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Random Stuff from Amazon
tastydonuts
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So, this evening when I came home I found a package sitting on my steps soaking up melted snow and slowly freezing over from Amazon. It was addressed to me, but I haven't actually ordered anything from Amazon or anywhere really because with the weather as it is, it would have wound up being a package sitting on my steps turning into an ice cube (knocking/ringing the bell is optional, idk). At the same time I also sometimes just order stuff at 0200 - 0400 at night, there was a chance of it being something I ordered months ago that was out of stock and I just forgot, so I had to open it.
Anyhoo, it's three items, a smaller notebook that I've ordered several times, some random beauty bar product, and a surprise birthday box kit (balloons, I guess). Notebook is from one of the many Chinese storefronts that are quite possibly made in the same factory just named differently, and is a smaller variant of a set I purchased recently. As is the beauty bar thing... they all have minor drip damage, except for the one that was covered in plastic. Don't really have a box lying around or a desire to go to an Amazon center to return this stuff either tbh.
It was shipped Feb 1st, and the Amazon Postage Label actually misspelled my address, but the tracking number checks out (UPS fixed it). It's an Amazon box, with all Amazon stickers/tape, and it's city of origin on the UPS tracking is their North Haven center so... by all accounts it's an Amazon package. Has anybody run into this?
Pre-post addendum: Looking around I actually saw this it may be something called a "brushing" scam. BBB says the merch is mine to keep. Don't really care enough to report it, though. I couldn't find either of the items searching on Amazon, and my most recent purchase/contact with such a seller was via eBay messaging because they stopped selling them through Amazon, so it's not like they can put up a review? Or maybe I just didn't look hard enough... idk.
But yeah, has anybody run into this type of thing before? Is it a one off thing? I do see reviews for items where they say "oh, I got this for free", but they typically say they got it in exchange for their review. Birthday box makes it seem like a rando gift attempt from a seller? IDK... If it starts to happen regularly I guess I will have to report it.
Anyhoo, it's three items, a smaller notebook that I've ordered several times, some random beauty bar product, and a surprise birthday box kit (balloons, I guess). Notebook is from one of the many Chinese storefronts that are quite possibly made in the same factory just named differently, and is a smaller variant of a set I purchased recently. As is the beauty bar thing... they all have minor drip damage, except for the one that was covered in plastic. Don't really have a box lying around or a desire to go to an Amazon center to return this stuff either tbh.
It was shipped Feb 1st, and the Amazon Postage Label actually misspelled my address, but the tracking number checks out (UPS fixed it). It's an Amazon box, with all Amazon stickers/tape, and it's city of origin on the UPS tracking is their North Haven center so... by all accounts it's an Amazon package. Has anybody run into this?
Pre-post addendum: Looking around I actually saw this it may be something called a "brushing" scam. BBB says the merch is mine to keep. Don't really care enough to report it, though. I couldn't find either of the items searching on Amazon, and my most recent purchase/contact with such a seller was via eBay messaging because they stopped selling them through Amazon, so it's not like they can put up a review? Or maybe I just didn't look hard enough... idk.
But yeah, has anybody run into this type of thing before? Is it a one off thing? I do see reviews for items where they say "oh, I got this for free", but they typically say they got it in exchange for their review. Birthday box makes it seem like a rando gift attempt from a seller? IDK... If it starts to happen regularly I guess I will have to report it.
“I used to draw, hard to admit that I used to draw...”
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the good news is that assuming the stuff was addressed to you/your address you can keep it; FTC says you can't be back-charged for stuff you didn't order even if you received it
probably check your amazon account and change it's pw just in case, though
that's why we call it the struggle, you're supposed to sweat
Having opened the notebook package up, it's actually a leather portfolio version too. interesting.
Do they check the weather to make sure it's raining, knowing that whoever delivers the package is just going to put it somewhere it'll get wet? >_>
No orders, no charges, etc., etc. Guess I will have to poke Amazon customer support.
They actually might. When you report brushing to Amazon, they'll generally want a picture of the shipping label so they can figure out what seller is doing it and how. If they're doing that it wouldn't surprise me if they do street level lookups on their shipping list to see who has limited cover over their porch to do even better. Most recipients don't care past confirming they weren't charged, so reducing the number of intact shipping labels will slow down the incoming reports and let them get away with more before they get a warning from Amazon and have to stop for a while.
Above post and the BBB are correct: It's legally yours, free and clear. Keep it, donate it, trash it, whatever. As long as it's posted to you they can't charge you for it after the fact. Using pseudonyms might be a weird place in the law because your name isn't *really* Tastydonuts McHortons or whatever, but generally speaking law enforcement doesn't give a shit. Those brush shipped seeds from last summer only got the government involved when somebody realized they weren't going through proper taxation channels and the government may have missed out on whole dollars worth of revenue as a result.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2020/08/04/free-amazon-orders-scam-mysterious-seeds-packages-brushing/5580858002/