Sugar Rush: Kentucky Boy Orders $4,000 in Lollipops from Mom's Phone

A Kentucky mom was surprised to find her son ordered 70,000 lollipops from Amazon. Here's how to ensure a similar oopsie doesn't happen to you.

Yellow, red and orange lollipops against a yellow background.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Talk about a sweet surprise: A Kentucky mom, Holly LaFavers, made the startling discovery that her son ordered 70,000 Dum-Dum suckers from Amazon while he was playing on her phone.

By the time she found out about it, it was too late to stop the order. So, in a scene that would make Buddy the Elf squeal in joy, boxes of sugary treats arrived on her doorstep.

"He told me that he wanted to have a carnival, and he was ordering the Dum-Dums as prizes for his carnival," LaFavers told CBS News. "Again, he was being friendly, he was being kind to his friends."

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Kids have all the best ideas, don't they?

How Amazon handled the sweet return

Her initial shock about the order grew when she found out this sugar party was costing her upwards of $4,000.

Thankfully for her and her bank account, Amazon plans to refund the entire order, according to WKYT. This came after she spent a day on the phone with her bank and being interviewed by local TV stations.

Even more amazing, Amazon didn't want the suckers back. So, Holly is taking a cue from her son and plans to donate these sugary treats.

Ky. 2nd grader accidentally orders over 70,000 suckers - YouTube Ky. 2nd grader accidentally orders over 70,000 suckers - YouTube
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How do you prevent kids from ordering on your Amazon?

If you have kids or grandkids, you know how much they like to play on devices like your phone or tablet. So, it's important you set parental controls or else, you could wake up to a toy store or candy shop on your doorstep.

Amazon makes it simple to set up controls on their app. Here's how it works:

  • Log into your Amazon account on your device's app
  • Access settings
  • Select parental controls
  • Tap "Enable parental controls"
  • The app will request your password again to verify

Once set up, you'll need to enter your password anytime you want to purchase an item. Make sure to set a password that isn't easy to guess or you could be looking at a sugary surprise arriving on your doorstep.

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Sean Jackson
Personal finance eCommerce writer

Sean is a veteran personal finance writer, with over 10 years of experience. He's written finance guides on insurance, savings, travel and more for CNET, Bankrate and GOBankingRates.