Bought a brand new phone off Ebay, but ESN is in use....options?

**R4P** · 11-05-2009, 11:50 PM

Tried activating it and they told me it was still in use by another number, I tried contacting the seller and he gave me a vague response telling me I had to activate it in store (yea right). I messaged him back that wasnt gonna happen and that if i cant get the ESN cleared i was gonna need my bread back.

Now im 70% sure he's not gonna respond, but im not too worried because im pretty sure if I call my bank or contact paypal they can get my money back. But in the meantime, is there anyway I can activate this phone? The s**t was brand new, box was still sealed and everything included. Im guessing dude stole it or something.

So is there anything I can do to get it working or do I have to just return the s**t and get my money back?

**JoeDoe22** · 09:11 AM

Id file a paypal complaint first. No way a (new) sealed phone has a used ESN. He probably has access to a shrink wrap machine

**DEEZKNOTS** · 11-06-2009, 10:34 AM

Lol u got served!!!!!!!!!!!!! always check the sellers past transactions before you buy, dumbass! i only f**k with the seller if it says 100% or 99%.

**R4P** · 02:42 PM

^ while the s**t IS an inconvenience, I hardly got served you dimwit. Furthermore can you point me out to where I even brought up the sellers %? Because I coulda sworn I didnt mention it seeing at how it was 100%.

dont ever come at me like that again

**DEEZKNOTS** · 11-06-2009, 04:46 PM

Originally Posted by R4P

^ while the s**t IS an inconvenience, I hardly got served you dimwit. Furthermore can you point me out to where I even brought up the sellers %? Because I coulda sworn I didnt mention it seeing at how it was 100%.

dont ever come at me like that again

Dum ass im tellin you that when ever you buy somethin off ebay you have to make sure that the sellers % is 100. Then you wont get sold a phone with a bad esn. Ive bought 6 phones off ebay, and i have a HTC Hero coming in the mail as we speak and i have never had this problem because I always check the seller rating and past transactions history. AND BUY THE WAY YOU DID GET SERVED!!! THERE IS NO WAY TO ACTIVATE A PHONE WITH A BAD ESN. I REPEAT THERE IS NO WAY TO ACTIVATE A PHONE WITH A BAD ESN NUMBER!!!! HA HA HOW DOES IT FEEL TO WASTE A FEW HUNDRED DOLLARS LOSER.

**Jigga** · 05:02 PM

Sorry to say that the previous post is correct that that ESN cannot be activated. I work for a cell phone company and this happens all the time. Whether its purchased with a stolen credit card from us and then resold on eBay or just outright stolen from the store...proper procedure is to freeze the ESN until the matter is cleared up. I always feel bad when I see this happen to people but thats the nature of eBay its a gamble. All I can suggest is try calling customer service (Im sure you have already) but keep trying because you may get a person that will unblock it for you although I highly doubt it. PayPal is very good with giving you the funds back as long as its not past the limit of days (I think 60 days). I would contact them immediately and file that complaint to get the ball rolling...or contact my bank to get it back from them. Sorry man.

**QualityRecords** · 11-06-2009, 05:25 PM

When you guys buy phones on ebay are they typically expensive?

**younggangsta_s** · 11-06-2009, 10:25 PM

Originally Posted by QualityRecords

When you guys buy phones on ebay are they typically expensive?

Yea, the cheapest place to get them is through your celluar company. The advantage of buying off is eBay is not having to extend your contract.

**beantown85** · 11-07-2009, 12:05 AM

just because something's sealed doesn't mean that it's new, ppl put that bulls**t on ebay all the time he probably had access to a shrink rap machine.

Did it look like it was new? did it have that piece of plastic that sticks to the screen that you have to peel off??? if you really can't be sure that it's new then I would return it to the bastard based on principle.

**more_fya** · 11-07-2009, 02:15 AM

if you know somebody that works at the place you are trying to activate it at, they might be able to activate your phone using a generic ESN/IMEI. The only disadvantage is that you couldn't get automatic updates through your phone. I used to work at Rogers and did that often for people who brought in used phones they bought off friends and s**t. Other than that maybe seach the net or maybe ebay for it.

**Hu$tLa** · 11-07-2009, 05:26 AM

Daamn cuz, they mite have pulled a fast one on you. Itz important that u alwayz checc the sellers reputation & what not. & alwayz read all the info especially the return policy

**R4P** · 11-07-2009, 02:36 PM

Originally Posted by DEEZKNOTS

Dum ass im tellin you that when ever you buy somethin off ebay you have to make sure that the sellers % is 100. Then you wont get sold a phone with a bad esn. Ive bought 6 phones off ebay, and i have a HTC Hero coming in the mail as we speak and i have never had this problem because I always check the seller rating and past transactions history. AND BUY THE WAY YOU DID GET SERVED!!! THERE IS NO WAY TO ACTIVATE A PHONE WITH A BAD ESN. I REPEAT THERE IS NO WAY TO ACTIVATE A PHONE WITH A BAD ESN NUMBER!!!! HA HA HOW DOES IT FEEL TO WASTE A FEW HUNDRED DOLLARS LOSER.

Again, what you are failing to realize is that I never specified what his rating was. FYI his rating was 100% and the phone was still bad.

I didnt lose s**t (except time) cuz I got my money back wtf are you talking about?

This is what happens when you dont comprehend what you read kids...

**R4P** · 11-07-2009, 02:39 PM

Originally Posted by beantown85

just because something's sealed doesn't mean that it's new, ppl put that bulls**t on ebay all the time he probably had access to a shrink rap machine.

Did it look like it was new? did it have that piece of plastic that sticks to the screen that you have to peel off??? if you really can't be sure that it's new then I would return it to the bastard based on principle.

yea it wasnt shrink wrapped the s**t was BRAND new, had the stickers in place on the box, on the phone as well. If it had been used this dude did a f**kING INCREDIBLE job at making it look like it came right from the manufacturer

dude claimed he bought a bunch from a verizon dealer and i guess is trying to flip them, wouldnt be surprised if it was stolen

**R4P** · 11-07-2009, 02:43 PM

Originally Posted by Jigga

Sorry to say that the previous post is correct that that ESN cannot be activated. I work for a cell phone company and this happens all the time. Whether its purchased with a stolen credit card from us and then resold on eBay or just outright stolen from the store...proper procedure is to freeze the ESN until the matter is cleared up. I always feel bad when I see this happen to people but thats the nature of eBay its a gamble. All I can suggest is try calling customer service (Im sure you have already) but keep trying because you may get a person that will unblock it for you although I highly doubt it. PayPal is very good with giving you the funds back as long as its not past the limit of days (I think 60 days). I would contact them immediately and file that complaint to get the ball rolling...or contact my bank to get it back from them. Sorry man.

yea I already contacted paypal, I'm not worried about the money cuz I'm getting it back I'm just blown I didnt get the phone and this dumbass wasted my time

**D.A.R.S.** · 11-07-2009, 08:41 PM

I got a Blackberry Curve from Verizon, I used it maybe 3 days before I quit so it's mint, got the box and everything intact. If you're interested pm me, otherwise I'm gonna put it on craigslist

**eljesserocks** · 11-07-2009, 09:00 PM

just for general info,
i phone can be activated even if the the phone is brand new in box and sealed. they have all the information to activate it on a sticker outside the box.
its ridiculous to get sprint and verizon phones off ebay because chances are their esns wont be clear.
if this were an att or tmobile phone it would be no problem because its just a matter of slipping your sim in.

**beantown85** · 11-07-2009, 09:10 PM

Originally Posted by R4P

yea it wasnt shrink wrapped the s**t was BRAND new, had the stickers in place on the box, on the phone as well. If it had been used this dude did a f**kING INCREDIBLE job at making it look like it came right from the manufacturer

dude claimed he bought a bunch from a verizon dealer and i guess is trying to flip them, wouldnt be surprised if it was stolen

Yea they were probably stolen from somewhere who knows. I would be a little paranoid getting a phone with a serial number that might go through as stolen. Not that they'd blame you obviously, but maybe turn the phone off or something.

**DEEZKNOTS** · 11-09-2009, 08:31 PM

Originally Posted by younggangsta_s

Yea, the cheapest place to get them is through your celluar company. The advantage of buying off is eBay is not having to extend your contract.

this is not true. i bought a Brand new hero for 300 free shipping . A brand new touch pro 2 for 280 free shipping . And a brand new pre for 230 with afree touchstone. All within the past 4 months

**DEEZKNOTS** · 11-09-2009, 08:35 PM

Originally Posted by R4P

Again, what you are failing to realize is that I never specified what his rating was. FYI his rating was 100% and the phone was still bad.

I didnt lose s**t (except time) cuz I got my money back wtf are you talking about?

This is what happens when you dont comprehend what you read kids...

time is money cock sucker

**R4P** · 11-09-2009, 08:48 PM

Originally Posted by DEEZKNOTS

time is money cock sucker

*yawn* you're starting to bore me

you got it, now stay the f**k out my thread plz and thank u

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Bought a brand new phone off Ebay, but ESN is in use....options?

" Tried activating it and they told me it was still in use by another number, I tried contacting the seller ... "