A Kentucky mom found herself in a sticky situation when her eight-year-old son ordered 70,000 Dum-Dum lollipops on her phone.
On Sunday, Holly LaFavers noticed a $4,200 charge on her bank account, only to realize her son Liam had placed a bulk order for the candy via her Amazon account.
Speaking to Good Morning America, LaFavers said: “I had just gotten paid, and so when I looked at my bank account and it was in the red, I just immediately panicked.”
She added that Liam, who has fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and whom she adopted when he was two and a half years old, wanted to host a carnival for his friends and distribute the candy as prizes.
“He was being friendly, he was being kind to his friends,” LaFavers told the Associated Press.
According to LaFavers, she tried canceling the delivery but it was too late as Amazon had already delivered 22 cases of the candy to her doorstep. “Liam went outside to ride his scooter and started screaming, ‘My suckers are here,’” LaFavers told Good Morning America, adding: “There were just 22 boxes of suckers on our front porch.”
She then discovered that eight more cases from the order were unaccounted for. LaFavers proceeded to wait outside her doorstep and was able to reject the remaining order upon its delivery.
She tried to get a refund but faced initial difficulty from Amazon. “It was probably around dinner time, Sunday evening, I just kind of, for lack of better words, gave up and decided I was gonna have to ask for help,” LaFavers told Good Morning America.
LaFavers then took to social media. In a Facebook post, she wrote: “Hi Everyone! Liam ordered 30 cases of Dum-Dums and Amazon will not let me return them.
“Sale: $130 box. Still sealed.”
In response to her post, LaFavers’ friends, family and strangers helped her distribute the boxes and, within two hours, every box was purchased, she told Good Morning America. Candy buyers included local banks and doctor’s offices, as well as a chiropractor.
“My friends and family in Somerset truly stepped up … and they were able to help,” LaFavers said, adding: “They understood that it wasn’t anything malicious, and that I was an honest person. That’s amazing.”
In an updated Facebook post, LaFavers announced that “after a long day of working with the bank and talking to a few news stations Amazon called and they are refunding my money!!!”
She added: “THANK YOU to everyone that offered to buy a box to help us. I will be happy to get you what you ‘ordered’ or donate them to a charity of your choice. Please dm me your preference.”
In a statement to People magazine, Amazon confirmed the refund, saying: “We’re glad we were able to work directly with this customer to turn a sticky situation into something sweet.”
Meanwhile, Kirk Vashaw, the CEO of the Spangler Candy Company, which makes Dum-Dums, told the outlet: “We are excited to hear about such an enthusiastic Dum-Dums fan. We love that so many people jumped in to offer to buy the extra cases and that the family was ultimately reimbursed. We’d also like to offer Liam a job interview in the next 10-15 years.”
