Grandma Roethlisberger was a spunky, independent sort. But as she approached her 90th birthday, Grandma’s memory became somewhat foggy. Despite the offers from her children, Grandma insisted on living in her home where she had resided for the last 70 years. Her husband had passed away 15 years ago.

One day, while Santonio was visiting his grandma, he noticed in one of the cabinets six unopened boxes of light bulbs sent by the Disadvantaged Workers of the State of Arizona. Santonio asked Grandma why she ordered these light bulbs at which time her grandmother stated she did not but they started coming every month with a bill for $40.00. Grandma was most conscientious about paying any bills and had paid each bill she got despite not ordering or needing the light bulbs.

Santonio checked with the Better Business Bureau and found there was no such entity as the Disadvantaged Workers of the State of Arizona and that, in fact, it was a scam. In effect, Grandma was paying $10.00 per light bulb plus a shipping charge.

Question: What are Grandma’s remedies?

Answer: Since these were unsolicited goods, Grandma Roethlisberger would not owe anything for them. She could demand a refund and has one year within the date that she made the initial payment to make that demand. She will be able to utilize the services of the Better Business Bureau and/or the state’s Attorney General to run down the actual company utilizing the fictitious name of Disadvantaged Workers’ of the State of Arizona.

Disclaimer: The above article is for instructive purposes only and each case is fact sensitive. Consultation with an attorney should be obtained instead of reliance upon the legal issues discussed in this column.