Mobile Stolen - No Insurance - Should I Pay?

Fortis_in_Arduis

This one is amazing...

I am currently on holiday in India.

I had a dreadful leaving party on the night before I flew, and my telephone was stolen. I even know who stole it, although it will be impossible to prove from a police point of view.

I woke up, rather dazed, and realised that my phone was missing. I had to rush to my flight that morning. A few days after I arrived in New Delhi, I phoned the '3' company to tell them that my phone was stolen, and asked them to block and blacklist the handset. Job done.

I was informed that since I did not report the handset stolen within 48 hours (to the police) my insurance was void... :mad:

In all, I have a £200 outstanding balance on the account, plus my monthly charges for my time away, and a £60 fee for a new handset if I want to reinstate my account. That will come to about £360.

I am loathe to pay charges for a handset that I have not be able to use, I just want a new contract...

I am happy to pay the £200 charge I owe them up until the handset was stolen, but no more than that. It is too much.

Am I in a position to negotiate with them when I return from my holiday?

What happens if I do not pay? Is it really that bad?

uktyler

Is the contract still running?
You might be accumulating more debt all the time.
You are still liable for the contract even if you don't use it.
You could pay the debt and buy a cheap secondhand phone to use on three when you get back.
Did you go away with no intention of paying for your contract whilst you were on holiday?

If you don't pay they will chase you for the money, and you may find it harder to get a phone contract with anybody afterwards.

macman

If you are still in contract then you are liable for the full monthly charge until the end of the contract. From what I understand, you had insurance with 3, which as they say is voided because you didn't report it in time. Do you have any claim under your home contents insurance as an alternative? (however I doubt if this would succeed, as you don't appear to have reported the theft to the UK police, so you will have no crime reference number-without which you are unlikely to be able to claim on that policy).
Did you check with 3 if the phone was used between the time of the theft and you reporting it stolen? Unfortunately you wil also be liable for these charges if it was.

Fortis_in_Arduis

macman wrote: »

If you are still in contract then you are liable for the full monthly charge until the end of the contract. From what I understand, you had insurance with 3, which as they say is voided because you didn't report it in time. Do you have any claim under your home contents insurance as an alternative? (however I doubt if this would succeed, as you don't appear to have reported the theft to the UK police, so you will have no crime reference number-without which you are unlikely to be able to claim on that policy).
Did you check with 3 if the phone was used between the time of the theft and you reporting it stolen? Unfortunately you wil also be liable for these charges if it was.

I am still in the contract, and I have no other insurance.

I think that it is little unfair that my insurance was voided, given that I had to catch a flight 6 hours after my phone was stolen. I did not have time to see the police about it.

I do not think that the phone was used after it was stolen.

uktyler wrote: »

Is the contract still running?

You might be accumulating more debt all the time.

You are still liable for the contract even if you don't use it.

Yes, it is, I am, and I know.

You could pay the debt and buy a cheap secondhand phone to use on three when you get back.

Can I do any better than that though? Can I regotiate?

Did you go away with no intention of paying for your contract whilst you were on holiday?

No, I wanted to keep in touch with people and take pretty photographs.

If you don't pay they will chase you for the money, and you may find it harder to get a phone contract with anybody afterwards.

How serious is 'chasing'? I have £0=00 assets and they will not be able to phone me... lol...

It is beginning to look like the preferable option:

I can ask my godfather for a new telephone, new contract. Quelle domage...

uktyler

Fortis_in_Arduis wrote: »

How serious is 'chasing'? I have £0=00 assets and they will not be able to phone me... lol...

It is beginning to look like the preferable option.

If you want any form of credit in the next few years, or another contract then don't pay. You may be chased by debt collectors and have bailiffs turn up on your door step though.

You went on holiday knowing you owed £200, but no have no money?

I don't think you ever had any intention of paying, and came on here to get justification for your actions. I doubt many people on this site will agree with your views, this site is about saving money, not ripping companies off.

reehsetin

Fortis_in_Arduis wrote: »

I think that it is little unfair that my insurance was voided, given that I had to catch a flight 6 hours after my phone was stolen. I did not have time to see the police about it.

to be honest 48 hours sounds like plenty of time, even considering a 6 our flight, even one days traveling gave you a whole other day to report it, some networks would only have given you 24 hours let alone 48

macman

The only ongoing charge you seem to have coming is the reminder of the contract (£100?). You'd be crazy to trash your credit file for the sake of £100, Just buy a cheap PAYG and wait until you are out of contract, then see what you can negotiate from there.
I take your point about the flight, but from what you said you didn't report it until several days later. In the meantime someone could have racked up thousands in calls for which you would have been liable. That's why they've voided your insurance. So from that point of view you got off quite lightly (assuming it hasn't been used-you really need to check that, or your next bill could be a shock).

Fortis_in_Arduis

macman wrote: »

The only ongoing charge you seem to have coming is the reminder of the contract (£100?). You'd be crazy to trash your credit file for the sake of £100, Just buy a cheap PAYG and wait until you are out of contract, then see what you can negotiate from there.
I take your point about the flight, but from what you said you didn't report it until several days later. In the meantime someone could have racked up thousands in calls for which you would have been liable. That's why they've voided your insurance. So from that point of view you got off quite lightly (assuming it hasn't been used-you really need to check that, or your next bill could be a shock).

Thanks Macman.

I use my telephone a lot, so my monthly charges are about £40. The contact continues, I think, for another six months at least.

I return to the UK on 15th May.

I was quite happy to pay those charges and retain the use of my telephone whilst here in India.

I checked with the company when I phoned them from Delhi and my bill stood at £208. I spoke to them about reducing my charges by changing the price plan. They would have saved me about £15 in total, had I agreed to pay the outstanding £208 balance on my account. It makes no difference to me whether I pay that now or on my return, becauseI do not have a telephone here anyway, and it is cheaper to use a payphone here, but I am still in two minds whether to pay it at all.

The problem is complicated, in as much as, the creature who took my phone is a very unsavoury character. I know his name, I know his address, but I would also like to retain my facial structure...

In view of this, I was reticient about imforming the police at all. I suppose I could put this down to experience.

I discussed it with someone, and they thought it unlikely that the company would chase me at all. I shall have a look at the letters they have sent me in my absence.

Depending upon exactly when the contract ends, it might even be worth using a PAYG phone until then, but I always found them to be expensive.

I will try and negotiate something with the company when I get back, but I am not sure that will have anything to offer me other than, "pay your last bill and three months monthly fees for a phone which you were never even able to use, and then fork out more money for a lousy handset...":T


Ok, my pal said, 'put it down to experience, but do not bother to pay, because it would hardly be worth their while pursuing you, although your credit rating will be ruined for a wee while'.

soolin

My son was mugged for his phone a year or so ago, 2 other phones were taken at the same time from mates (they left one phone behind as it was too old!). We called the local police immediately and had a crime number in about 10 minutes. We also had a good idea who did it as we obviously got the phone blocked and my son was approached by someone at his 6th form to say that their mates weren't at all happy to find out that the phones stolen were blocked before they could be sold on and it had caused the thieves a lot of grief.

uktyler

Fortis_in_Arduis wrote: »

I will try and negotiate something with the company when I get back, but I am not sure that will have anything to offer me other than, "pay your last bill and three months monthly fees for a phone which you were never even able to use, and then fork out more money for a lousy handset...":T


Ok, my pal said, 'put it down to experience, but do not bother to pay, because it would hardly be worth their while pursuing you, although your credit rating will be ruined for a wee while'.

Three have provided the service you signed up for, it is not their fault you are not using it, so why should they let you off any of the money you owe?

A 'wee while' is six years, a lot can change in six years, you might have kids by then, or want a mortgage, or a loan for a car. It's your choice but all of these things could be affected by you now paying, plus all of the charges Three and there debt collectors put onto it.

Fortis_in_Arduis

soolin wrote: »

My son was mugged for his phone a year or so ago, 2 other phones were taken at the same time from mates (they left one phone behind as it was too old!). We called the local police immediately and had a crime number in about 10 minutes. We also had a good idea who did it as we obviously got the phone blocked and my son was approached by someone at his 6th form to say that their mates weren't at all happy to find out that the phones stolen were blocked before they could be sold on and it had caused the thieves a lot of grief.

Thanks soolin.

My sorry situation is that I even saw him taking my telephone, but there were two of them... and I was very much the worse for wear.

So, he knows, that I know, that he stole my telephone, which probably means that they threw it away anyway.

I reported it to the company and had the phone blocked and blacklisted a few days later. There is no point in informing the police now.

I might just have to pay my bill when I return, but I will try and negotiate nonetheless.

...and put this loss down to experience!