Hello,
I recently went online to purchase a Hewlett-Packard Pavilion laptop from
their online store at www.hpshopping.ca
After selecting my laptop, and a carrying case, I proceeded through the
checkout process and placed my order. What happened, however, was that the
laptop showed up on the final bill with a price of $0.00. The total price
reflected only the price of the bag, not the laptop, even though both were
listed on the items list.
HP's terms and conditions, which can be found at
<http://www.hp.ca/store/english/terms.php> state:
------------------------------------------------------------
Although HP strives to provide accurate product and pricing information,
errors or misprints may occur. HP cannot confirm the price of a Product
until after you order the Product. Notwithstanding anything contained in
this section 2, in the event that a Product is listed at an incorrect
price
or with incorrect information due to an error in pricing or product
information, HP shall have the right, at our sole discretion, to refuse or
cancel any orders placed for that Product. In the event that a Product is
priced in error or a Product information error occurs, HP may, at our sole
discretion, either contact you for instructions, cancel your order and
notify you of such cancellation, and/or correct the error on our web site.
Orders are not binding on HP until accepted by HP. HP's acceptance of an
order is evidenced by return e-mail from HP indicating that Customer's
order has been accepted.
------------------------------------------------------------
I received the email, stating that my order had been accepted. However,
HP only shipped me the bag, and not the laptop.
My question is:
Do I have a legal basis for demanding the laptop for $0.00 as agreed upon
by myself and HP when I made the purchase? Do we have a purchase contract?
Thanks,
Michael
Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada

Hello,
I recently went online to purchase a Hewlett-Packard Pavilion

their online store at www.hpshopping.ca
After selecting my laptop, and a carrying case, I proceeded

checkout process and placed my order. What happened, however, was

laptop showed up on the final bill with a price of $0.00. The total

reflected only the price of the bag, not the laptop, even though

listed on the items list.
HP's terms and conditions, which can be found at
<http://www.hp.ca/store/english/terms.php> state:
------------------------------------------------------------
Although HP strives to provide accurate product and pricing

errors or misprints may occur. HP cannot confirm the price of a

until after you order the Product. Notwithstanding anything

this section 2, in the event that a Product is listed at an

or with incorrect information due to an error in pricing or product
information, HP shall have the right, at our sole discretion, to

cancel any orders placed for that Product. In the event that a

priced in error or a Product information error occurs, HP may, at

discretion, either contact you for instructions, cancel your order

notify you of such cancellation, and/or correct the error on our web

Orders are not binding on HP until accepted by HP. HP's acceptance

order is evidenced by return e-mail from HP indicating that

order has been accepted.
------------------------------------------------------------
I received the email, stating that my order had been accepted.

HP only shipped me the bag, and not the laptop.
My question is:
Do I have a legal basis for demanding the laptop for $0.00 as

by myself and HP when I made the purchase? Do we have a purchase

Thanks,

Michael
Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada

Hello,
I recently went online to purchase a Hewlett-Packard Pavilion laptop from
their online store at www.hpshopping.ca
After selecting my laptop, and a carrying case, I proceeded through the
checkout process and placed my order. What happened, however, was that the
laptop showed up on the final bill with a price of $0.00. The total price
reflected only the price of the bag, not the laptop, even though both were
listed on the items list.
HP's terms and conditions, which can be found at
<http://www.hp.ca/store/english/terms.php> state:
------------------------------------------------------------
Although HP strives to provide accurate product and pricing information,
errors or misprints may occur. HP cannot confirm the price of a Product
until after you order the Product. Notwithstanding anything contained in
this section 2, in the event that a Product is listed at an incorrect price
or with incorrect information due to an error in pricing or product
information, HP shall have the right, at our sole discretion, to refuse or
cancel any orders placed for that Product. In the event that a Product is
priced in error or a Product information error occurs, HP may, at our sole
discretion, either contact you for instructions, cancel your order and
notify you of such cancellation, and/or correct the error on our web site.
Orders are not binding on HP until accepted by HP. HP?s acceptance of an
order is evidenced by return e-mail from HP indicating that Customer?s
order has been accepted.
------------------------------------------------------------
I received the email, stating that my order had been accepted. However,
HP only shipped me the bag, and not the laptop.
My question is:
Do I have a legal basis for demanding the laptop for $0.00 as agreed upon
by myself and HP when I made the purchase? Do we have a purchase contract?
Thanks,
Michael
Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada

"Michael Kipper" <mkipper@rogers.com> wrote in message
news:Xns95A9B6821E03Fmkipperrogerscom@24.66.94.159...
laptop from
through the
that the
price
both were
information,
Product
contained in
incorrect price
refuse or
Product is
our sole
and
site.
of an
Customer's
However,
agreed upon
contract?

This is a U.S. answer. I don't know anything about the law in Canada.
If the law in Ontario Canada is the same as in California, then yes
you have a contract, but it may be rescinded by HP on the basis of
unilateral mistake. If one party makes a mistake and the other knows
about it, the mistaken party may rescind. That is a very general
answer on a complex topic (rescission for unilateral mistake). There
are wrinkles concerning confirmation of the price, whether the
mistaken party may rescind without the aid of a court, etc. And the
fact that the rescission would apply to only part of the contract is a
big wrinkle, which I have not researched. But my opinion is that HP
is not obligated to ship you a free computer.
McGvyer

I'd be surprised to find this was a contract. Besides the obvious
"error" defense, there is an element of "consideration" missing - that
you gave something as part of your end of the contract. This seems
more like a skewed version of a gift - you ask for something, the
asked person says he'll just give it to you, and never does. The 2nd
person, by offering to do something gratuitously is not entering into
a contract.

The bill for the carrying case was not zero, so for the sale as a
whole, I presume that there was consideration as the bill was paid
or will be. Sales where one item is free with purchase of another
item are not that uncommon, and I presume that if you buy something
advertised "X free with purchase of Y", where Y costs $Z, and you
paid $Z, and you don't get X, you have a valid complaint of the
store not delivering X, not a case of the store reneging on a gift.
The case you describe is nowhere near close to an advertised "X
free with purchase of Y", though, and the error defense should be
valid.

A related issue: Suppose this transaction had played out a little
differently, and HP actually SHIPPED the laptop (or suppose it
happened at a brick-and-mortar store, and I walked out with it).
Does HP have the right to charge my credit card again for the laptop?
Without notifying me in advance? If I refuse to pay, do they have
a right to demand I ship back the laptop?

My guess is that the law would allow HP to correct the mistake at

own cost... most likely, a reasonable company would allow you to

the laptop at the price that was listed on the website, or allow you

ship it back to them at their expense.

I'd be surprised to find this was a contract. Besides the obvious
"error" defense, there is an element of "consideration" missing -

you gave something as part of your end of the contract. This seems
more like a skewed version of a gift - you ask for something, the
asked person says he'll just give it to you, and never does. The

person, by offering to do something gratuitously is not entering

a contract.
Michael Kipper <mkipper@rogers.com> wrote in message

The bill for the carrying case was not zero, so for the sale as a
whole, I presume that there was consideration as the bill was paid
or will be. Sales where one item is free with purchase of another
item are not that uncommon, and I presume that if you buy something
advertised "X free with purchase of Y", where Y costs $Z, and you
paid $Z, and you don't get X, you have a valid complaint of the
store not delivering X, not a case of the store reneging on a gift.
The case you describe is nowhere near close to an advertised "X
free with purchase of Y", though, and the error defense should be
valid.

A related issue: Suppose this transaction had played out a little
differently, and HP actually SHIPPED the laptop (or suppose it
happened at a brick-and-mortar store, and I walked out with it).
Does HP have the right to charge my credit card again for the laptop?
Without notifying me in advance? If I refuse to pay, do they have
a right to demand I ship back the laptop?
Gordon L. Burditt

You miss the point entirely. Whether you look at the completed sale
or item-by-item, it's either an error or simply the "promise" to give
a gift, which is not unenforceable as a contact.

Looking at the two
items as part of a single sale, the consideration supposedly being the
price paid for the bag, it's still insufficient to establish that
covered such a lopsided, entirely uncommon transaction. Nobody will
argue that there was a bill for the bag, and that that was paid for.
That's my understanding of the above situation. The bill for the
entire transaction is only the price of the bag which can be
established by comparison to other bags which the vendor likely sells
in large numbers. Adding the computer adds substantial value to the
buyer's end of the transaction without proportional increase (any at
all, here) to the value of the so-called promised goods. Your X&Y is
way off.

While such sales are not uncommon, the second item is
typically one of secondary value in relation to the item they really
want you to pay for. You buy the computer, and they toss in the bag
for free (or half-price, or whatever). You get the bag when you pay
for the computer not the other way around. You don't get a free new
engine with an inspection. You don't get a stereo system when you buy
a CD. You never buy a Kia, and get a spanking new Lexus. Never
happens.

The latest copy of Microsoft Flight Simulator may require
the most up-to-date hardware on the market, but Bill Gates won't
include a free 3Ghz system with every purchase. If you know of a deal
where the reverse is true (and the bag doesn't cost about $400) I'm
sure the rest of us would love to know about it.

Even when the
secondary item is close or even equal in value to the first item, such
sales are for low-cost goods two sodas, or two Carvel sundaes on
Wednesday. Some cell phone carriers offer two cellphonesonce you've
agreed to their horrendous calling plans. But in either event, the
lesson is the same you never get the second item free you just get
to pay top dollar for the first item, a transaction that's probably
decent when you figure that you really paid for both items. In the
real world, X is free because they don't want to waste time selling it
to you they're thinking about their big-ticket item, which is Y, and
the big-ticket item is the one that typically has the higher price.
Looking at this item by item, which is more realistic given the
lopsided values of each item, only reinforces how gratuitous a
transaction this was.

A related issue: Suppose this transaction had played out a little
differently, and HP actually SHIPPED the laptop (or suppose it
happened at a brick-and-mortar store, and I walked out with it).
Does HP have the right to charge my credit card again for the
laptop?
Without notifying me in advance? If I refuse to pay, do they have
a right to demand I ship back the laptop?
their
purchase
to
Maybe. (Bear with me on this) If the buyer intended to pay $0 for
the computer, then changing the price from $0 to $1,200 is within the
court's power only through a concept called Reformation. By that
method the court may correct the price to the price the parties meant
to agree to. This method is commonly used when there is a typo or
clerical error and the written contract doesn't reflect what the
parties agreed to, and later one of them is taking advantage of the
error by pretending that it accurately reflects the agreement. But if
the buyer intended to pay $0, then reformation doesn't work. Only
Rescission works. Rescission results in undoing a valid contract, not
correcting it's terms. On the other hand, if the court can be
convinced that the buyer meant to agree to $1,200, the reformation
would work.

"McGyver" <Greyprof@msn.com> wrote in news:30k168F31jd5rU1@uni-berlin.de:
Thanks for the clarification... I know I tend to get misdirected by logic
and common sense... reasons for which I'd make a terrible lawyer :-)
What happens in the case where the buyer "intended" to pay $0, but the
seller did not intend to sell for $0 (and the price listed was due to a
clerical or software error)? Is this an example of the unstoppable force
meeting an indestructable object?

David W:
Contracts are not required to be reasonable or fair. (with a few
irrelevant exceptions). There is no reasonable person test regarding
whether the original contract was valid. The original contract was
clearly valid. The issue is whether HP has a right to rescind the
contract. The right to rescind will in some cases turn on whether the
non-mistaken party was on reasonable notice, from the disparity in
price, that a mistake has been made. That issue won't apply in this
case because the buyer admits knowing that the $0 price was not meant
by HP, and therefore was a mistake. So it won't matter what a
reasonable person would have thought.

"McGyver" <Greyprof@msn.com> wrote in news:30k168F31jd5rU1@uni-berlin.de:
Consider the following: Instead of the situation at hand, what if the
situation is a contract for building a 2 story building, in which the
first
floor is red brick, and the top floor is higher quality white brick.
Bids are tendered, and the lowest is accepted, without noticing that the
unit prices for both types of brick were the same. The building commences,
and the bottom floor is bricked, and only when the white brick is ordered
by the contractor, weeks later, the mistake is noticed. Now, the increased
cost would make the bid the most expensive, and least likely to have been
picked in the first place.
I put forth that in the contruction world, a reasonable person would know
that white brick is more expensive than red brick.
To me, this is the same case, except in mine, I can return the bag and be
relatively even. In the hypothetical, the work cannot be undone, and
someone is going to suffer a loss. Is it not the burden of the contractor
who tendered the erroneous bid to come through on the price quoted, even
though it was his mistake?
Michael

"McGyver" <Greyprof@msn.com> wrote in

Consider the following: Instead of the situation at hand, what

situation is a contract for building a 2 story building, in

floor is red brick, and the top floor is higher quality white

Bids are tendered, and the lowest is accepted, without

unit prices for both types of brick were the same. The building

and the bottom floor is bricked, and only when the white brick

by the contractor, weeks later, the mistake is noticed. Now, the

cost would make the bid the most expensive, and least likely to

picked in the first place.
I put forth that in the contruction world, a reasonable person

that white brick is more expensive than red brick.

To me, this is the same case, except in mine, I can return the

relatively even. In the hypothetical, the work cannot be undone,

someone is going to suffer a loss. Is it not the burden of the

who tendered the erroneous bid to come through on the price

though it was his mistake?

But carrying your hypothetical forward, here's what happens. If
the mistake was not so apparent that the buyer should have been on
notice of it, there is no rescission available and the builder is
stuck with the mistake and must take the loss. If the mistake was
so obvious that the buyer should have been put on notice of it,
then an action for rescission will succeed. That means the
contract is undone. After that, (in the same lawsuit) the builder
is granted an order of quantum meruit, which means that the
builder is entitled to the value of the benefit conferred on the
the customer by the partially constructed building, even if there
is no contract.
McGyver

Why isn't it the burden of the contractor to come through on an

bid?


"Michael Kipper" <mkipper@rogers.com> wrote in message
news:Xns95AC5B9D3C7EBmkipperrogerscom@24.66.94.159...

"McGyver" <Greyprof@msn.com> wrote in

Does the customer then have the ability to cover losses due to

contractor's error? Delays in the completion of the building,

or perhaps they can't find another contractor who's willing to

liability of finishing a building someone else started, second

much more expensive, etc.

Hello,
I recently went online to purchase a Hewlett-Packard Pavilion laptop from
their online store at www.hpshopping.ca
After selecting my laptop, and a carrying case, I proceeded through the
checkout process and placed my order. What happened, however, was that the
laptop showed up on the final bill with a price of $0.00. The total price
reflected only the price of the bag, not the laptop, even though both were
listed on the items list.
------------------------------------------------------------
I received the email, stating that my order had been accepted. However,
HP only shipped me the bag, and not the laptop.
My question is:
Do I have a legal basis for demanding the laptop for $0.00 as agreed upon
by myself and HP when I made the purchase? Do we have a purchase contract?