Got Screwed - iPhone 5 now blocked (reported lost/stolen a month after purchase)

McAlban

Go to your Local Garda Station with the Receipt and the Box etc., Explain what's happened and tell them you believe a crime has been committed.

Put it this way, If you bought a second hand car, Got a receipt from the Dealer, but the VRC was never updated and then got pulled over a month later because it had been reported stolen what would happen?

120_Minutes

brophs wrote: »

Perhaps I'm wrong, but doesn't that suggest that the owner didn't report it as being stolen and/or seek to have it blacklisted?

Its both possible that the owner never reported it, or by the time he did it popped up on their system as (in this case wrongly) being used by its new owner, thus preventing them from blacklisting it, which is the point i tried to make earlier. the legit owner cant find out whos using it now, as that would cause o2 to breach the data protection act.

Dublinstiofán

120_Minutes wrote: »

Its both possible that the owner never reported it, or by the time he did it popped up on their system as (in this case wrongly) being used by its new owner, thus preventing them from blacklisting it, which is the point i tried to make earlier. the legit owner cant find out whos using it now, as that would cause o2 to breach the data protection act.

It makes sense that it was O2 you were dealing with i have the greatest
respect for the time they have for their customers. They always have
some sort of prevention measure to stop fraud, other networks are way
behind.

120_Minutes

Dublinstiofán wrote: »

It makes sense that it was O2 you were dealing with i have the greatest
respect for the time they have for their customers. They always have
some sort of prevention measure to stop fraud, other networks are way
behind.

except in the case of my workmate (not me), the legitimate owner who lost the phone is the one who got screwed, simply by not blacklisting it in time.

brophs

120_Minutes wrote: »

Its both possible that the owner never reported it, or by the time he did it popped up on their system as (in this case wrongly) being used by its new owner, thus preventing them from blacklisting it, which is the point i tried to make earlier. the legit owner cant find out whos using it now, as that would cause o2 to breach the data protection act.

I'd be pretty surprised if simply registering the IMEI to your account means it can't be blacklisted. The IMEI can be retrieved from the phone itself. What's to stop people just grabbing phones and calling O2 immediately to register it?

Qwerty Dub

I was recently getting an iPhone 4 unlocked by 3. Was dragging out for a couple of weeks before I was eventually told that the IMEI of the phone was attached to 2 different accounts. They wouldn't tell me the other account it was attached to but I had to verify that I had bought it by telling them the exact date and in what store before they would attach it to me ONLY and unlock for use with another network.

120_Minutes

brophs wrote: »

I'd be pretty surprised if simply registering the IMEI to your account means it can't be blacklisted. The IMEI can be retrieved from the phone itself. What's to stop people just grabbing phones and calling O2 immediately to register it?

well, i'm only speaking from my own experience, and anecdotal eveidence of people i know. if it didnt prevent the original owner doing it, it should at least throw up a red flag...

g1tm

120_Minutes wrote: »

Not on every policy. Carphone warehouse (who i'm insured with) cover you immediately.

Sorry, should have said before you can claim, not before your covered.

That is on all policies, none of them will pay out within the first thirty days.


Slight quick update....

Not getting very far unfortunately.

Three can't give me any information due to data protection and now turns out that even though "Insurance plan" was written on the receipt, they cannot confirm that a claim has been made.

Not getting anywhere with insurance companies either as I'm not the policy holder, again data protection.

Both companies have said they can't help and the only way it can be unblocked is by the original owner unblocking it.
Even if criminal proceedings are brought against the seller or previous owner, they still won't unblock it unless requested to by the original owner.

They also said they will pursue it at their end and left it at that (hinted not to bother calling again).

To be clear, good customer service from Three, just an unfortunate situation.

I spoke to 2 mates who are Gaurds, they have heard it before and said its a more common scam than you would think....very little or now chance of getting it unblocked.

Have not had a chance to go down and report it as I've been away with work, but will do it soon, won't give up til the bitter end.


All I can say, let it be a stark warning to anyone out there....I've bought and sold a HEAP of phones over adverts and other sites and this is my first bad experience, but no matter how safe you THINK the transaction is (Reciept, unopened box, collected at their house etc etc) there is nothing that is totally safe....the only way to be totally sure is to pay the extra 50 or 100 quid and buy in a shop !

Really sad to say this considering the amount I've sold myself, but its the unfortunate reality ! Have lost all confidence in buying second hand / online.

rx8

This exact thing happened to my son about 3 months ago... bought a Samsung Galaxy 3 through an advert on Donedeal, met the guy, got the receipt, new phone sealed in box etc... Worked for a few weeks, then got no service. Three said exactly the same, wouldn't give him any info, as he's not the account holder etc, got no joy from the guards either.

Eventually he got in touch with some guy who charged him €100 to sort it out, and at least now it's working, although he had to pay a pile of money for it.

I'm sure I could get the number for you, if you are interested.

PM sent with the name and number,use it if you wish. He should be able to sort you problem and at least you will have a working phone.

Qwerty Dub

g1tm wrote: »

Sorry, should have said before you can claim, not before your covered.

That is on all policies, none of them will pay out within the first thirty days.


Slight quick update....

Not getting very far unfortunately.

Three can't give me any information due to data protection and now turns out that even though "Insurance plan" was written on the receipt, they cannot confirm that a claim has been made.

Not getting anywhere with insurance companies either as I'm not the policy holder, again data protection.

Both companies have said they can't help and the only way it can be unblocked is by the original owner unblocking it.
Even if criminal proceedings are brought against the seller or previous owner, they still won't unblock it unless requested to by the original owner.

They also said they will pursue it at their end and left it at that (hinted not to bother calling again).

To be clear, good customer service from Three, just an unfortunate situation.

I spoke to 2 mates who are Gaurds, they have heard it before and said its a more common scam than you would think....very little or now chance of getting it unblocked.

Have not had a chance to go down and report it as I've been away with work, but will do it soon, won't give up til the bitter end.


All I can say, let it be a stark warning to anyone out there....I've bought and sold a HEAP of phones over adverts and other sites and this is my first bad experience, but no matter how safe you THINK the transaction is (Reciept, unopened box, collected at their house etc etc) there is nothing that is totally safe....the only way to be totally sure is to pay the extra 50 or 100 quid and buy in a shop !

Really sad to say this considering the amount I've sold myself, but its the unfortunate reality ! Have lost all confidence in buying second hand / online.

Report it to one of your mates who is a Guard and let them follow it up for you as much as they can.

The bloke you got it off is not going to want a conviction out of it. Get your mate to give him an ultimatum. Either he requests the unlock or you will be proceeding with a complaint.

He can cover himself with phone/insurance company by saying it turns out he lost it and the finder tracked him down and returned the phone. If he still has to refund the claim he is still breaking even given you paid him for the phone.

Its his call. Cash for phone + insurance money + possible conviction OR cash for phone ONLY. I know which I'd prefer.

Stay at it. Keep ringing 3. Keep ringing the insurance. Keep ringing him. Keep calling up. Keep at the guards.

And feel free to post his mobile number up here so we can all keep ringing him.

If you see any more ads from him on adverts ruin his sales by commenting underneath. Post the links here so we can take turns arranging to meet him and leave him waiting. I'd give him €600 + VAT worth of hassle back. He'd be sorry he started.

VeVeX

g1tm wrote: »

I spoke to 2 mates who are Gaurds, they have heard it before and said its a more common scam than you would think....very little or now chance of getting it unblocked.
(

No disrespect to your friends but my advice would be not to take the opinion of any rank and file Garda as fact. As soon as they leave the academy donning the blue suit they seem to become oracles in all things law. In actual fact their advice can be misleading and in cases absolutely wrong. If you need legal advise call a solicitor.

rx8

rx8 wrote: »

Eventually he got in touch with some guy who charged him €100 to sort it out, and at least now it's working, although he had to pay a pile of money for it.

Sounds like he changed the IMEI, which is actually illegal.

Qwerty Dub

VeVeX wrote: »

No disrespect to your friends but my advice would be not to take the opinion of any rank and file Garda as fact. As soon as they leave the academy donning the blue suit they seem to become oracles in all things law. In actual fact their advice can be misleading and in cases absolutely wrong. If you need legal advise call a solicitor.

That's a bit of a harsh generalization. Hardly fair to tar them all with the same brush.

rx8

Karsini wrote: »

Sounds like he changed the IMEI, which is actually illegal.

Maybe it is, I don't know, but at least it's no longer a paper-weight.

harney

I'm confused, can the person that you bought the phone from not get a knock on the door from the Gardaí for selling you stolen property? I don't think ignorance of being stolen is a defence. That might convince him to say who originally owned the phone.

long_b

Really sad to say this considering the amount I've sold myself, but its the unfortunate reality ! Have lost all confidence in buying second hand / online.

Surely an Adverts/boards user with a long history of positive feedback would be kosher ?

VeVeX

Qwerty Dub wrote: »

That's a bit of a harsh generalization. Hardly fair to tar them all with the same brush.

Ok sorry

VeVeX wrote: »

No disrespect to your friends but my advice would be not to take the opinion of the majority of rank and file Garda as fact. As soon as they leave the academy donning the blue suit they seem to become oracles in all things law. In actual fact their advice can be misleading and in cases absolutely wrong. If you need legal advise call a solicitor.

120_Minutes

g1tm wrote: »

Sorry, should have said before you can claim, not before your covered.

That is on all policies, none of them will pay out within the first thirty days.

Just had a quick scan of the T&C's of my policy pertaining to claims on the carphone website and there's no mention of this, so i think you're wrong again.

Which makes sense, why be covered from the beginning when you cant claim for 30 days, whats the point of that?

ringadingding

No disrespect intended, but why are you not at this guys house twice a day,

He's ripped you off, forget the guards, forget the provider hassle him at home, follow him to work cause a scene.

He's probably spent the money, so forget that, but make him make the call.

Again, no disrespect, but if you're not brave enough to do that, which I can understand, get somebody to do it for you.

Get round that ****ers house

BroLo

120_Minutes wrote: »

Just had a quick scan of the T&C's of my policy pertaining to claims on the carphone website and there's no mention of this, so i think you're wrong again.

Which makes sense, why be covered from the beginning when you cant claim for 30 days, whats the point of that?

It's to stop people smashing their phone, then taking insurance out and claiming from day one.

ringadingding wrote: »

No disrespect intended, but why are you not at this guys house twice a day,

He's ripped you off, forget the guards, forget the provider hassle him at home, follow him to work cause a scene.

He's probably spent the money, so forget that, but make him make the call.

Again, no disrespect, but if you're not brave enough to do that, which I can understand, get somebody to do it for you.

Get round that ****ers house

It's illegal. It's deemed harassment and the scammer, though a príck, can report him to the guards. Then he ends up on the wrong side of the guards.

pom pom snaz peeler

ringadingding wrote: »

No disrespect intended, but why are you not at this guys house twice a day,

He's ripped you off, forget the guards, forget the provider hassle him at home, follow him to work cause a scene.

He's probably spent the money, so forget that, but make him make the call.

Again, no disrespect, but if you're not brave enough to do that, which I can understand, get somebody to do it for you.

Get round that ****ers house

id have to agree... if it was me id be ringing the Fu**er 10 times a day.... ok he would eventually change his number but have you even told him your going to the guards with this. seems you made one phone call to him and he said tough......id be back out to his house and bring one of your so called Guard mates...... otherwise just leave it be....

_Whimsical_

ringadingding wrote: »

No disrespect intended, but why are you not at this guys house twice a day,

He's ripped you off, forget the guards, forget the provider hassle him at home, follow him to work cause a scene.

He's probably spent the money, so forget that, but make him make the call.

Again, no disrespect, but if you're not brave enough to do that, which I can understand, get somebody to do it for you.

Get round that ****ers house

I can fully see the attraction in this line of action but I'd advise you to be very careful. Remain civil and don't threaten him with anything more than the guards. All you know about this guy is that he has enough brass neck to pull a stunt like this and bring you to his house to do it. That means he's either as thick as the wall or he that knows he is capable of being threatening and unpleasant enough to frighten someone into keeping quiet so he can get away with this. Don't get yourself into anything you can't handle.

I'd also google his name and his address to and see if he has any convictions etc before tangling with him. I have sold a few things on adverts and had cause to be suspicious of one person who bought from me .By chance I googled the name and it turned out this person had some serious convictions. This person is a boards.ie user. You just can't be too careful in these situations.

g1tm

long_b wrote: »

Surely an Adverts/boards user with a long history of positive feedback would be kosher ?

Yes, agreed, I think adverts is the only place I'll buy / sell going forward and only use people with a pile of positive feedback + verified etc....still would not prevent it happening but better than using other sites.

sweetie

i'm in a situation where I recently bought an iphone 4s with 8 mths warranty remaining. The guy had decent feedback and sent me the imei which verified the warranty. I checked the phone for water damage and he even came into a meteor store where a saleperson put a meteor sim in and tested the phone to check it was working. 6 weeks later it wont turn on so its dropped into meteor for repair and they refuse saying its already ben repaired with 'non genuine apple parts.' I havent done anything yet as im unsure if there is any legal case to be answered here and its just tough luck. My gut feeling is that if i get in touch he will ignore me. Should I try and get him to meet me with the ruse of buying another phone from him and see what his reaction is in the flesh? He had also offered me a samsung phone for sale when I met him before. Adverts admins have his postal address and his facebook profile has photos etc. His girlfriend works very close to where I live!

120_Minutes

BroLo wrote: »

It's to stop people smashing their phone, then taking insurance

You mean damage the phone then try to insure it to claim? But dont they make you show them the phone before you insure it to prevent that happening?

I had to be sure so I rang them today, and I can claim from the day the insurance starts, ie day 1

guil

sweetie wrote: »

i'm in a situation where I recently bought an iphone 4s with 8 mths warranty remaining. The guy had decent feedback and sent me the imei which verified the warranty. I checked the phone for water damage and he even came into a meteor store where a saleperson put a meteor sim in and tested the phone to check it was working. 6 weeks later it wont turn on so its dropped into meteor for repair and they refuse saying its already ben repaired with 'non genuine apple parts.' I havent done anything yet as im unsure if there is any legal case to be answered here and its just tough luck. My gut feeling is that if i get in touch he will ignore me. Should I try and get him to meet me with the ruse of buying another phone from him and see what his reaction is in the flesh? He had also offered me a samsung phone for sale when I met him before. Adverts admins have his postal address and his facebook profile has photos etc. His girlfriend works very close to where I live!

Happened to me a few times before with an iPhone 4. Press and hold the power and home button together until the apple appears on screen and it should turn on fine

CathalDublin

OP: I would try and get a letter/report stamped by the guards with the details you've reported including the persons name, number, address who you bought it from and head into the 3 head office and not leave without speaking to someone who's going to either replace the phone for you or whitelist it and chase up the original owner.

sweetie wrote: »

i'm in a situation where I recently bought an iphone 4s with 8 mths warranty remaining. The guy had decent feedback and sent me the imei which verified the warranty. I checked the phone for water damage and he even came into a meteor store where a saleperson put a meteor sim in and tested the phone to check it was working. 6 weeks later it wont turn on so its dropped into meteor for repair and they refuse saying its already ben repaired with 'non genuine apple parts.' I havent done anything yet as im unsure if there is any legal case to be answered here and its just tough luck. My gut feeling is that if i get in touch he will ignore me. Should I try and get him to meet me with the ruse of buying another phone from him and see what his reaction is in the flesh? He had also offered me a samsung phone for sale when I met him before. Adverts admins have his postal address and his facebook profile has photos etc. His girlfriend works very close to where I live!

I'd just take it to a 3rd party repair company for a quote.
It could be something ridiculously simple, I don't think you've much comeback to the seller there as the phone was working 100% when you bought it and 6weeks later it wasn't. Did you ask the seller was it ever opened/repaired?
Apple wont cover the phone if its ever been opened up, the screen was most likey replaced in it and they have noticed it and voided the warranty.

BroLo

120_Minutes wrote: »

You mean damage the phone then try to insure it to claim? But dont they make you show them the phone before you insure it to prevent that happening?

I had to be sure so I rang them today, and I can claim from the day the insurance starts, ie day 1

Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. If you had yours inspected then there's no reason to not allow claims from day one.


However the likes of Chill gadget insurance don't check the phone out, so they probably have the 30 day clause in place to avoid someone taking it out after damaging it, nobody wants a broken phone for 30 days really, but I'm sure people still do it

sweetie

CathalDublin wrote: »

I'd just take it to a 3rd party repair company for a quote.
It could be something ridiculously simple, I don't think you've much comeback to the seller there as the phone was working 100% when you bought it and 6weeks later it wasn't. Did you ask the seller was it ever opened/repaired?
Apple wont cover the phone if its ever been opened up, the screen was most likey replaced in it and they have noticed it and voided the warranty.

thanks Cathal. I made a point of getting the imei in advance to check it was still in warranty etc. but I probably never explicity asked had said warranty been voided.

whiterebel

CathalDublin wrote: »

OP: I would try and get a letter/report stamped by the guards with the details you've reported including the persons name, number, address who you bought it from and head into the 3 head office and not leave without speaking to someone who's going to either replace the phone for you or whitelist it and chase up the original owner.

Why on earth would Three be responsible for giving the OP a replacement or to whitelist it? Hardly their fault that they are dealing with a fraudulent dickhead.