Should I Pay For A Canceled Order That Was Delivered?

It’s all too easy to click on a buy button to make purchases these days. If you bought something by mistake, or even if you meant to buy it but quickly changed your mind, do you have to pay for it? The simple answer is no, because there are laws and regulations in place to protect you.

Here’s what you need to know about rights and protections when it comes to being charged for a canceled order or an order you never made.

If you never placed an order

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) advises that businesses cannot send merchandise you don’t order, then charge you for it. By extension, you’re not obligated to return or pay for the goods, even if you receive an invoice or collection letter. You can hold on to any merchandise as a gift.

Sometimes, sellers might send you a gift or sample, or a charity could send you a gift and then ask for a donation. You can keep such products and don’t need to pay for them.

If your credit card gets charged for an order you canceled or didn’t make

If a merchant or online seller ships an order you canceled and your credit card is charged, you have certain rights under the Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA). This act covers billing errors, such as those involving charges for goods you didn’t accept, goods that were not delivered as agreed or unauthorized charges.

To invoke your rights, you will have to put in a billing dispute with your credit card issuer within 60 days from the date the issuer sent the first statement with the charge. You must dispute this charge in writing. If you don’t follow these procedures, you could be held responsible for the charge.

However, before you start an FCBA dispute, try contacting the seller to ask about receiving credit for a disputed charge. Do this sooner rather than later so you avoid missing the 60-day period for initiating an FCBA dispute.

Send a letter to your card issuer at the address it provides for billing disputes and inquiries — not where you send your payments. If your issuer allows you to dispute errors online or with a phone call, you should still follow up with a letter to ensure you get the full protection of the law.

Unless the issue has been resolved by then, the issuer should acknowledge your letter in writing within 30 days of receipt. The issuer should sort out your dispute within two billing cycles of receiving your letter. It shouldn’t take more than 90 days to resolve an issue. While the investigation is ongoing, you won’t need to pay the amount that is in dispute or any finance charges, but you will have to continue paying the rest of your charges.

If needed, you can also escalate the dispute by reporting vendors to the FTC or your state’s attorney general’s office.

If you’re a potential victim of a scam

The United States Postal Inspection Service issued a warning in late 2023 about a scam called brushing, where you receive packages you didn’t order, with no return address.

The sender is usually an international, third-party seller who finds your address online. They send the item to give the impression that the recipient is a verified buyer who has written positive online reviews of the merchandise — but the review is fake. Fake reviews are used to fraudulently boost or inflate the products’ ratings and sales numbers, which sellers hope will boost sales over time.

The bad news is that these scammers may have compromised your personal information, and that fake review may prompt people to purchase worthless stuff they don’t need or want. Also, scammers may use your address and account information to buy merchandise, then steal it from your home before you’re able to pick it up.

The USPS Inspection Service recommends the following to avoid future brushing scams:

• Never pay for unsolicited merchandise; if there’s a return address, return to sender. Change account passwords and monitor your credit card statements.

• File a fraud report if the items come from established vendors such as Amazon and eBay.

• Notify authorities if the package contains organic materials (i.e., seeds, food, plants) or an unknown liquid or substance.

If you’re pressured into making a purchase you don’t want

It’s also not uncommon to be subjected to sales pressure that makes you buy a product or service: a decision you may later regret. The FTC has a “cooling off” rule that speaks to this sort of situation. It addresses certain sales made at your “home, workplace or dormitory, or at a seller’s temporary location, such as a hotel or motel room, convention center, fairground or restaurant.” You have three days to cancel such sales.

This rule doesn’t cover all sales that occur under such conditions though. For one, it doesn’t apply to sales made at your home for less than $25 or to sales of less than $130 made at temporary locations.

The bottom line

While different situations require different approaches, you have power when it comes to being charged for orders or purchases you didn’t make, and sometimes even those you did make but later cancel or regret.

“Sellers matter because some, like Amazon or Target, have very good return policies,” says Cathy Lesser Mansfield, a senior instructor of law at Case Western Reserve University law school and former policy analyst with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). “But if a seller doesn’t pay attention, you can stop payment and get a credit card issuer to intervene.”

Start a dispute and stop the issuer from charging interest during an investigation, says Mansfield. “Customers tend to win because vendors don’t want to upset card issuers.”

The FTC has tips to help avoid issues in the future when shopping:

• If you’ve never heard of the company or seller, search online for its name using keywords such as “complaint” or “scam” to ensure you’re dealing with a reputable vendor.
• Read the fine print of the company’s refund and return policies, the item’s availability and the total cost before ordering.
• Get a shipment date.
• Keep records of your order, including the website, ad or catalog you ordered from. Note the date of your order, any promises the company made about shipping and when the promises were made.
• Keep order confirmations, receipts, tracking numbers or other documents, along with all emails, text messages or communications you have with the company.
• Track your purchases.