. If they don’t pick it up in time, you can keep it for yourself or throw it away.
If this has happened to you multiple times and the name is the same on all packages, it is possible that the previous customer used their old default Amazon shipping address. Feel free to contact your local US Postal Inspector to inform them that this person no longer lives there. There is nothing more you can do. So, either enjoy the free giveaways or get ready to chat a lot with Amazon support.