Sold an iPhone 4s, buyer cannot find it - How do I respond to this?

#16
I don't know much about MEID numbers but if I paid for a phone and it didn't show up, I wouldn't be asking for the serial number. I also wouldn't leave fb until I had my item and was satisfied with it. Maybe it's just me but something seems weird here. I personally wouldn't give it to him
 
#17
faith_ann said:
I'm panicking a bit over here, so I'm hoping someone has more experience with this than I.

I sold my iPhone 4s through eBay and shipped it on 11/30. It was fully insured with delivery confirmation and signature confirmation and shows as delivered on 12/2. The buyer left positive feedback on 12/1, before it was delivered.

Today, 12/8, the buyer messages me that he sees the tracking shows it was delivered on 12/2 but that he hasn't seen it. He asks for the MEID number, which I do have, but is there any downside to giving that to him? I don't see how there would be, but I also don't know how that helps him out any. I assume it can track the phone? I guess I'm mostly concerned that it could be some sort of scam I'm clueless about. Dozens of the buyers purchases are for iPhones and by his username I'm assuming he resells, which is something that initially comforted me since he seemed to know the product.

The cherry on top of my impending heart attack is the delivery confirmation from USPS I requested that I just received. The signature clearly is not the buyers name and the address I'll say is "19 Smith Rd." instead of the "17 Smith Rd. Ste 1" it was shipped to. I had looked up the address before I shipped and it's listed as a business, although now that I go through more Google pages, it seems to have a few names ranging from a lawyers office to a contractors. When I enter both addresses into a map, they show up as within 0 minutes of each other basically on the side of the road in front of a fenced in area with barbed wire, poles and a green box...I guess it's one of those electrical places? I don't know what they're called. There aren't any offices nearby, just an Exxon across the street with a few little stores and there's a completely different street number for the building.

Sorry if that was all too much information. I don't mind sending the actual address to someone via PM if only to confirm I'm 1. paranoid or 2. don't know how to read a map.

So I'm hoping someone could give me an idea how to proceed. Do I just send him the MEID number and see what happens? I'm reluctant to tell him right off about the different address for fear he can do a charge-back or something. Since it was delivered, some time had passed, and he had left feedback, that money's all sorts of long gone.

Thanks in advance for any help!
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is there a chance that he really doesn't have it?
 
#18
I spoke to two different ebay representatives and was told not to provide him with the MEID number. Since it was signed for and delivered, they suggested I advise him to contact his local post office. He left me positive feedback so it's considered, basically, not my problem. Obviously, I'll help the guy out as much as I can if he legitimately did not receive it - and it was fully insured if an investigation has to be opened - but I honestly find it suspicious that anyone would spend that much on an item and contact me nearly a week later than he knows it was delivered.
 
#19
I probably wouldn't give the meid number either (is that like IMEI for tmobile?) Though I don't know what he can do with it. If he has the phone then he already has the number (this is a serial number on the phone right?)

Anyhow, just another note. The fact that he left you feedback doesn't mean anything when it comes to ebay/paypal cases. If he opens the case feedback wouldn't come into play.
I'm not saying you will lose, only that feedback wouldn't be part of the evidence they consider
 
#20
lalachka said:
is there a chance that he really doesn't have it?
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I guess there's always a chance, but I can only know for sure what I did so I'm trying to be as helpful as I can while erring on the side of caution.

lalachka said:
I probably wouldn't give the meid number either (is that like IMEI for tmobile?) Though I don't know what he can do with it. If he has the phone then he already has the number (this is a serial number on the phone right?)
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It wasn't a tmobile phone but according to the wikipedia explanation "it can be seen as an IMEI but with hexadecimal digits."

lalachka said:
Anyhow, just another note. The fact that he left you feedback doesn't mean anything when it comes to ebay/paypal cases. If he opens the case feedback wouldn't come into play. I'm not saying you will lose, only that feedback wouldn't be part of the evidence they consider
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Feedback alone may not be considered, but it's the combination of it being signed for, there being delivery confirmation, and positive feedback being received.
 
#21
lalachka said:
I probably wouldn't give the meid number either (is that like IMEI for tmobile?) Though I don't know what he can do with it. If he has the phone then he already has the number (this is a serial number on the phone right?)

Anyhow, just another note. The fact that he left you feedback doesn't mean anything when it comes to ebay/paypal cases. If he opens the case feedback wouldn't come into play.
I'm not saying you will lose, only that feedback wouldn't be part of the evidence they consider
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he could be using the meid number to call his provider and see if someone else has activated that serial number if it is missing.....
i disagree completely with the feedback comment, the fact that he left positive feedback will play a big part in the case ebay will consider it as evidence that he recieved the phone
 
#22
skislope15 said:
he could be using the meid number to call his provider and see if someone else has activated that serial number if it is missing.....
i disagree completely with the feedback comment, the fact that he left positive feedback will play a big part in the case ebay will consider it as evidence that he recieved the phone
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Yeah and if that's the case then I think it proves that he really doesn't have it. Am I missing something?

As far as feedback - I don't know for sure, I'm only going by what I read on the net: I never filed a case myself. Also, if I understood correctly, he left feedback before it was delivered? (I'm on my phone, hard to check)

But let's say he left it after the delivery date, I remember more than one person complaining that the feedback didn't matter. I read a huge number of threads though, I might be confusing this with something else
 
#24
If he had the phone he wouldn't need the MEID number, it's with the phone. I recently purchased an iPhone and was told by Verizon not to purchase unless the seller discloses the MEID number ahead of time, so they could confirm it wasn't reported as stolen or lost. My seller was happy to do so (put it in her listing actually), I called to confirm it was legit and then purchased. I don't see the harm in disclosing it?

Sounds like an error on USPS fault if they delivered to the wrong address, seems to me insurance should cover it.
 
#25
If he doesn't have the phone, it seems odd that he would leave positive feedback. You say you think he is a reseller... is it possible he has his transactions mixed up? Did he buy multiple iPhones?
 
#26
LindaP said:
If he had the phone he wouldn't need the MEID number, it's with the phone. I recently purchased an iPhone and was told by Verizon not to purchase unless the seller discloses the MEID number ahead of time, so they could confirm it wasn't reported as stolen or lost. My seller was happy to do so (put it in her listing actually), I called to confirm it was legit and then purchased. I don't see the harm in disclosing it?
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From what I understand, the MEID number can apparently be spoofed and it's not something you're supposed to put in the listing. It can be disclosed for the purposes you described, but I also don't know what else can be done with that number. So since they told me not to inform him at this stage, that's what I'm going with. If he messages me back that he knows he had it at one point but has simply misplaced it, then I don't see the harm in telling him, either.

mockinglee said:
If he doesn't have the phone, it seems odd that he would leave positive feedback. You say you think he is a reseller... is it possible he has his transactions mixed up? Did he buy multiple iPhones?
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Yes, he's bought a few dozen of the exact same item.
 
#27
skislope15 said:
he could be using the meid number to call his provider and see if someone else has activated that serial number if it is missing.....
i disagree completely with the feedback comment, the fact that he left positive feedback will play a big part in the case ebay will consider it as evidence that he recieved the phone
Click to expand...

:yes:

Agree here.
 
#28
skislope15 said:
he could be using the meid number to call his provider and see if someone else has activated that serial number if it is missing.....
i disagree completely with the feedback comment, the fact that he left positive feedback will play a big part in the case ebay will consider it as evidence that he recieved the phone
Click to expand...


the item has been signed for....he needs to contact the

post office speak to the carrier & find out what happened..

think that your liability is satisfied....
 
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