Do I have to pay for goods I never ordered?
No — you owe nothing, need not return it, need not even reply. The stubborn myth: believing that a "free" unordered parcel binds you if you do not send it back. Wrong. The Consumer Code treats an unsolicited supply ("inertia selling") as a banned practice. The consumer is exempt from any counter-performance: no duty to pay, no duty to return, and above all your lack of response is not consent. The burden of proving that you actually ordered rests entirely on the trader. Goods received without an order, even with an invoice, may therefore be kept without owing a single euro. Demanding payment, insisting on a return or threatening you over an unsolicited item is punishable by a fine of up to €120,000. The only common-sense limit: it must be a genuine unordered delivery, not a mistaken delivery that you flag in good faith.
📋 The rules
- Supplying an unsolicited good or service is prohibited; the consumer is exempt from any counter-performance.
- No duty to pay or return a good received without an order; your silence is not acceptance.
- The burden of proof of the order lies with the trader, never with the recipient.
- Demanding payment, return or safekeeping of an unsolicited delivery is punishable by a fine of €251 to €120,000.
- An unordered good delivered with an invoice may be kept without any sum being owed to the supplier.
🔓 Exceptions
- An obvious delivery error (a parcel meant for a neighbour, a double shipment of a real order) is not "inertia selling": flag it in good faith.
- Free samples clearly presented as such, with no request for payment, fall outside the prohibition.
- Between businesses, the consumer-protection regime does not apply in the same way.
⚠️ Penalties & fines
The sanction targets the trader, not you. Demanding payment, return or safekeeping of an unsolicited delivery exposes the company to a fine of €251 to €120,000, and the "debt" invoked is non-existent: you owe nothing. Reminders, formal notices or threats of a debt-recovery entry based on such a delivery have no legal basis; giving in out of fear would mean paying a debt that does not exist. A debt-collection agency pursuing on this ground exposes itself to sanctions. If pressure persists, an injunction (action en cessation) can stop the practice, and the Directorate for Consumer Protection and the ULC can step in. Keep the parcel, the invoice and any letters: they are your evidence. The only real risk to you would be paying by mistake a sum the law declares not owed — a payment you would then have to reclaim as undue.
📎 Official sources
- Legilux · Consumer Code (unsolicited supply) →
- Directorate for Consumer Protection (gouvernement.lu) →
- ULC · Luxembourg Consumers Union →
❓ Frequently asked
I was delivered an item I did not order — must I return it?
No, the law obliges you neither to return it nor to pay for it, and it is for the seller to prove any order. You may keep it, and your lack of reply can never be read as acceptance or as an order.
The seller keeps sending payment reminders — is that legal?
No, demanding the price of an unordered delivery is a prohibited practice, punishable by a fine of up to €120,000. The debt does not exist, so keep the reminders as written evidence and do not pay a cent, whatever the tone of the letters.
What if the parcel was actually meant for my neighbour?
Then it is a delivery error, not inertia selling, and the protection does not apply in the same way. Report the mistake in good faith to the carrier or the seller rather than keeping the goods for yourself.
A debt-collector is threatening me over this delivery — what now?
The claim is groundless, since you owe nothing for an unsolicited delivery. State in writing that there was no order, refuse payment, and report the practice to consumer protection if it continues.
I paid by mistake before knowing the rule — can I get the money back?
Yes, a sum paid for an unordered delivery is an undue payment that you can reclaim. Send a written refund request to the trader and keep proof of the payment and of the absence of any order.
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