Stolen Vodaphone I-Phone 4

SmudgeUK

NFH wrote: »

Are you letting the police handle it as a criminal matter as opposed to you pursuing it as a civil matter?

Well i suppose this is down to the Police, but the way they left me understanding it, was they spoke to apple, and that apple told them the phone was probably alsready destroyed.

Then he said he told apple that the phone should be returned to me and that they would be phoning me up, and left it at that.....

He did say that they wouldnt be looking at the stores cctv as it was probably the buyer of the phone and not the person who actually stole the item, and all he said was that he told apple that if they dont have the phone then they should really replace it.

so does this mean the end of there involvement????????

NFH

SmudgeUK wrote: »

so does this mean the end of there involvement????????

That depends. Have you told the police about Apple admitting that they knew the phone's IMEI was blocked and therefore stolen? Without reason to believe that a crime has been committed, the police won't do much more, so make sure the police know this crucial fact and explain why it's relevant. If necessary, when you speak to the police, have a copy of this thread to hand so you can refer to it as there are several references to the wording of Section 22 of the Theft Act 1968 and how it relates to this matter. The police are more likely to assume that Apple as a large company have complied with the law unless you point out specifically why they haven't.

SmudgeUK

yes i informed the DS that apple said tht the phone was on the block list, but it appears they only checked the list after i questioned the repair, as i made a call to regent street apple store, and told them i had a damaged phone and what i needed to get a repair, and he said all i needed was the phone, i asked if i needed to bring proof of purchase and he said no, i said what about id, and they said i didnt need to bring anything except the phone, and to register an appointment online.

So i went online to test their appointment booking, and you can put in any details you want and get given a repair appointment.

So the above with the fact apple are saying they cant flag wether someone has brought a stolen phone into them is pretty poor in my opinion.

NFH

SmudgeUK wrote: »

yes i informed the DS that apple said tht the phone was on the block list, but it appears they only checked the list after i questioned the repair

OK, that doesn't sound like an offence of handling stolen goods then, unless they disposed of the phone after they became aware it was stolen.

Another avenue to try is for the police to obtain the buyer's mobile number from Apple, assuming they have it. Given that he phoned you, it's clear that the buyer knew that the phone was stolen, and there's a stronger chance of prosecution, as he failed to return your property to you or hand it into a police station. I assume he withheld his number when he phoned you and your brother-in-law?

SmudgeUK

i dont know when apple has disposed of the phone, yes the guy who phoned to say he brought the phone did with-hold his number....

I will just have to wait and see what happens then

SmudgeUK

NFH wrote: »

OK, that doesn't sound like an offence of handling stolen goods then, unless they disposed of the phone after they became aware it was stolen.

Thats an hard avenue to explore, seeming they dont know when or where the phone has gone or when it went or anything.

SmudgeUK

In my personal opinion the fact that apple state they cant check a phone is stolen, or so they are saying, and the fact that you dont have to provide id or proof of purchase to be able to exchange a handset, then i feel that the whole iphone market is open to having a lot of stolen phones taken into apple stores, for the people who took these phones to have the ability to come out with a new clean phone.

And on top of that Apple will not deal with you as they say its a legal issue, you ask them for details of the repair, where the phone is and say sorry its a legal matter, only the police can ask that.

What a joke, allowing people to take in stolen phones, and not ask or check for id, proof of purchase or anything.....

I will certainly not be recommending apple to anyone based on my experiences.

lamb7994

Smudge,
Have you thought about going to Citizens Advice Bureau? and watchdog nothing like bad publicity?

James

SmudgeUK

lamb7994 wrote: »

Smudge,
Have you thought about going to Citizens Advice Bureau? and watchdog nothing like bad publicity?

James

Have thought about it, but as i am a long distance lorry driver, will have difficulty getting into a CAB Office....

Am so glad for my laptop and dongle, and glad i didnt take it to work with me the day the phone and sat nav was taken.........

I can email watchdog though

Might even contact all the national newspapers to see who is interested

NFH

SmudgeUK wrote: »

I can email watchdog though

I wouldn't bother, as BBC Watchdog only investigate when it's a widespread issue affecting large numbers of people. You'd be better off contacting BBC Rip Off Britain, which tends to cover issues affecting smaller groups of people.