var json_comments = new Array("
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ap0
September 27, 2009 8:19 PM
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Other than eBay, dude? Craigslist, dude.

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2 replies
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holytrainwreck
September 28, 2009 2:28 PM
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@ap0: Kijiji, dude... Why spend more time and money cleaning up Dell's mess for them?

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calchip
September 27, 2009 8:25 PM
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I'm confident that by tomorrow afternoon, as a result of the Consumerist post, Andy will have Dell falling all over itself to get back their wifi cards.

The interesting thing here is there's a Federal postal regulation that says if something is sent to you that you didn't order or agree to receive, you're entitled to treat it as a free gift. (This was done to prevent companies from shipping you shit and then billing you for it, which they used to do.)

Had this not have been posted on Consumerist, my advice would have been to send an email to Dell customer service saying that you'd repeatedly tried for almost a year to return these cards, and that if you did not receive, within 5 days, instructions on how to return these items (at Dell's expense), you would, in accordance with applicable postal regulations, consider them free gifts and place them for sale on Ebay.

This sort of thing, sadly, is only going to get more common as the quality of education continues to decline and companies have more and more downright stupid and uncaring people working for them.

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11 replies
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LeChiffre
September 29, 2009 8:30 PM
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@calchip: HA,,I remember the reg from my Contracts I course. It is something like the \"Postal Reorganization Act of 1970 R3009\", or something like that.

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mp1gsp
September 28, 2009 1:27 AM
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@calchip: Also the case here in the UK - if you receive unsolicited goods through the post, you're recommended (but not olbiged as I understand it) to contact the sender once in writing, giving them a reasonable 14 days to arrange collection, and then otherwise consider it a no strings attached gift.

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digitalgimpus
September 27, 2009 10:53 PM
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@calchip: I'm pretty sure that only counts if it was shipped USPS from end to end. I'm almost positive FedEx or UPS was involved in this case.

I had an incorrect keyboard shipped for my laptop a few years ago from IBM... when I called to get it corrected they sent another (correct one) and said to keep the wrong item... costs more to ship back and restock in their warehouse than it was worth. Their shipping deals are one sided (they fill a freighter and it rolls off the lot).

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twophrasebark
September 27, 2009 11:48 PM
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@calchip:

\"The interesting thing here is there's a Federal postal regulation that says if something is sent to you that you didn't order or agree to receive, you're entitled to treat it as a free gift.\"

This is not entirely true. This does not cover bona fide error.

If, for example, a diamond company accidentally mailed you a $10,000 ring, they have the right to ask for it back as long as they pay for the shipping.

If you decide \"I heard on the internet I can keep this\" you may be the recipient of a lawsuit or a visit from the police. Either way, I promise you won't get to keep the ring.

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supercereal
September 27, 2009 9:24 PM
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@calchip:

This sort of thing, sadly, is only going to get more common as the quality of education continues to decline and companies have more and more downright stupid and uncaring people working for them.

1) I enjoyed your unwarranted, irrelevant, and inane critique of the \"quality of education.\" Personally, I'd say that things are much brighter now than in your day. Plus, it's great how everyone thinks that everyone else is \"downright stupid.\"

2) Stupid and uncaring people will never cease to exist. Regardless of anything that will ever possible happen, nobody will be excited or joyful to work in order fulfillment or box packing. This has nothing to do with anything you posted about.
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calchip
September 28, 2009 5:26 AM
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@supercereal:

In general, feeding trolls is rarely a wise idea. However, sometimes I find it entertaining, especially since, as Acasto has pointed out, you've already proven my point.

I think if you poll almost any group involved in academia over the past 20 or 30 years, you'll find near universal agreement about a degradation of the quality of education. More people may be earning college degrees today, but the quality of those degrees (on the whole, and of course with exceptions) is not what it was 30 years ago.

Likewise, if you look at the quality of retail workers, customer service phone employees (there really weren't \"call centers\" as there are today 30 years ago) and the like, you'll find that the level of education, training, and overall cognitive ability required for those jobs was significantly greater (and the pay higher, commensurate with the required skill) than it is today.

Additionally, there was a very different attitude about working in any sort of support role (warehouse, customer service, etc) than there is today. This change has come about particularly since the 1970s; there was no such decline noticeable between equivalent earlier periods.

The problem is, in my opinion, a combination of inferior education and management that actively seeks out employees who will act as drones rather than individuals who seek to think and to take ownership.

One can see the evidence supporting this idea by looking at the few companies that have managed to maintain quality in spite of having an inferior labor pool upon which to draw; ask them how their hiring practices have had to change in order to continue to find and hire great people, and that will give you a good idea of how bad the situation has gotten.

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AthronofEryndor
September 28, 2009 5:20 PM
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@calchip: Your empirical assumptions are way, way off base. MOST researchers who explicitly study education -- the ones who actually conduct research on the area as opposed to the ones who shoot from their hips with made-up facts -- usually have to correct people that (a) we're generally a smarter society than we previously were, although we are not nearly as proficient at performing tasks for the 1920s as we are at performing tasks for the 2000s (re: people assume that because kids 'back in the day' had rote memorization of mathematical theorems they must necessarily have been excellent mathematicians) and (b) the quality of our current education is better... albeit not THAT much better and probably still woefully short of where it *could* possibly be. And THEN, depending on where the researcher falls, they either debate heavily whether (1) schools really can make a difference or if (2) it really is the family environment that is the critical driver. And various researchers fall within that general spectrum.

I would encourage you to actually research your assumptions next time instead of adopting righteous indignation as your key piece of 'evidence.'

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Coralvillain
September 28, 2009 3:52 PM
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@calchip: I think if you poll almost any group involved in serious debate you would find near universal agreement that your post contains absolutely no factual data to back up any of your points and therefore its power to inform or convince is nil. BTW, I think I hear some kids on your lawn.

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acasto
September 27, 2009 10:41 PM
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@supercereal: \"....Plus, it's great how everyone thinks that everyone else is \"downright stupid.\"

Exactly how your comment comes off. Congratulations for explaining this to him which such a finely hewed example provided by none other than yourself.

As for his comment on the eduction these days, I agree with him. Just because kids are learning more facts and figures does not make them smarter. We are creating well educated robots that lack any common sense or critical thinking skills.

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supercereal
September 27, 2009 11:59 PM
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@acasto: You're free to read into my comment however you see fit, but awkwardly worded sentences certainly aren't helping your case.

But anyway, schools were never the place to learn \"common sense.\" If you want to instill that in your child, you have to take an active role in their upbringing. Lazy, unmotivated parents beget lazy, unmotivated children, and many modern parents expect the world to raise their children for them. You say it's a failed educational system, while I say it's failed parenting.

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TechnoDestructo
September 27, 2009 9:00 PM
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@calchip:

\"This sort of thing, sadly, is only going to get more common as the quality of education continues to decline and companies have more and more downright stupid and uncaring people working for them.\"

Most companies don't give a shit about their employees, why shouldn't they be uncaring?

I'd say that isn't a matter of education, but the reception John Thain got at Wharton seems to suggest that it is.

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Gamethyme
September 27, 2009 8:36 PM
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@calchip: Is it a federal postal regulation in Canada, too?


The recipient of the products is in Canada - if they were shipped by Dell Canada, then the US Postal regulations won't apply.

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TVarmy
September 27, 2009 9:04 PM
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@Gamethyme: From what I hear on Fox, Canada is a socialist hellfare state, meaning that everything belongs to the government. The troops are probably surrounding his home right now to steal \"their\" wifi cards, which they'll doubtlessly use to build drone robots that euthanize the old.

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katstermonster
September 28, 2009 1:10 PM
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@TVarmy: I'm sad that everyone's busy arguing about education and can't be bothered to notice this for the comic genius it is.

+1000.

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Bhockzer
September 28, 2009 12:13 PM
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@TVarmy: Because even Death Panels need wireless access to the internet.

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fantomesq
September 27, 2009 8:30 PM
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@calchip: Seconded. This is exactly how to handle this.

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threadislocked
September 27, 2009 8:26 PM
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You wasted enough of your time to get them to take these back. Either just throw them away or sell them. You could make about $5 per card on ebay.

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1 replies
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BeefSupreme
September 27, 2009 8:59 PM
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@threadislocked: Agreed. I would have considered my karma points earned after the second unsuccessful run through the customer service gauntlet.

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wardawg
September 27, 2009 8:26 PM
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Has he thought of sending them back to the address they were mailed from with a friendly note on the box? Last time I checked FedEx will let you ship something that's COD. You could also just call up and say you need to speak with someone in the shipping department and try and get ahold of a shipping label with Dell's account number on it that you could just slap back on the box and be done with it.

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1 replies
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The_IT_Crone
September 27, 2009 9:12 PM
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@wardawg: doesn't really work with a company this large. The \"To\" and \"From\" addresses are often in different STATES.

It's like getting an auto-email from a company, that says \"do not reply to this address as no one checks it.\"

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zacox
September 27, 2009 8:31 PM
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I think once those cards have a birthday in your possession, you can stop trying and just hawk them on eBay or craigslist. Same kind of idea as when you find $1000 in the street. Turn it into the police and if nobody claims it within 30 days, it's yours.

Bear in mind that different states have different laws regarding this sort of thing, but I'm guessing that you can be charged with theft of mislaid property only if you can't prove that you attempted to return them to Dell. So, if you have records of people you've contacted at Dell and they failed to retrieve their property, I say go for it.

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4 replies
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Jfielder
September 28, 2009 2:33 PM
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@zacox: You kiddin me? If I find $1000 dollars on the street that shit is mine. So long as it isn't covered in blood or bank dye....

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silver-bolt
September 28, 2009 5:05 AM
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@zacox: Also Mislaid property is not the case here. They SENT him the cards. They did not put 120 wallets down on a counter top and then forget to take it with them. Two different principals.

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subsider34
September 27, 2009 8:58 PM
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@zacox: As was noted above, the recipient lives in Canada, not the United States.

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zacox
September 27, 2009 11:47 PM
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@subsider34: So then replace the word \"states\" with \"provinces\". Both the United States and Canada have laws rooted in English Common Law, and therefore it's not out in left field to think laws regarding this would be similar.

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katstermonster
September 27, 2009 8:35 PM
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I'm usually one to take the same route as Andy - be honest, return the cards. At this point, though, he has exercised due diligence in trying to return the cards to Dell. IANAL, but I think that as long as he can document his attempts to return the cards, he is well in the legal (and moral!) right to keep them, sell them, whatever.

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7 replies
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floraposte
September 27, 2009 9:03 PM
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@katstermonster: That's the conclusion I came to with a nightmare transaction last year (drop shipper with screwed up item numbers and no toll-free phone contact). While I think honesty requires notifying the business that they made an error not in their favor, it's still their responsibility, not the consumer's, to organize the righting of the mistake, and there's a limit to the amount of time and money a consumer could be expected to expend to save a business from its own mistake.

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Charity Froggenhall
September 27, 2009 8:53 PM
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@katstermonster: I concur. He's gone above and beyond trying to return these. It's clear Dell doesn't care or doesn't have the intelligence to respond properly. eBay in good faith, I think.

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Skankingmike
September 27, 2009 9:05 PM
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@Charity Froggenhall: Thirded (is that a word?) but I would sell the hell out of those cards 120 x at least 40 bucks lets say = big money for nothing.

Maybe you should do it on Ebay and sell it for 60 a piece and donate half of it to charity? That would be a nice thing.

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Kogenta
September 27, 2009 9:25 PM
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@Skankingmike: Lets just wait until someone's figured out how the law works in this case. Just because people keep belting out US postal regulations doesn't mean that they're worth anything when the said package doesn't even pass though the US.

It would be a bit of a tragedy if they sold them and then it turns out that the regs actually say dell can come after them for the money.

Anyhow, which CS gauntlet did they try anyhow? I see 4 different contact divisions each with a bunch of different contact numbers on their site. I would have imagined that \"Order Support\" would be the most appropriate, but they may have tried to go after \"Technical Support\" instead.

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MostlyHarmless
September 27, 2009 8:46 PM
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@katstermonster: Stop reading my mind 10 minutes in advance. Its creepy. And you do not have that right yet. You are not google. or xkcd.

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MostlyHarmless
September 28, 2009 3:33 AM
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@Con Seannery: Yeah. It's scary. I once screamed \"GTFO MY HEAD RANDALL\" early morning in my office cube.

Needless to say, I did not get the promotion that year.

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katstermonster
September 27, 2009 9:36 PM
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@MostlyHarmless: Creeeeeeepy! I have that moment quite often with your comments, though. And then I feel silly cuz all I can say is, \"I agree. As usual.\"

Are you sure we're not the same person?

@floraposte: Exactly. So long as that \"organizing\" doesn't involve a judge, a court order, and a deactivated google account! Heh.

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floraposte
September 27, 2009 11:02 PM
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@katstermonster: Actually, you've made me wonder if perhaps the recipient of that email called the bank several times, only to be met with blank noncomprehension, and just gave up.

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katstermonster
September 28, 2009 1:42 AM
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@floraposte: I'll bet large sums of money that it will turn out to be the case.

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RandomHookup
September 27, 2009 9:35 PM
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@MostlyHarmless: Despite all the jokes, aluminum foil still works the best to prevent that problem.

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morlo
September 27, 2009 8:44 PM
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Every business has a procedure for customers who have received the wrong item. But if CS can't understand English, just forget about it. The shipping back to Dell is probably more than Dell's manufacturing cost anyway.

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MyTQuinn
September 27, 2009 8:53 PM
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About 10-12 years ago I had a similar problem with HP. I had ordered a fuser (I think - it's been a long time) and they shipped me a 21\" CRT monitor. At that time the monitor was probably worth well over $1000. Although it was easy to get them to send me a fuser to replace the monitor, after dozens of calls I eventually gave up trying to get them to issue call tag for the monitor, or otherwise provide a means of returning it at their expense.

The monitor now sits on my 10-year-old's desk, older than he is, and works just fine, connected to his refurbished HP computer (advertised as bare, with no OS) that came complete with the previous owner's data and bootable OS still in tact.

Thank you HP, you're always a delight to work with. :)

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scoosdad
September 27, 2009 10:08 PM
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@MyTQuinn: I had a similar thing happen to me about five years ago, but in my case it was someone else's Dell PC instead of the one I ordered around the same time. But when mine arrived the next day I noticed that both UPS shipments had exactly the same tracking numbers (and his PC was nicer than mine!). What probably happened was that when they were getting ready to ship mine, they misplaced the label briefly, printed out a second copy, and somehow that second shipping label ended up on the other guy's box and both PCs got shipped to me.

Calls to Dell resulted in no action, and I finally called the guy who was supposed to get the PC (his name and phone number were on the paperwork in the box), and somehow he managed to get Dell to take it back (they had sent him a second one when he complained to them that he never got his, and he was pretty steamed because he paid a lot extra to get the first order expedited). But had I not been honest about it and tracked down the true recipient, I probably could have kept both PCs because of the screwup with the shipping labeles and duplicate tracking numbers.

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Skankingmike
September 27, 2009 9:05 PM
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@MyTQuinn: Thirded (is that a word?) but I would sell the hell out of those cards 120 x at least 40 bucks lets say = big money for nothing.

Maybe you should do it on Ebay and sell it for 60 a piece and donate half of it to charity? That would be a nice thing.

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Bluth Certified Law Firm
September 27, 2009 9:58 PM
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@Skankingmike: I don't like your screen name lol. My name is Mike, and I don't appreciate being shanked.

@MyTQuinn: You are most certainly a lucky man. Have you found any $1000 bills laying around recently?

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Skankingmike
September 27, 2009 10:58 PM
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@Bluth Certified Law Firm: Skanking is a form of dancing from Jamaica it was created in the Sixties to celebrate freedom from English rule. The musical form is called Ska which would later create Rock Steady and Reggae. Bob Marley, The Whalers, Peter Tosh are some of the original players of this music. The 80's would later create the Ska revival called \"Two Tone\" Ironically this would be created in Briton. Elvis Costello helped the cause by producing the band called The Specials, their claim to fame was Ghost Town still used in many English movies. They created a Label called Two Tone Records which would produce Classic Eighties bands like Madness and The Beat (English Beat)

This would fade out in the mid 80's and Ska would once again be revived this time in America (we always lag) by a very underground cause mostly in NY and Boston. This is call the Ska Revival or 90's ska.
They would have bands as big as No Doubt as well as influence SKA PUNK bands like Rancid, Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Real Big Fish, and many many others.

Just a little history lesson on the name i use it was a nickname in high-school during this third revival in which I would indeed skank at shows.

Ah to be a teenager again...

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JohnDeere
September 28, 2009 8:29 PM
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@Skankingmike: todays teenagers think of a Skank King as something a little different.


skank: •filth: any substance considered disgustingly foul or unpleasant


i thought you were the leader of your trailerpark personally. i use the gamer tag BloodySkank alot so nothing malicious intended.

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Kimaroo - 100% Pure Natural Kitteh
September 28, 2009 3:38 AM
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@Skankingmike: I love 90s Ska. Awesome. I find it interesting that if you listen to the background music in lots of tv shows, and commercials, it is very oftin peppy instrumental ska.

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Skankingmike
September 28, 2009 1:22 PM
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@Kimaroo - 20% More Kitty Added!: yes probably because most of the people that became in charge of that grew up with either 80's or 90's Ska.

I heard it's making a come back again at least trying.

Nothing will beat seeing the Specials live though.

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MostlyHarmless
September 27, 2009 8:54 PM
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Is anyone else getting a tingly feeling at the sight of a crate of neatly stacked and arranged wifi cards?

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3 replies
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Michael Belisle
September 27, 2009 9:15 PM
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@MostlyHarmless: Yes,j ust like the time I ordered cases of memory and a case of VelociRaptors. But definitely this is neater.

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nycaviation
September 27, 2009 8:56 PM
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A couple years ago, Dell had a pretty good deal on a somewhat pricey Canon lens, so I went for it and ordered one. The next day, I got a voicemail asking for more credit information. Before calling back I logged in to my Dell account, where I learned my order for a single lens had turned into eight lenses. No wonder they needed more credit info...the $10,000 charge they attempted was a bit heavy for my card.

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alienshards
September 27, 2009 9:00 PM
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The conversation with dell CS reps probably goes something like this:

\"Our records do not indicated that you have 120 wifi cards. Our records indicated that you have 1 wireless card\"

My suggestion? Since you are an IT tech, maybe you know a nice non-profit organization or school that could use some upgraded wireless cards. If not, well, go ahead and ebay them and donate the money (to not lose karma points).

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3 replies
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Thricebanned
September 27, 2009 11:13 PM
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@alienshards: You forgot \"dibble dabble\" and \"I am not knowing what your are talking about\" in your quotes.

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floraposte
September 27, 2009 11:04 PM
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@dryfire: Now there's an interesting idea. It's also a bit of a PR shield if Dell finally hauls itself up on its high horse. \"Dell pulls back donated equipment from inner-city high school\" isn't a particularly desirable headline.

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MostlyHarmless
September 27, 2009 11:58 PM
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@floraposte: Hahaha you know, if I ever start off a company, I want you to be my PR and Course of Action advisor.

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yesteraeon
September 27, 2009 9:52 PM
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Amazing! The same thing happened to me. Well I only got 30 extra wireless network cards. (I'm also from Canada) I pestered Dell to take them back, but every time a CSR set up a return the system cancelled it. Eventually I gave up and sold them on Ebay.

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lannister80
September 27, 2009 9:59 PM
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This happened to me once, it was a software product . They were supposed to send me 1, and I got 21. They went on eBay ASAP.

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trialex
September 27, 2009 10:14 PM
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\"Dell accidentally skipped Andy in Canada's wireless card upgrade\"

OK I know what you are saying, but the first time I read it it sounded like Andy got left out of Canada's wireless card upgrade.

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morganlh85
September 27, 2009 10:38 PM
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Send them a certified letter saying \"You mistakenly sent me 120 wireless cards. Send me a return shipping label within the next 10 business days and I will return them to you. After 10 business days, if I don't hear from you Dell hereby agrees that I own them all.\"

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1 replies
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silver-bolt
September 28, 2009 5:10 AM
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@morganlh85: Plus a check for the certified letter costs and gas (2 gallons).

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madanthony
September 27, 2009 10:39 PM
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My guess is the cards were probably drop-shipped by someone like Ingram Micro, and they didn't realize they were supposed to open the package and take one out - that they sent one package instead of one card.

While I do think, ethically, that one should make an attempt to return it, I think the OP has made more than enough effort and should be able to do what he wants with the cards guiltlessly.

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post_break
September 27, 2009 11:07 PM
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These are mini-pciexpress cards. Can I have one? I could use one. And since you needed a linux compatible one chances are it is Atheros based. Do want. Will pay shipping :-)

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1 replies
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Tankueray
September 28, 2009 2:49 PM
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@post_break: Ditto. If these are the right cards, you could go over to the MSI Wind hackintosh forum and make a mint!

@madanthony: I thought so too. More like the CSR put one case instead of one piece into the system, no one past him would've seen the mistake, especially since there wasn't any money involved.

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frodolives35
September 27, 2009 11:21 PM
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Now that this has gone public get ready for a bill and a ding on your credit when you don't pay. Big companies can't help but screw it up worse.

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MitchEvious
September 27, 2009 11:34 PM
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\"Any ideas for Andy (other than \"eBay, dude?\") Or is it just painfully obvious that Dell doesn't actually want these cards?\"


Since no one has said it yet- Give them to me :)

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liquidnumb
September 27, 2009 11:58 PM
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So... the GECK from Fallout 1/2 must have been a Dell.

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2 replies
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OolonColluphid
September 28, 2009 5:04 AM
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@liquidnumb: I love this comment. An obscure and nerdy reference is the best kind.

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Zyzzyva100
September 28, 2009 12:26 AM
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This happened to be with Dell before. I ordered a color laser printer from their refurb store, and they ended up shipping me two printers, when I clearly only ordered 1 (my email invoice confirmed this, and I was only charged for 1). I tried contacting them at various different numbers, and most of the people said they couldn't help. I finally got ahold of someone that could help, and that person claimed their system showed only 1 had been ordered and only 1 shipped, so there was no way to take it back.

I decided that 3+ hours on the phone was my due diligence, and so I just donated the second printer to the lab that I was working in. Dell never did figure out their mistake.

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Powerlurker
September 28, 2009 6:48 AM
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@Zyzzyva100:

It probably worked out better for them that way. They likely ended up making more in toner sales from the people you donated it to than they lost by accidentally shipping you a second printer.

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PLATTWORX
September 28, 2009 1:14 AM
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This happened to me many years ago with an online retailer that is long gone. I order 1 CompactFlash card (back when they ran $$ each) and got \"1 case\" of the same item via UPS. Not very bright!

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BrazDane
September 28, 2009 2:26 AM
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Same thing, almost, happened to me.

I bought a monitor from Dell that arrived defective. After several calls and complaints, I got them to exchange it under warranty and they shipped me a new one. However, they forgot to include the shipping label for the broken one. I emailed them about it twice - to the same email address that had usually replied to my emails before. This time, never an answer.

I finally decided to just keep it as a reserve. The brightness and colors are somewhat off, but it's better than nothing, if my other monitors suddenly die.

It's more than a year ago now, I seriously doubt I'll ever hear from them - and they didn't charge my CC either.

I would probably be a little more weary about keeping something like 120 wireless cards each with an original retail value of $80. As others have said - a certified letter with a reasonable time limit for them to respond (and then wait a little extra time), and if you hear nothing, they are yours. Watch out about donating them, though. If you or Dell have to come back and ask for them, you could get the charity or school into legal trouble if Dell doesn't play nice.

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starrion
September 28, 2009 3:41 AM
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My wife's company got a 2 for 1 deal when she ordered a server and peripherals. The warehouse double shipped the order, but managed to delete the order for all the peripherals. They did however ship two HP servers instead of the one that was ordered.


She went through countless reps who told her that \"they don't make those kinds of mistakes with 8K servers.\" and that their documentation clearly showed only one shipped.


Her boss rode her case because he didn't want to get a bill their capital budget couldn't handle. After their distributer flat refused to send an RMA, they put the server into use.

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t3chb0y
September 28, 2009 4:46 AM
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I will take one =P. Thank you very much!

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nstonep
September 28, 2009 4:49 AM
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There's some legal precedent for \"abandoned property\". Send their legal department a certified letter to come pick up their crap or arrange for shipping. Also, you technically can charge market rate for storage if it ever get's to court. Once you call them a single time and make them aware of the issue that counts as notice and the clock starts rolling from there.

Of course, I don't remember the actual length of time (I believe it's over a year) needed to turn their abandoned property into your own property. But I'd assume the time would de-value the cards by 60-70% on the open market.

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geofriend
September 28, 2009 6:38 AM
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A company recently sent me an item I did not order, with a receipt stating it was supposed to go to someone else. I called, left my info, emailed twice, waited two weeks, then emailed again telling them the exact date (5 days in advance) when I would be throwing out the item. The date came, I threw it out, and then 2 days later (3 weeks after initial contact) they finally responded with a return label. I felt a bit bad about it, but honestly it was a large item, and taking up space in my 450 sq. ft. apartment, so I felt that I gave them enough time to respond.

Anyways what I am trying to say is I concur that the OP has waited long enough to consider the cards his to do with what he pleases.

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Nighthawke
September 28, 2009 11:02 AM
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Dell bungled it, has a lousy returns system, the cards are yours. Just make sure to CYA and change your CC #'s to prevent a charge for them.

Small wonder companies are cutting their accounts with Dell and moving on.

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henrygates
September 28, 2009 12:32 PM
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I say sell the cards, then send Dell a bill for a year of storage.

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tkozikow
September 28, 2009 1:19 PM
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15 years ago I closed a project office in NYC and had a colleague ship several printers to our DC HQ via Fedex. During shipping the printers were damaged, I filed a claim and within a few days I had check for $1200 in my name (even though I specifically instructed the CSR to make it out to my company). Being an honest guy I dropped this into interoffice mail to our accounting department explaining that this was reimbursement for damaged printers with a list of the affected asset control numbers.

It did not take long for the check to come back to me...this back and forth with accounting went on for about 6 weeks before I signed the check over to my boss and he used the proceeds for a team dinner, taking responsibility for any potential consequences. Nothing ever came of this, but it was a somewhat humorous example of what happens when even the exception process does not fit.

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QuesoHusker
September 28, 2009 1:36 PM
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In 2004 sent me a very expensive computer, monitor, camera, printer, and box of software in addition to the el cheapo computer I ordered. I tried for several weeks to send it back, but nothing worked. I finally sent a certified letter to their customer service department stating that I was going to consider it mine after 30 more days. I never heard back from them.


I sold the cheap computer and kept the expensive one. I'm still using it, in fact. It is getting a bit long in the tooth, though.

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shepd
September 28, 2009 1:59 PM
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Guess what?! It's my usual advice time.

Write a registered letter explaining the problem. In this case also explain that you will consider these your property and will dispose of them appropriately if Dell does not act to rid of you them within 3 months, at Dell's expense. Explain you will be selling the items to recoup your costs of storage during this period.

After 3 months, eBay them if Dell has chosen to ignore you.

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Geekybiker
September 28, 2009 2:08 PM
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This happened to me with dell as well. Ordered a harmony remote, it was broken out of the package, called and the sent another one. Tag for the other never shows up, so they don't get it back. If you've contacted them and let them know about the mix up and the still don't do anything about it, I'd say they're yours after 30 days or so.

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Tankueray
September 28, 2009 2:59 PM
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So with all the comments about similar things happening, what kind of \"shrinkage\" does Dell have? Do they write this off? Are their inventory and accounting personnel asleep at the wheel?

Not that they can't afford it. We have a contract with them and they send us units for twice the price and half the capability than we could purchase directly from their online store.

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vladthepaler
September 28, 2009 4:17 PM
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Morally: you tried. Dell failed. Your karma is clean, or clear, or whatever karma is when you've done nothing wrong. Sell them with a clear conscience.

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Project_J187
September 28, 2009 8:17 PM
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I worked as a technician for Dell for 6 months. At the end of my contract I had in posession:

2 42\" LCD TV's
1 30\" Monitor
8 Nvidia Motherboards (diff models priced $200-350)
4 Dell cases
15 Dell keyboards (the crummy stock ones)
3 Top of the line (at the time) graphics cards.

On my last day I set down with my boss, told him I was ready to inventory my return stock and he replied:
\"who cares, I certainly don't\"

2 years later and they still don't want the $12000 in electronics I have that belongs to them.

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Project_J187
September 28, 2009 8:18 PM
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@Project_J187: If you are wondering, I was a service technician and had to have my SUV full of parts and supplies since I would travel up to 150 miles away from the office to do house calls.

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CapitalC
September 28, 2009 8:23 PM
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You should put them in grossly oversized boxes and mail them all collect.

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tinyhands
September 28, 2009 9:08 PM
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Send them an invoice. You're not their warehouse, so you're not going to store them for free. That'll get someone's attention.

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dougkern
September 29, 2009 5:48 AM
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In 6th grade I found a $20 bill on the ground and decided to \"do the right thing\" and turn it into my gym teacher. After doing this, I saw him walk into his office and put it in his wallet.

FINDERS KEEPERS is the model to live by. They fucked up, why waste YOUR time trying to \"do the right thing.\" The company that makes millions upon millions of dollars isn't going to send you a thank you note for saving them a grand. Sell it and thank Dell for funding your new 60\" TV.

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Quilt
September 29, 2009 5:02 PM
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@dougkern: Gym teachers were always kind of fun like that...

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Winteridge2
September 29, 2009 10:53 PM
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If they are a year old, they are probably obsolete anyway. Give ebay a try-1 ad, 120 available.

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Villnius
September 30, 2009 9:53 AM
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Contact the RCMP. Since there's a risk that this will be interpreted as stolen property, and it *might* be an international matter, it might be the best way to go. Let the mounties bang their heads against DELL's mindless drone gauntlet for a while.

Do make sure to get an itemized receipt for the items from the mounties or whoever, before handing over the box though. Even if the mounties can't sort it out, there will at least be a fairly official paper trail to ensure that your covered on this.

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P=mv
September 30, 2009 10:31 AM
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@Villnius: Honestly, I don't see where Dell would have a case here. They shipped him 120 of something he ordered one of and have ignored his attempts to return them. It has been nearly a year.

They belong to the OP now. I say sell them.

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