[pkosian]

I called Verizon to have them check out the ESN again and said that I was just curious about the account connected with it and if it had been closed. The rep told me that once a phone is on the lost/stolen list it can be reactivated by the person who reported it lost/stolen within 30 days. This cannot be done after 30 days have passed, and the phone can never be reactivated by another person on another account. The seller definitely manipulated his wording to make me think it was Verizon giving me the hard time and not him doing something wrong. I let him know I would be sending the phone back for a refund and let on that I knew what he was up to. He replied to me saying that the phone is not on the lost/stolen list and that Verizon is giving me incorrect info. Give me a break!

Thank you again to everyone's good advice and feedback. I feel so foolish but I've definitely learned my lesson!

[tony2979#CB]

Just curious, but how does the guy's feedback on ebay look? Does he have a bunch and a 100% or close?

If he looks like a really good seller, it is possible that it was a misunderstanding. If he just has a few feedbacks or even worse negative feedback, I would agree with the others concerning going through paypal to get your money back.

At any rate, if he is a good seller, and this is a misunderstanding....he should offer to pay your shipping back and offer an immediate refund. Make sure to send it back using some method that is trackable.

Sorry for the bad luck :-( The vast majority of ebay sellers are good folks....its always the bad apple that makes it so tough.

[fonebrkr]

I've done this twice, both from craigslist, meet the person that is selling the phone at a Starbucks with the phone, after you check the water alarms, call verizon csr and read them the esn, they can tell you on the spot if the phones clear and everyone walks away happy.....

[pkosian]

The weird thing is that his feedback is 99.7% positive. I wouldn't have bid on something from a sketchy looking seller. By the looks of it, he has sold primarily phones, with all positive feedback except one. My dad and I have a theory that he tried to commit insurance fraud by reporting the phone stolen, then getting a replacement, and then "innocently" selling the "stolen" phone. I'm thinking maybe he didn't realize the buyer wouldn't be able to activate it? Even if that is the case though, that just makes him stupid in addition to doing something wrong. I would like to think that he was not intentionally trying to screw me over even if he was trying to screw the cell phone insurance company over.

[fonebrkr]

You also don't know where he got the phone, someone coulda tried to scam him, BUT throwing out the 30 day bull makes me believe he was trying to scam you, especially if he does a lot of resale business, he knows the policies.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[christyr143]

Yeah, I'd say he was trying to pull a scam. Especially if he has sold a lot of phones before...he knows what's up. I'm sorry this happened to you. What a PITA.

[Stonecaster]

I can assure you that he probably doesn't have the money to give back to you. Before you send the phone back, you MUST file claims with Paypal and Ebay. As stated before this will freeze his accounts and stop his Ebay business until it is resolved! What happens is Paypal will allow his account to accept payments so he can continue to have auctions and receive payments, however he will not
be able to withdraw the money. If you are worried about soiling his name over a misunderstanding, don't worry about it. Paypal will email him and let him know that a claim has been filed against him and then he will have the opportunity contact you and refund your money via Paypal which will then return everything back to normal. If you send the phone back without doing this, he can easily close his paypal account, keep your money and the phone. From reading your post you don't seem to want to file the claims but I can assure you from my years of experience on both ends of the Ebay/Payapl spectrum and I can assure that if you don't file the claim you will never see a penny.
Sorry to put it that way but there is no other way to say it.
Good luck and FILE THE CLAIM!!!!!

[incognito74]

I absolutely agree! Don't send the phone back yet. File a claim through PayPal and wait for PayPal's decision before returning the phone.
This is the best chance at getting your money back.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[pkosian]

I'm trying to dispute the transaction on PayPal now and it's not even showing up on my activity for the last month. Sketchy!

[Pdizz]

I have a Similar problem,i just bought a curve from a dude on craigslist and when i called Verizon to activate it they said the curve was still active on the original owners account, but the guy had deleted his account so the ESN should be free but according to Verizon since he decided to take His Phone number to a different carrier the ESN will be locked for a few daysso i have to wait a few days unless i can find a loop hole. I feel for you i was pissed!

[csierra72#CB]

Call Paypal immediately and get things rolling. Do not send the phone yet.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[Branta]

Get your complaint in to ebay and paypal. Hold the phone until your cash is back in full, its evidence.

Reading the thread again, everything is screaming 'stolen, stolen, stolen' so the risk of having cops involved might concentrate the perp's attention better

[Queen4111]

The more I see posts like this, the more obvious it appears that buying new phones from the carriers is the best way to go.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

I agree 100%!!!

[jchatman1]

Gosh that sounds horrible! I went through the same thing on ebay [not with a cell phone though] but when i disputed through paypal they protected me and backed me up 100% and i got my money back. I love paypal haha

[Chief7]

So far so good on phones on eBay for me. My current Curve came from there, as did my Mogul (my God am I glad that is gone!) and 800w that my daughter now has. The Mogul was used but I had no problems. But, the point I was going to make was FILE THE CLAIM WITHOUT HESITATION!!!! PayPal has been great since eBay bought them. Good luck and thanks for keeping us all informed!!

[hal1]

The more I see posts like this, the more obvious it appears that buying new phones from the carriers is the best way to go.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

I was ale to meet with the guy (craigslist) and called VZ to activate it right then, before I handed over the money. Felt like I got an okay deal for a little over $200