There are programs that provide government-subsidized cell phones to low-income people. This is all very useful and lovely…unless you’re Laurin, who is stuck with a subsidized phone that no one in her household ordered, and the company doesn’t seem to want back.

So, I was opening the mail at my house recently, and there was a package addressed to “Random person who doesn’t live here or current resident”. Seeing as I am a current resident, I opened it. Inside the box was one of those government assisted cell phones. No one in my household ordered this, and we have no clue who the person it is addressed to is. I tried to contact customer support, but that accomplished nothing. What do I do with this? I have no need for this phone. Also, I don’t know who this is, so I can’t get it to the person. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

If you didn’t order it and don’t want it, and it wasn’t ordered in your name, there’s no reason to worry about what to do with it. Write “Return to Sender” on the box, drop it off at your nearest post office. Or donate it to a local agency, like a domestic violence shelter, that can use prepaid phones.

Have you been the recipient of a similar mysterious phone? Is this a strange new occurrence sweeping the nation, or just a strange error?

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