Any advice for buying a laptop from Pawn shop

naomi8902

Hi hope Im posting this in the right place, just after your thoughts please you lovely people...I have been in touch with a local buy/sell type shop, an exchange shop. He knows I am after a good quality laptop for my daughter and has been helping me source one. I am pretty good with checking out what things are worth and checking for cashback ect and he has offered me a week old laptop without a box but with warranty still valid (as its new) for a good price. I'm worried about a couple of things. He seems a genuine guy BUT what if it's stolen?! I wouldn't be happy with that obviously for moral reasons, and also the warranty wouldn't be worth the paper it's written on. He says the people who sold it to him were skint but why did they not just take it back to the shop? (we do live in a rural area so they would have had a fair bit of travelling to do to return it, plus I guess it could have been an online purchase and perhaps they needed to pay to return it) sorry i am rambling a bit but basically I wanted to know what are your thoughts and also does anyone know if the warranty would still be valid if I didn't have a receipt?

shortdog

I don't know about your local area, but, in ours, a lot of the local junkies get laptops, playstations, phones, etc on credit, then trade them in at Cash Converters etc for cash, or so the staff at Cash Converters say. Technically, they are not stolen,but I always feel a little uneasy with it for some reason.

Sgt_Pepper_2

Isn't the warranty in the first 12 months a contract between the seller and the purchaser?

Who's your warranty from, the pawn shop?

shaun_from_Africa

Isn't the warranty in the first 12 months a contract between the seller and the purchaser?

Quite a few manufacturers allow their warranties to be transferred from one person to another when the equipment is sold.
You really need to go on the website of the manufacturer concerned and see if they do this and if so, are there any conditions attached such as needing the original receipt.

You can do a check on the laptop here for £1.99
http://www.checkmend.com/uk/
although I don't know how reliable this is.

If you go ahead with the purchase, your best bet would be to ensure that you pay with a credit card as this should give you some protection if the laptop does turn out to be stolen.

naomi8902

Oh thanks guys I knew you would be able to help!

I will check out that link thank you, I hadn't thought about people buying things on credit and then selling them you have a good point.

Some people are just desperate for quick cash I guess and that's what these pawn type shops offer isn't it.

naomi8902

Just wanted to add I don't know where it was bought yet but when I do I will find out about transfering warrenty, the pawn shop guy is adding Microsoft office and anti virus software and normally offers his own 6 month warranty as he fixes electronics too. He seems good value as an example when I popped in the other day he sold me an iPad data cable for a pound and I didn't have any cash on me lol so he said just drop it in when your passing, he comes recommended too. I'm just being cautious

Enfieldian

Why does he need to add Office and Anti Virus to a laptop that isn't his in order to secure a sale?

George_Michael

I was also wondering about the MS Office aspect.
Legally I would have thought that a full retail version would be needed, and this would cost a fair bit of money.

pinkshoes

Will you be getting the genuine CDs with Office? Sounds to me it would be a bootleg copy!

I think I'd just be really suspicious, and would perhaps get the serial number and contact the police myself to make sure it hadn't been reported stolen.

Ultimately, you are taking a risk, as if it is stolen, then the police can take it off you and give it back to the rightful owner.

paddyrg

Personally I'd never trust it - if nothing else, you're up against the complication of sorting it out when things go wrong (and not really knowing what went so badly wrong that it was sold after a few days...). Buying from new you'd be much better off if there was a problem, you know the versions of windows etc are licensed properly, etc. Second hand laptops are frequently poor value to my mind - in the months since they were new, you get a lot more bang for your buck anyway!

naomi8902

Hi I'm not sure what you mean about Microsoft I didn't get a disc but he put it on the laptop for me as he has a disc? Is this illegal? I thought you could put office onto more than one machine? He didn't put it on to secure a sale I asked him to? I asked him about the stolen aspect and he said they seller bought it from a club book and is selling it as they need cash. I am going to check the serial number with the website link provided. Above. Thanks for your replies