Rate this ethical delema

[coomarlin]

I wouldn't exactly call it a delema, but just wanted to see how ethical you all feel this may be.

I was going for my daily walk trying to shed a few pounds and on the side of the road I see a small bag. It's from Lowes and it has a few Lutron light switches ($50 each) and a few ground fault circuit breakers ($50 each) in the bag. All together about $250 worth of merchandise. I assumed they probably fell out of the back of a contractors truck or something. Anyway, I kept them. I don't think there is anything ethicly wrong with that. If I knew who they belonged to I would've returned them but I had no idea. Kinda of a finders keepers situation. Anyway, after I got home they sat in the garage for a few weeks and I realized that they weren't anything I needed and so figured I get rid of them. Here is where the ethlical part comes in to play. A friend of mine insisted that I should just return them to Lowes without a receipt and ask for a store credit. It's definately tempting. I could always use $250 worth fo free Lowes gear. But I kinda feel like I'm turning a lucky find into some type of theft. I'm sure I could easily get away with it and they'd give me the credit but I feels a little shady.

What would you guys do?

 

[Hyperblaze]

Unless you have a receipt, you can't do that anyways.

 

[moshquerade]

i would run a ad in your local paper saying you found something of that sort without being totally specific. the owner can call you and describe them exactly and pay for your ad and get them back.

 

[Atomicus]

Ask the store if whoever bought the items used a credit card and see if they can track the dude down.

 

[TBone48]

I wouldn't feel right trying to return them for money. Ask around if anyone you know could use them and give them away. Or donate them to some building charity or something.

 

[Reel]

I rate it a 3.5.

 

[Savarak]

Originally posted by: Atomicus
Ask the store if whoever bought the items used a credit card and see if they can track the dude down.

good idea, if loews employees have access to that sort of info

 

[EatSpam]

Originally posted by: Hyperblaze
Unless you have a receipt, you can't do that anyways.

Yeah, you can. I've returned items without a receipt. All items I bought though.

 

[ActuaryTm]

Exchange at least one of the items for a dictionary.

 

[olds]

Sell them to me for $20 and I'll take them back for you.

 

[Lonyo]

Ebay?

 

[waggy]

Originally posted by: Savarak

Originally posted by: Atomicus
Ask the store if whoever bought the items used a credit card and see if they can track the dude down.

good idea, if loews employees have access to that sort of info

and how are they going to do that? unless the reciept was in the bag (wich the op does not say) there is no chance to do that.

 

[loup garou]

Just return (or sell) them. The contractor has surely gouged his client more by now to make up for his loss.

 

[I Saw OJ]

Karma will get you in the end if you cheat lowes by returning the stuff for store credit.

 

[Kelemvor]

You were unethical by keeping them in the first place. Why not continue along that path and try for the store credit. Seems it would be par for the course for you.

 

[Ronstang]

Originally posted by: I Saw OJ
Karma will get you in the end if you cheat lowes by returning the stuff for store credit.

How exactly does that cheat Lowes? It is their merchandise, they have received it back and given a refund, and now the items are back in inventory ready to sell again. This is actually no different than you buying something from Lowes and then deciding you didn't need it so you simply return it. Lowes has not been cheated at all. In fact by giving you a store credit they are assuring the money be spent right back in Lowes.

That being said, I would not return found items for a refund myself. I wouldn't have even thought of it.

 

[Slicedbread]

Karma will get you in the end if you cheat lowes by returning the stuff for store credit.

How do you know it was not karma rewarding him?

 

[Pepsei]

delema?

i have one too...

 

[Pikachu]

I think your estimates of the value are about ten times too high. You're going to be pretty dissapointed with your $25.00 store credit!

 

[Patrick Wolf]

Just do it.

 

[Gooberlx2]

Originally posted by: FrankyJunior
You were unethical by keeping them in the first place. Why not continue along that path and try for the store credit. Seems it would be par for the course for you.

Oh okay....yes because just leaving them on the ground is clearly the ethical thing to do.

You know what OP, imo, you're right in this case. Finders Keepers. Had they fallen off or out of a contractor's truck, it'll just get written off anyway. Lowes isn't out any money because it's returned, unopened, resellable merchandise. If the goods were for a person doing private work on their own home....well we'll never know now, and doubtful you ever would know. How many people look in the classifieds for "FND LGHT SWCHS AND CRCT BRKRS FRM LWS! CALL XXX-XXX-XXXX"? Probably zero. Besides, then you're out money for running an ad in the classifieds.

So why beat yourself up about it? There's always going to be some people, sitting in their ivory towers, looking down on the people who take advantage of chance.

 

[BigJ]

Originally posted by: Pikachu
I think your estimates of the value are about ten times too high. You're going to be pretty dissapointed with your $25.00 store credit!

Wrong.

GFCI Circuit Breakers will typically range anywhere from $35-$60 at Lowes/HD, depending on the brand and amperage.

Lutron Dimmers can be very expensive, ranging from the cheapest normally in the $20 range, to over $50 a pop depending on the models.

 

[moomoo40moo]

Originally posted by: Patrick Wolf
Just do it.

 

[mb]

I'd say at this point just return it for store credit.

What else are you going to do? There's no way you're gonna find out who they belong to.

You could return them to where you found them, but what's the chance that the guy is going to return to find them there before someone else takes them?

You're certainly not hurting Lowes at this point... say the guy paid $200 for them.. you go back and get $200, they get the merchandise back which they can still sell. You buy $200 worth (maybe more) from them. No harm from them.

The only one losing out is the guy that lost them. It's not like it's a cell phone and you can call random numbers on there to figure out whos it is. Without a receipt, Lowes will not be able to tell who bought it. You might as well make something useful out of your find.

 

[Pikachu]

Originally posted by: BigJ

Originally posted by: Pikachu
I think your estimates of the value are about ten times too high. You're going to be pretty dissapointed with your $25.00 store credit!

Wrong.

GFCI Circuit Breakers will typically range anywhere from $35-$60 at Lowes/HD, depending on the brand and amperage.

Lutron Dimmers can be very expensive, ranging from the cheapest normally in the $20 range, to over $50 a pop depending on the models.

Oops, you said breaker, not outlet, which are twice the price of Home Depot. I didn't see mention of a dimmer. You can buy a ten pack of switches for about $8.00.