Would you claim a prize you actually did not win?

I think I would claim the prize. I could tell myself that the store only takes account for the person who enter the interior. I still feel guilty though.

I had to give this one a GQ because it’s a pretty amusing premise. Also GA to @Mimishu1995 for her answer, which may be the way I would view the event. I am not sure if I would be brave enough to deal with my own personal guilt, though, so I might confess that the award shouldn’t really go to me.

Of course not. By the same token, I would not accept a Nobel Peace Prize after having just been elected to the presidency and before I had done a thing to achieving, fostering or furthering any kind of actual peace process.

You have been chosen to represent the 500th customer. They didn’t have to choose you or the guy that came in first. My step sister who is blonde and really pretty was chosen to be an airline’s 1,000,000th customer. Of course she wasn’t, she just happened to be there at around the right time and looked lovely in their publicity photographs.

Erm, how would I even know that the dude in the restroom was the 500th person? I ain’t counting nothing. If the confetti and music start for me, I would assume that I was the winner. For me to know, the music and shit would have to start when the dude enters. Then I could tell the clerks they have the wrong person if they missed him and thought I triggered the music, although I would hope the real winner would buy me something haha.
I know this is a morality/premise oriented question, although unless the dude was creaming the bottom of his pants and had to go real bad, I doubt he would just ignore all the confetti and music if it all triggered as soon as he stepped in the store.

I accept the reward.

The 501st customer is clearly more deserving.

In good conscience I’d feel obligated to mention that, actually, there was a person n front of me that went to the restroom so missed being counted as the 500th customer by default.
If I was not AWARE of the customer that went to the restroom that would change the game, because they could be disputing my win without my getting the visual on them, but if I actually witnessed that person walk in the store ahead of me I would speak up and not claim the prize.

I’d take it all in stride, after all.. how do I know the guy didn’t come in, shop.. put his stuff in his car then had a sudden urge. No, I’d take the prize without guilt. Now if I saw him drop his wallet on the way to the restroom I’d definitely follow after him with wallet in hand..