SHOPPER Bob Simpson was stunned when he was told he had been refunded £36,067 for a £36 pair of shorts.

Cotton Traders credited his credit card with £36,067 for the £36.68 online purchase of the three-quarter length shorts.

The firm offered the refund after the shorts did not arrive, but then rang the Abingdon warehouse worker to point out the mistake.

The Cheshire-based retailer contacted him on Friday and said it would be reclaiming the cash, which he believes had been credited to him for a few days.

Cotton Traders yesterday declined to comment.

The 59-year-old dad-of-two was none the wiser and said he would have been limited by a £250 credit limit on the new card.

Mr Simpson said: “I thought ‘36 grand, what do I do?’ I have never even seen that amount, let alone own it.

“Everybody says we should have kept it but I couldn’t keep it.”

But Mr Simpson – who lives with wife Pauline, 59 – said it did make him think what he would have done had he got the cash.

He said: “I would have just left work. We are quietening down a bit, we would have had a good spend.”

Yet he is now seeking compensation from the credit card provider – who he would not name.

Mr Simpson said: “I said ‘I think a couple of grand should do me’.

“It could have gone elsewhere and they could have lost it, I could have spent it.

“They are in the process of getting it back now, but Cotton Traders said they will sort out some compensation.”

Part-time cleaner Mrs Simpson, also 59, said: “It was a bit of a shock really to think that they can make that mistake.

“If we had it to spend then I think we would need a bit of time to get over the shock.”

She added: “It wasn’t our fault that it happened.

“They made the mistake so they should really compensate us.”