Imagine walking outside and finding 30 massive cases of Dum-Dum lollipops on your front door step. That's a lot of information to process and, frankly, a bizarre reality to accept. Now imagine the burden of trying to rid yourself of 70,000 suckers. One Kentucky mother found herself with this absurd predicament after her eight-year-old son mistakenly placed that exact Amazon order while playing on her phone.
Lexington resident Holly LaFavers detailed her story on Facebook, earning responses that ranged from empathy to disbelief to laughter. She says her son, who has developmental delays that affect his decision-making, placed the candy order through the Amazon app—with a very sweet goal in mind. "He told me that he wanted to have a carnival and he was ordering the Dum-Dums as prizes for his carnival," LaFavers told local news station WKYT. "So, again, he was being friendly. He was being kind to his friends."
LaFavers tried to stop the order before it was delivered, but that wasn't an option. "I just panicked, and when I saw what the number was, I just about fainted." The cases, each packed with 2,340 suckers, retail for $132 a pop on Amazon, bringing her grand total to roughly $4,000. While eight of the 30 boxes didn't arrive—she learned from the post office that they were marked "return to sender"—she was still left with a financial and logistical challenge. LaFavers was forced to store some of the cases in her garage while inquiring with Amazon about their return policy. WKYT did the fact-checking here: "A note on Amazon's website says the item is non-returnable due to potential safety risk as an ingestible product." (The station also shared that, during a follow-up with LaFavers, she noted plans to "change some settings on her phone so this kind of thing doesn't happen again.")
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On Facebook, LaFavers shared photos of her Dum-Dum display, along with updates about her progress. Lots of friends and even local businesses offered to buy cases, and after the story started making local news, she eventually found a solution with Amazon. "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 wrote. "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." (By the way, here's the best Facebook comment: "If you have a Ring camera, I need the footage of the delivery AND your arrival…")
While some Amazon deliveries bring unwanted surprises, others can be unexpectedly helpful. In a viral TikTok clip shared by Jessica Huseman, doorbell cam footage shows a driver singing a PSA: "I hope your Monday’s going well. You have no markers on your house that says what number you are. And that is hard to find your house, my dude, and it’s unsafe, honestly. What if you needed medical assistance and the paramedics didn’t know your town well?” In another Amazon-related clip, a delivery driver in the Chicago suburbs struggled to secure a chicken after dropping off a package in someone's garage.
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