NJ Toddler Accidentally Orders $2K In Furniture From Walmart

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, NJ — A toddler from Monmouth Junction, South Brunswick racked up a bill of nearly $2,000 by going on a shopping spree using his mother's phone.

Pramod Kumar and his family recently moved into their new home and were looking to purchase new furniture.

“My wife Madhu loves online shopping. She picked out pieces of furniture and added them to her online shopping cart on the Walmart app, with intentions to choose some at a later date,” Kumar told Patch.

A few days later, the couple found large boxes arriving at their doorstep. “I was confused, and so was my wife. It was then that we realized our 22-month-old son Ayaansh has accidentally ended up ordering the furniture from Walmart,” Pramod said.

The couple has their payment information stored online which made it easier for Ayaansh to purchase the items. “Online retailers make it really easy for frequent shoppers to buy items by storing payment details. But the drawback is that a little one like Ayaansh can make a purchase without us knowing,” the father said.

Kumar describes his toddler as a “pandemic baby” who is quite “tech-savvy.”

“Ayaansh was born in April 2020. Due to the pandemic, he has not had much social interaction. The only people he’s seen are his family,” Kumar said.

The toddler has observed his parents and siblings, aged 10 and 14, on their gadgets. “Ayaansh has seen his family study and work from home. For him, a gadget is used to interact with the world, guess that's what he thinks,” Kumar said.

Although the toddler does not really know what he’s doing on a gadget, there are times when he has emailed and FaceTimed a few people, said Kumar who works as an IT consultant.

“Ayaansh is completely clueless about what he's done. We still have packages arriving. That’s how much he ordered,” Kumar said.

Walmart should be able to refund most of the purchases, Kumar said. “But we plan on keeping a few pieces as a memory of this incident.”

Although the couple found humor in the situation, they plan to put tougher passcodes and remove payment details from their phones to ensure they don’t receive unwanted purchases again.

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