A word of caution

A friend of mine nicknamed Vic sought my help. He was convinced to buy from an online seller a helmet for his motorcycling activities. After all, he was really planning to change his old helmet. The advertisement, written in glowing text, was carried on social media. For one, the price quoted in the internet was cheaper than the one Vic wanted to buy. The item was to be paid “cash on delivery.” Then, it was advertised as a “buy one take another one” kind of sale. It was an offer so irresistible that no one astute buyer would not take. So, he placed an order.

When the package arrived, my friend immediately noticed that the size of the box was small. Upon seeing the carton, he knew that it could not contain two helmets. While opening the box, he took efforts to explain to the courier what he ordered but the latter simply answered that he was just a delivery man and knew nothing about the deal. Surprise came to Vic to see two toy helmets each one of the size of his fist. Understandably, he refused to pay and asked the courier to return the package.

I recall this Vic experience because last week I was also enticed by a similarly glowing advertisement which was placed on the internet. The item that attracted me was quite useful and despite its high sounding technical attributes it was priced rather cheaply “COD.” (If necessary, I will reveal the seller’s name in subsequent articles.) Having Vic’s bungled deal in mind, I made a series of text messages making sure that the advertised product was as advertised. That I would first open the package and inspect its contents to include every item listed in the ad before giving the payment was my condition. The online seller’s assent added to my comfort.

On a Wednesday, a day before the expected delivery, I informed the seller thru text messaging that I had an out of town engagement the following Thursday. My request was to effect the delivery on Friday. That day passed but no delivery came a failure which I felt important to bring to the attention of the online seller thru a number of text messages the next two days.

Yesterday I was shocked to receive a text from the online seller that the package returned to them (what?) but they asked me to pay within 24 hours or else. Oh my goodness! My lawyer’s training and instinct got aroused. Yet, I thought of giving them the chance to review the situation. I copied all my previous texts telling them that no delivery man ever came to my home.

This must be a new scam a new strategy of defrauding people. That is why I am writing about it not to announce that in my naïveté I was baited into doing something that others should enter into “ad cautilam ex abundanti” a phrase which my Legal Philosophy professor described as literally meaning “out of an abundance of caution." Accordingly, a party should take extra steps to ensure a desired outcome, even if those steps might not be strictly necessary.

Not everybody who advertises a product in glowing language exists in the same vein that not all goods offered for sale are real of possess the quality highlighted. While I like to assume that social media product advertisers are legitimate and honest business people, some of those who offer products for sale are questionable, to say the least. They hide their fictitious names behind a facade of innocent looking faces. Because the phrase translates to caution it has become important for a would be buyer of a social media advertised product to arm himself with communication that ensures protection.