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Some time ago, I received in the mail several music compact discs that I had not ordered. The boxes containing these discs were addressed to me, and a billing invoice was attached to each. I returned the first three boxes to the sender with a note attached to each indicating that I had not ordered them and no further shipments should be sent to me. In spite of my efforts, two more discs arrived within weeks. Both sat unopened in my house until the music company requested their return and promised to send no more. We are not required to return goods that are sent to us unsolicited. We also are not required to pay for them. If you did not request the items or agree to pay for them, you may keep them without any obligation to the sender. For example, if you receive an item you did not order on a "10-day free trial basis," do not be deceived by the language. You are under no obligation to pay for it or return it. It is yours to keep. The distributor is aware of this risk. Although these unsolicited items may have value, distributors rely in part on the public's tendency to do as requested. If we fail to send the material back, we feel obligated to pay. You cannot, however, obligate yourself by a failure to say no or to perform some act - such as returning the discs. A duty to pay arises only when you take some affirmative action to request the item. This same legal rule applies to services that you do not request. The rule is different for property that is intended for someone else but mistakenly delivered to you. In these cases, you must make reasonable efforts to notify the sender or intended recipient of the error and make the item available to either. |