Mistakenly Refunded...

[JustAMom2five]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? SD

Ok.. well some of you might laugh cause well I did but I have a question.
I just recently had $420 credited to my debit card from a Dentist Office in Spokane WA, nope never been there.
Yea I'm human and for a split second I thought.. *run to an ATM take this money.. right*
So I looked up the number for the Dentists Office and called to let them know there had been a mistake. I find out that the mistake is a mix up in merchant numbers.. (whatever that is), and that this money was coming from an online merchant I had recently made a purchase from. Now I was not expecting a refund from them, I had received the product I bought just fine almost a month ago. I have no problem with returning their money, but I was advised by this person who let me know the technical error that it should be "handled" in a few weeks and that "if" I was actually suppose to get a refund then the money would stay in my account and if not it should be taken out by then.

A very silly friend told me that as soon as the money hit my account it was mine and that I shouldn't have called... but what seriously legally?
She isn't a lawyer and I am not asking so I can try and keep this money but I was curious because I never thought about the legal reasons why I should figure this out ... only that I knew it wasn't mine.

So what are your opinions...

 

[CMLANDLORD]

return the $. you didn't earn the it and it wasn't gifted to you by someone you know.

 

[VeronicaLodge]

and your friend is an idiot and will get you in trouble

 

[JustAMom2five]

return the $. you didn't earn the it and it wasn't gifted to you by someone you know.

yea.. that's what I said.. and why I called the business.
I have already done what needs to be done to give the money back

I was asking about the legalities of it....

 

[JustAMom2five]

and your friend is an idiot and will get you in trouble

I did say it was a silly friend
but I wanted to know that there was a law... not just a moral obligation that makes my actions right

 

[VeronicaLodge]

you actions are right, you can tell your silly friend

 

[CMLANDLORD]

yea.. that's what I said.. and why I called the business.
I have already done what needs to be done to give the money back

I was asking about the legalities of it....

Glad to hear you did the right thing.

What legalities? Its very straight forward that you don't even need to get into the legalities of it. If you took $ that did not belong to you, that is called theft. Plain and simple.

 

[JustAMom2five]

I am actually really glad to see your responses are that you agree with what I did.. but for maybe somebody else who had let's say questionable morals....

would it be theft if the money was credited to their account?
The gal that I talked to on the phone said that if I hadn't called they would not have known of the mistake...

let's change the scenario and how I handled it.. to somebody who would follow that first thought and ran to an ATM and taken out the money...

They claim it was rightfully theirs...
What law does the merchant use to get there money back, would it be theft?
Or more specifically is there a law that covers this type of thing?


I don't mind the conversation because I know I did the right thing.. I guess I started wondering about the process after my silly (stupid) friend said they would have kept it.
I kinda want to be able to tell her that there is such and such a law that says I did what legally needed to be done...