Have you ever accidentally stolen anything?

[aristocatz]

Jar of relish. Last year. I had the baby in her carseat in the shopping cart & it must have rolled behind it. I didn't notice till I was putting her in the car, and I had already put my toddler in the car. I guess I could have gone back inside to pay, but admittedly I didn't.

 

[tvguy]

I have 3 of the distinctive pens my company buys at work at home. We pay $5.29 for a box of 60, so about 9 cents each. So I ripped the company off for 27 cents. And I have no idea how they got here.

 

[Missy1961]

I was picking up some times at the grocery store and DD was still in the stroller. I didn't grab a basket since I was pushing dd in the stroller and just put the few items on top of the stroller. After I got to the car, I found a few things I put in the bottom basket that I never put on the belt an paid for. I felt awful and expected them to come running out after me! I went back in paid for them, I think it was hamburger buns and ketchup.

I did that once. I was taking care of my niece and we went to the supermarket. I used the basket of her stroller as my shopping cart and didn't get everything out. I didn't notice until I got home, so I truly used my niece to steal something, I think it was a bagged salad.

 

[NFLDERS]

I accidently took a hand towel from DCL when they first started sailing. I dont know how it got in my luggage.

 

[happily single]

When my girls were little we would go to the Disney Store. I can't count how many times we accidentally walked out with a stuffed animal in the stroller. MY girls were always so good about it. They would be the ones to holler and let me know and never threw a fit when we had to take them back.

This happened to us!! My son put a huge Dumbo in the stroller. Still not sure how i didnt notice that!

 

[Kitty 34]

nope

 

[Kellykins1218]

I was grocery shopping at Kroger and my son, who was about 3, was riding in one of the carts that looks like a dump truck. We got to the car and I put all of the groceries into the trunk then leaned down to get him out. That's when I realized he was surrounded by at least 50 candy bars. It was hilarious. We went back and saw the manager by the customer service desk. I just pointed into the bottom of the cart and he started cracking up. Then we looked at the line where we checked out and all the cashiers were laughing. He cleared that sucker out! They just sent us on our way with some M&Ms.

 

[brooke789]

About 10 years ago I'd stopped at the grocery store and picked up a couple bags worth of items. One of them was a jar of salsa that wasn't in the bags when I got home. I had my husband call about it and they said just come by and they'd give him another jar. A little hassle, but at least we weren't out the few dollars for the salsa.

Then a few days/week later we found the salsa in the trunk. Oops

 

[dollarmite]

About 10 years ago I was shopping at a hypermarket. The first thing I put in the trolley was an "impulse item" small metal silver coloured photo frame. Eventually I went through the checkout and paid for my stuff. It wasn't until I was unloading the bags into the car that I realised that the photo frame was still in the bottom of the trolley and I hadn't paid it. Between the angle I'd stood at to unload the items onto the conveyor, and the frame and the trolley being the same colour, I'd somehow missed it.

I was so mortified and felt for sure that if I returned it to the shop they'd never believe I'd accidentally walked out with it and would charge me with shoplifting. So I just left it in the trolley and pushed it back into the trolley rack before driving away.

 

[Cogswel_Cogs]

Salt shaker. Took a salt shaker from a restaurant downstairs from a hotel. Was planning on bringing it back minus some salt for the stuff we were cooking in the suite. They had upgraded us to a suite. Probably didn't realize we were crooks. So day we were leaving I had yet to return it. Did not want to leave it in the room and have the hotel realize they totally misjudged us. That would have made them feel bad about themselves. So I was going to bring it back to the restarunt and threw it in one of the bags. Of course with all the madness of checking out I forgot and took it home in my bag..

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

It was wax cubes from Walmart. I had a bunch of stuff in the cart. it was around Christmas time. I tossed them in the top part. At some point they fell down to the bottom. I didn't even notice they were in there until I was loading stuff up in the car.

YES I am a terrible person. I guess I stole out of laziness. I am like I am so NOT walking all the way back into the store in the cold weather and stand in line forever to pay for this.

I am trying to restore the balance, on another occasion I had a frozen pizza that was marked 2.50 and it rang up 2.77 and I didn't say anything. There is .27 I paid them back, so now I only owe them 1.73

 

[crazymama]

Many years ago I was shopping for a fancy dress for a wedding. I put a dress on and the sales woman immediately brought me a necklace that would look nice with it. I didn't really love the dress so took it off and pulled my turtleneck sweater over the necklace. A few hours later I was scratching my neck and realized the necklace was still on me! I immediately called the store and told them I would bring it in the next morning which I did. I was certain I would be arrested at the door... lol.

 

[vanellopevs]

I was at a Claire's type store at the mall wearing a long sweater and after I left I was about halfway across the mall when I realized that one of those bun things was stuck to my butt.

I would have returned it but my dh had a bad experience as a teenager where he returned an item and had his honesty rewarded by being arrested for shoplifting. So, he is quite adamant that if you accidentally take something, just keep it.

 

[indygirl99]

I have 3 of the distinctive pens my company buys at work at home. We pay $5.29 for a box of 60, so about 9 cents each. So I ripped the company off for 27 cents. And I have no idea how they got here.

I am always doing this.

I am a pen thief.

I am always putting pens in my pocket at work. I take one out write down want I need to write then put it back in my pocket. By the time I get home I have 5 or 6 in my pocket. I throw them on the counter where I keep all the stuff I need in my pocket at work. Next day I pick up one put in it my pocket and go to work. And again they seem to multiply in my pocket.

The other day I cleaned up that corner of the counter and I kid you not there was 53 pens there. Got to work and restocked all the workstations with pens. I had to laugh when I heard a coworker say "indygirl must have cleansed off her counter again".

 

[leebee]

A couple of times I've found small things in my coat pockets- nail polish, blush, whatever- at Walmart. I think what happens is I pick up something and I'm holding it, then try to look at something else but my hands are full and I unconsciously stick whatever is in my hand into my coat pocket. I usually don't find it until days later. I also don't usually go back and pay for it; they have overcharged me frequently enough that I figure it all evens out.

 

[DopeyDame]

My son stole a pack of underpants from Gap when he was two. (I can totally blame it on the two year old, right?) I guess he had picked them up and put them in his stroller. I went about shopping and when I got home when I got home and starting putting stuff away I saw the pack of undies. I kept meaning to return them and explain what happened, but with a toddler in the house it just never happened. Five years later, I have no idea where the underpants are, but I still feel pretty guilty about that.

 

[JessM]

I accidentally stole a camping chair from Big Lots. I had it slung over my shoulder and forgot to put it on the counter to pay for it. The cashier never said anything. I didn't notice until I got out to the car...

 

[Hibiscus]

A box of macaroni and cheese. I ran in to get it for my mom and ended up talking to a friend who was working at the store for several minutes, then said bye to her and walked right out with the box. I didn't even realize I had done it until I got home. I was 16 at the time and completely traumatized.

You were "traumatized" by the experience of accidentally walking out of a store with a box of macaroni & cheese?

 

[Grmnshplvr]

yes, I bought a cute mickey purse from the gift shop at the contemporary, put the purse on the counter, the woman and I talked about the purse. She took the tags off, took the stuffing out, asked if I wanted a bag, I said no, I'd be carrying it. Left the hotel, went back to ours and it occured to me, I didn't remember signing the receipt, or even getting a receipt. I never was charged for it, we left for the airport shortly after. I still feel bad about it and my husband will never let me live it down when I carry my "stolen" purse from Disney. I specifically remember putting my card on the counter too, I guess the cashier and I were so excited about the purse it never occurred to us that I should pay for it lol

 

[hoffman1]

I bought several items for Christmas gifts (a couple of Dooney & Bourke purses and 3 or 4 Vera Bradley bags) at the Co-Op Marketplace at DS. I did not pay attention to the total. I just knew it was a large amount, which is what I had expected. It wasn't until a month later when I took them out of the bags to wrap, that I realized I had not been charged for one of the Vera Bradley purses!!
I felt terrible.

Maybe not exactly stealing because I did pay for it but...Just a couple of weeks ago, I ordered a Kate Spade coin purse online. When the package arrived, it was a wallet. The invoice said it was the coin purse. It was on sale, so it stated no returns or exchanges. When I called, the coin purse was out of stock and I would have to foot the bill for the shipping if I sent the wallet back. I just kept it.