Bought Stolen Phone

melon_collie · 22-09-2014 5:06pm #1

As the title suggests, I purchased a Samsung Galaxy S4 phone on Adverts about 6 months ago. Brand new in packaging. Anyway last week it stopped working in the sense that I couldnt make or receive calls. I sent it to Vodafone last week for repair. They called me today to say that the phone has been barred . . more than likely reported stolen or an insurance claim made on it. Im a bit pissed off but I I'm just going to chalk it down to experience. I know there;s probably nothing I can do but should I report it to the Gardai???

ABajaninCork · 22-09-2014 5:24pm

Yes. Do you still have a copy of the original ad?

ScouseMouse · 22-09-2014 5:27pm

melon_collie wrote: »

As the title suggests, I purchased a Samsung Galaxy S4 phone on Adverts about 6 months ago. Brand new in packaging. Anyway last week it stopped working in the sense that I couldnt make or receive calls. I sent it to Vodafone last week for repair. They called me today to say that the phone has been barred . . more than likely reported stolen or an insurance claim made on it. Im a bit pissed off but I I'm just going to chalk it down to experience. I know there;s probably nothing I can do but should I report it to the Gardai???

Of course report it to the guards. In theory, they could contact adverts for the seller details and work from there. Of course, you would need a guard who is bothered....

Sam Mac · 22-09-2014 7:37pm

superscouse wrote: »

Of course report it to the guards. In theory, they could contact adverts for the seller details and work from there. Of course, you would need a guard who is bothered...

Very hard to find these days.

former legend · 23-09-2014 8:13am

melon_collie wrote: »

As the title suggests, I purchased a Samsung Galaxy S4 phone on Adverts about 6 months ago. Brand new in packaging. Anyway last week it stopped working in the sense that I couldnt make or receive calls. I sent it to Vodafone last week for repair. They called me today to say that the phone has been barred . . more than likely reported stolen or an insurance claim made on it. Im a bit pissed off but I I'm just going to chalk it down to experience. I know there;s probably nothing I can do but should I report it to the Gardai???

Did Vodafone tell you that or is that your guesswork? I would definitely report it, even just to adverts.ie if you don't want to bother involving the Gardai.

How much did you pay for it, btw?

melon_collie · 23-09-2014 9:20am

Just to update you on the situation. Called the Gardai yesterday who were extremely helpful and sympathetic. They told me that they could take a statement from me and put it in a legal letter (can't remember the exact term for this letter but he did have a name for it) and Garda stamp it for submission into Vodafone. However he advised me to speak to Vodafone firstly and ask them about what exactly they would require from the Gardai in order to have the barring removed from the device.

Fast forward two hours . . . I called Vodafone customer service. Again, they were very helpful and sympathetic. I explained to them that I had spoken to the Gardai on the matter and the Gardai wished to know what Vodafone required from them to have the barring removed. The customer service agent put me on hold so he could speak to his manager. He came back to me and said that if I call him tomorrow with the IMEI number of the phone that he will remove the barring from the phone immediately. Vodafone fraud department will then deal with the other guy in due course.

Happy days. At least I'm not going to be at a loss which I'm very grateful for. The Garda I was speaking to had never heard of that happening before but stated that he could see how it could happen. A guy gets a €500 phone on a contract, sells the phone for €500, six months later reports it stolen and gets another phone.

Have to say a big thanks to the Gardai here. I know they have taken a bit of sh*t in the media over last few months but praise where its due.

Will keep you posted on any developments.

Beano · 23-09-2014 9:32am

Shouldnt vodafone already know the imei number? How else would they know that they phone is barred?

Red Nissan · 23-09-2014 9:39am

Beano wrote: »

Shouldnt vodafone already know the imei number? How else would they know that they phone is barred?

Presumably it was barred as an automatic function and assumed lost. I speculate that there are thousands of phone barred from all countries and call centres around the world.

Also if one has that number, it has a certain weight of ownership.

D3PO · 23-09-2014 10:33am

whilst what Vodafone are doing is helpful for you Im not so sure Im happy they are doing that.

The phone could have been genuinely stolen or lost, its not certain the guy you bought it off was the same guy that made the claim. All this does is encourage people to feel confident in buying stolen goods as they can circumvent a barring process which in turn then encourages phone theft.

By all means if Vodafone investigate and find the root cause and recoup the cost from the claimant if proven he was the one that sold the phone on then unblock it, but to do it immediatly not good IMO.

endacl · 23-09-2014 10:48am

superscouse wrote: »

Of course, you would need a guard who is bothered....

:rolleyes:

Sam Mac wrote: »

Very hard to find these days.

:rolleyes: :rolleyes:

melon_collie wrote: »

Just to update you on the situation. Called the Gardai yesterday who were extremely helpful and sympathetic.

Have to say a big thanks to the Gardai here.

Glad you found boring stereotypical prejudice to be unfounded and are getting this sorted.

melon_collie · 23-09-2014 10:52am

Well as I explained to both the Gardai and Vodafone last evening I have been using the phone for the last 6 months from my number. And from what the guy in Vodafone was saying last night I'm pretty certain they can tell that from their GSM systems.

So if I've been using the phone for the past 6 months I'm obviously the owner. Why would someone else report it lost or stolen 6 months after I've started using it. Quite clearly a scam.

ScouseMouse · 23-09-2014 11:13am

endacl wrote: »

:rolleyes:

:rolleyes: :rolleyes:

Glad you found boring stereotypical prejudice to be unfounded and are getting this sorted.

As someone who has experienced a 24 hour delay (on more than one occasion) ,in getting any sort of reply from the guards to being attacked and stolen from, I stand by what I said. I do understand the gardai are overstretched, but have seen at first hand, gardai who are not bothered about smaller crimes.

I stand by my comments and will not be risen by your rolleyes :pac:

As for the OP, well done! If the gardai want details of the adverts user who sold it to you, they do have a way to get it. Then if they passed it to Vodafone and it was found to be the original owner, it could be taken from there. So ***HYPOTHETICALLY***, if the owner reported it lost and did an insurance claim, but was then found to have sold it to the OP, there could be a case of insurance fraud.

former legend · 23-09-2014 11:15am

melon_collie wrote: »

Well as I explained to both the Gardai and Vodafone last evening I have been using the phone for the last 6 months from my number. And from what the guy in Vodafone was saying last night I'm pretty certain they can tell that from their GSM systems.

So if I've been using the phone for the past 6 months I'm obviously the owner. Why would someone else report it lost or stolen 6 months after I've started using it. Quite clearly a scam.

Yeah, but I think the point is that if the goods are/were stolen, then you can't be the owner. Using it for six months doesn't give you any title to it so if Vodafone or whoever can find the rightful owner, then the phone has to go back to him.

melon_collie · 23-09-2014 11:25am

I'm quite happy to let the Gardai and Vodafone handle it from here. The truth will come out in the end.

MarkR · 23-09-2014 11:28am

Perhaps another phone with a similar IMEI number was reported stolen recently. OP having had their phone for 6 months would show it was the wrong IMEI blocked.

Dionysius2 · 23-09-2014 11:51am

superscouse wrote: »

As someone who has experienced a 24 hour delay (on more than one occasion) ,in getting any sort of reply from the guards to being attacked and stolen from, I stand by what I said. I do understand the gardai are overstretched, but have seen at first hand, gardai who are not bothered about smaller crimes.

I stand by my comments and will not be risen by your rolleyes :pac:

As for the OP, well done! If the gardai want details of the adverts user who sold it to you, they do have a way to get it. Then if they passed it to Vodafone and it was found to be the original owner, it could be taken from there. So ***HYPOTHETICALLY***, if the owner reported it lost and did an insurance claim, but was then found to have sold it to the OP, there could be a case of insurance fraud.

The guards will never commit scarce resources to will-o-the wisp mobile phone shenanigans such as forms the basis of this thread unless there's a serious crime hanging off the end of it and it's a link in the investigation.
When it comes to mobile phone telephony, this type of stuff is a dime a dozen. The entire police force could spend their full time chasing their tails on this kind of stuff and have damn little to show for it, imo.

Advice : when completing a property purchasing transaction with a stranger, ask him/her if they would mind standing with you in a photo (via a mob phone, what else) as you just wish to be sure of the honesty of the entire transaction. Can't see that it would bother the true owners very much but just watch the coughing and body language of the scam artists.
Might be time to renege on the deal in some cases and save your hard earned cash for a worthier transaction.

melon_collie · 23-09-2014 3:01pm

True, the Gardai may not waste their time with it but I think the insurance company who insured the phone will be very interested since they will be out of pocket. I think the main point here is to not let this thing go. Insurance fraud is a serious crime and one that we are all paying for.

digitaldr · 23-09-2014 3:16pm

I've sold a couple of phones on adverts and have always included the original receipt. If I was buying one I think I'd want to see one too.

mgbgt1978 · 23-09-2014 8:07pm

former legend wrote: »

Yeah, but I think the point is that if the goods are/were stolen, then you can't be the owner. Using it for six months doesn't give you any title to it so if Vodafone or whoever can find the rightful owner, then the phone has to go back to him.

I believe the point is that this phone has worked fine for the past six months and was only 'blocked' in the past week or so.
Why wasn't it blocked when the OP originally bought it ?
Why would somebody wait for at least six months before reporting a stolen phone to Vodafone ???

foggy_lad · 23-09-2014 9:46pm

former legend wrote: »

Yeah, but I think the point is that if the goods are/were stolen, then you can't be the owner. Using it for six months doesn't give you any title to it so if Vodafone or whoever can find the rightful owner, then the phone has to go back to him.

Vodafone will just go back to the person who claimed for a new phone and bill them for the second handset.

Bought Stolen Phone

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