Vodafone refusing to blacklist lost phone!

CaptainO

I lost my iPhone whilst on holiday, and despite reporting it lost immediately, and being told that it would be blocked/blcklisted, I've come home to start the insurance claim and find that it hasn't been blacklisted at all. Vodafone are now refusing to do it as I did not buy the phone from them, despite using it on their network the whole time, and it had my vodafone sim in at the time of loss.

The insurance company are now refusing to pay out as the phone isn't blacklisted, and Vodafone won't budge. Is there any way I can I force them to do it legally?

mije1983

Contact the WRT as shown in this post

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=69919371&postcount=1


You need to go through Vodafone's complaints procedure before you can take to Ombudsman

CaptainO

Thanks for the reply... I'm working my way through all of that already. Spoken to OFCOM, filed the complaint with Vodafone (no joy there). Waiting for a deadlock letter now to take to the Ombudsman.

I was wondering if Vodafone have any legal obligation to blacklist a handset at the request of their customer?

Frozen_up_north

CaptainO wrote: »

I was wondering if Vodafone have any legal obligation to blacklist a handset at the request of their customer?

In a word, no they don't, as you only had a SIM from them, except they should replace the lost SIM for a nominal charge, perhaps £5.

How do Vodafone (or any network for that matter) know the phone is yours and that you aren't blocking your mates phone for a laugh?

You should have registered your phone at:
https://www.immobilise.com

I don't know if you can register retrospective losses.

molerat

I would be raising a formal complaint with the insurer. How can your legitimate claim be denied because of the actions of a third party who you have no contract with (for the supply and maintenance of the handset).

PHK

molerat wrote: »

I would be raising a formal complaint with the insurer. How can your legitimate claim be denied because of the actions of a third party who you have no contract with (for the supply and maintenance of the handset).

Because every mobile insurance I've seen has terms and conditions that require a lost or stolen phone to be blacklisted. As Ofcom regulations say an operator must blacklist an IMEI where the reporting person can prove they own the phone then the complaint is squarely with Vodafone.

(If there is a history of the handset being used with the SIM - that should be enough to prove ownership)

d123

PHK wrote: »

(If there is a history of the handset being used with the SIM - that should be enough to prove ownership)

So you using a loan phone from a shop (or someone lends you a phone) for a couple of weeks gives you the unrestricted right to blacklist it?

PHK

d123 wrote: »

So you using a loan phone from a shop (or someone lends you a phone) for a couple of weeks gives you the unrestricted right to blacklist it?

The decision as to how long the handset would need to have been used is, fortunately, not one we have to decide. The decision is the networks. As far as I know they can use their discretion.

However, the intention is to err on the side of caution so the proof doesn't have to be strong. So in a way the restrictions on blacklisting are minimal. This is why anyone with the phones IMEI can register it as missing on Report My Loss or Immobilise . This is why we occasionally see posts on here where someone's phone has been blacklisted and is required to present proof of purchase / ownership before it can be un-blacklisted.

It's an interesting question as I'm not sure the current system is the best possible: If someone says their handset has been stolen, how much should they have to prove before it's blacklisted?

Vodafone

Hi CaptainO,

I'm sorry to hear that you're not having the best of experiences with us at the moment.

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Vodafone UK

pmduk

I believe that many networks are reluctant to blacklist phones obtained from third parties as there is scope for handsets to be blocked maliciously by third parties.

swissgordon

I bought my Vodafone Smart Prime 6 Pay As You Go Handset Smartphone from Amazon & have found it impossible to get the IMEI Blacklisted due to Amazon not keeping IMEI details of the phone.

As I hadn't actually used the phone when it was stolen recently, it had no SIM usage history with which Vodafone could Blacklist the IMEI. To enable them to Blacklist the phone's IMEI, Vodafone referred me to the 3rd party seller to obtain a Proof of Purchase complete with the phones IMEI.

Amazon are the 3rd party seller.
Despite numerous requests, Amazon have not provided any useful support in getting the IMEI Blacklisted. They simply state that they don't keep details (such as the IMEI & serial No) of the mobile phones they sell.

I have provided Amazon with full details of the purchase (transaction details, IMEI, email address, photos of the phone's box complete with bar codes & details such as the IMEI), but Amazon still will not provide me with the Proof of Purchase complete with the phone's IMEI, which is necessary for Vodafone to Blacklist the IMEI.
Complaints to Amazon from my Customer Account via the purchase transaction, have also got me nowhere.

My experience has been that Amazon are failing their customers & provide very poor Customer Support in relation to customer's requests to Blacklist IMEI's when their mobile phones, which have been sold to them by Amazon, have been stolen/lost.