I ordered an electrical item from amazon marketplace (about £35) and the company has sent me two in error in separate packages. Both were delivered by recorded delivery, however as I ordered a few items from a few companies on the same day I didn't realise it was a duplicate item. I have definately only been charged for one.

What are my responsibilities as a consumer in terms of accepting and or notifying the company of the error. Can I just accept it as a "gift" or do I have to notify them? The right thing would obviously to declare it, but I don't feel I should spend the time needed to package it back up and or paying for its return.

Thanks

keep it! lol It's their error and a massive company like that will not notice. I remember when I got sent an extra two sets of T in the Park tickets through my door. Did I send them back? god no!

You have to notify them of the error and allow them to arrange for it to be collected at their expense. I'm not sure whether they are allowed to ask you to take it to the post office, but if they do they must pre-pay the postage.

I think keeping it without informing them is theft.

I thought so too Ecossewarrior , but didn't know where I stood legally. Just a small point it's not Amazon itself, but an independent company who sells through amazon

Bed 32 is correct - you've not paid for them, so keeping therm is theft. Your duty is to inform them of their error and assist in the return of the goods at their expense. If they choose not to, then you can do what you want with them.

If you hadn't ordered anything from them and it had just turned up out of the blue, then it would be 'unsolicited goods' and you could then consider it a gift as long as they didn't contact you about it within a reasonable time. However, as you have ordered something from them and it is very obviously a mistake, the goods are not classed as unsolicited and you have to give them back. However, you should not be charged for doing so - make sure you get a free courier or a prepaid box from them.

Thanks for that - the company has asked me to send it back (I'm negotiating with them re payment for P&P based on demon x slash's advice, and they are offering to refund postage on my original order. Awaiting their reply.

I had a similar situation with ebay. Ordered item, arrived, no problems.

2 weeks later duplicate item arrives out of the blue. I have emailed the seller to tell them it's here but had no reply.

How long should I wait before getting rid of it?

If you have received two separate items after ordering one the second surely falls into the catagory of unsolicited.

Unsolicited Items - DTI

No, because it has been established that you have a relationship with the seller by ordering things from them before. The fact that the two items are identical supports the reasoning that this was a mistake, but a mistake does not make it unsolicited. See this thread, and the subsequent comments.