iPhone XS Ebay buyer requesting refund, says activation lock is carrier lock

[DVNIEL]

Hi guys, need your advice. I sold my iPhone XS on eBay about a week ago. Guy had a chance to inspect it and test it, left feedback saying the transaction was smooth. Today, he is requesting a refund saying that he verified with Apple that the phone is carrier locked. He sent over two pictures of the phone 1) of the screen with an activation lock with an email that isn't remotely close to any I have and 2) a select carrier screen with two different carriers. I replied that I'm glad to help but he I sent the device to him no icloud lock and 2) the device is paid in full, verizon iphones are always unlocked.

If he return that to me, now I'm **** of luck because he must have applied an email to it and its icloud locked to him.

Do I have a leg to stand on or should I prepare for eBay/PayPal to side with them?

 

[now i see it]

Hope that it goes well, but if he's a scammer, be prepared for that. He has nothing to gain by returning the phone back to you and getting a refund. He'll have gained nothing.
The only way to refund his purchase is to wait until you get the phone back and check carefully that it's not screwed up. If it is, it wasn't your fault and send it back to him (he pays) if he wants it

 

[Bstephens]

I would’nt have used ebay to sell an expensive phone to begin with. If you get it back and it’s fine just sell it on Swappa.

 

[Rafterman]

This is why I stopped using eBay. You may not get as much, but its just better to sell to Jay's Brokers or Gazelle - less headaches.

 

[DVNIEL]

I don’t know what thus guy is trying to pull. If his case is that it’s not as described then I’m uploading everything to prove it’s otherwise, including $0 balance receipt, email confirmation from Apple and Verizon that it is fully unlocked.

Thanks for the support. I’ll keep you all posted.

 

[zmon]

I hope you kept pictures of your IMEI/Serial number, and maybe had them in the listing. You'll most likely receive a dud device in return if he sends it back, and you won't receive your original. If you have that information on hand, tell him to provide this information. IMEI can be seen by hitting the Info button on the activation lock screen. Otherwise, eBay and Paypal will side with him and you'll be out of your money and your phone.

 

[CraigB1960]

Heck, have him send you the screen shot of the serial number. It might not even be yours.

 

[AJAAY]

This smells of a scam. There is no way a fully unlocked phone can become carrier locked. If they send back the phone, it won’t be the same one that you sent out. Hopefully you saved the IMEI and serial number when you originally sold the phone.

 

[ActionableMango]

2) a select carrier screen with two different carriers.

Did you move the iPhone out of the country it was originally purchased in, and/or sell it to a buyer in a different country?

I ask because the described symptoms look exactly like this problem, including an unlocked phone sold on Ebay, the complete lack of national carriers to choose from, and the exact same two regional carriers listed:

unlocked iPhone7 setup - choose carrier - iPhone - Whirlpool Forums

forums.whirlpool.net.au

 

[definitive]

This is why I stopped using eBay. You may not get as much, but its just better to sell to Jay's Brokers or Gazelle - less headaches.

How do these two differ from EBay, and do they offer better seller protection?

 

[Sam in SoCal]

I always sell local, face to face, in a public place with cameras. Like a carrier store. 5 years going and no issues

 

[DVNIEL]

I hope you kept pictures of your IMEI/Serial number, and maybe had them in the listing. You'll most likely receive a dud device in return if he sends it back, and you won't receive your original. If you have that information on hand, tell him to provide this information. IMEI can be seen by hitting the Info button on the activation lock screen. Otherwise, eBay and Paypal will side with him and you'll be out of your money and your phone.

Yup. Sure did. I censored this in the posting but still have the originals. I’m ready to go to war with this guy.

 

[tonybarnaby]

Tell him you know how the scam works and then see if he immediately stops responding. This stuff fools a lot of people. He's hoping you get scared and refund him. He will send back a worthless phone and will sell yours for a profit.
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Reason #1000000 that I no longer sell phones. I will give them to a family member or someone who needs them. It's not worth the hassle. I traded my wife's X in for $400, and I got $300 for my 8+. Both on the low end, but it was smooth and I didn't have to deal with scammers or deadbeats who could try to rob me.

 

[1rottenapple]

How do these two differ from EBay, and do they offer better seller protection?

Gazelle is a big company that resells electronics. The negative is you get far less selling to them but you they won’t come back to scam you.
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That sucks man. The bad thing is I was scammed on eBay for $1400 from my MacBook Pro in 2007. I bet this guy will use PayPal protection and PayPal will refund him and they’ll go after and deduct this amount on your account. And you are left several hundred in the whole with no product to show for it. It’s sucks! This happened to me. Don’t deal with PayPal for any online sales as a seller.
It has strong protection for the buyer and none for the seller.
I have no reservations using PayPal to buy stuff because they back you up. Unfortunately others take advantage of this.
Tell the guy you’ll visit him in person lol that should shut him up.
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I always sell local, face to face, in a public place with cameras. Like a carrier store. 5 years going and no issues

Agreed this is what I do know. That or I give it to family.
Gave my dad my 7 plus, gave my gf my 8 plus. Gave my gf an Apple Watch series 3. I did sell an xr on Craigslist to some teen with her whole family coming to meet me lol. Good transaction and I got $620 for an xr I got for $650 a few months before.

 

[tonybarnaby]

Face to face sales are the only way to go now days. Too many scammers. The sad thing is, the cheaper the item the more picky the buyer usually is. Someone with money isn’t going to sweat you over $50 if you’re selling something valuable, but try selling a $300 android and just look at the idiotic responses you will get.

 

[Aydy]

If you have evidence of the serial/imei numbers and if this guy is intending to send back another activation locked iPhone he had laying around, let him know your on to that and will pursue legally if need be.

Is he long time registered (Ebay) with feedback support? Ebay would have registered address etc so if this is fraud he can expect to deal with authority and not you.

If he returns the iPhone and it is your device then wouldn’t entering your iCloud detail effectively remove any activation lock?

 

[DVNIEL]

Update: I asked for the serial and imei so I could verify his accusations, he totally stopped responding. So I replied I still have the info and I’ll call them myself:

Side note, he said that Apple verified the phone is carrier locked.

1) Gave Verizon rep the IMEI and they said the phone is not blacklisted and is 100% carrier unlocked

2) The interesting part. Apple support states they have absolutely no way of checking if a phone is carrier locked.

Let’s see what he says today. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt that he was out trick or treating with his kids.

 

[Aydy]

Update: I asked for the serial and imei so I could verify his accusations, he totally stopped responding. So I replied I still have the info and I’ll call them myself:

Side note, he said that Apple verified the phone is carrier locked.

1) Gave Verizon rep the IMEI and they said the phone is not blacklisted and is 100% carrier unlocked

2) The interesting part. Apple support states they have absolutely no way of checking if a phone is carrier locked.

Let’s see what he says today. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt that he was out trick or treating with his kids.

I suspect the phone he is intending to return is not the phone you sent to him. He may also start saying he may decide to keep the phone if you are prepared to offer a partial refund , claiming to “know of” a Paid for service That removes activation lock, etc. I’ve seen this done before. It’s another tactic used when they suspect you are on to their sh**** behaviour.

You know the phone you sent is 100% legit so keep that in mind and try to stay one step ahead of the potential scam all the time

 

[retta283]

It's just a matter of hoping he doesn't try to get PayPal involved, because they will strip your money and hand it to him. It's really really hard to fight PayPal as a seller.

I refuse to try and sell anything of worth online, and I don't sell on eBay. Too easy for buyers to scam the sellers now.

 

[Aydy]

Be careful of signing for what they send back also. Sounds ridiculous but when I was Ebay scammed I had already suspected I was being scammed and did some research on what to expect to keep myself a step ahead by documenting everything.

I bought an Xs max that I immediately paid for. Minutes later I recieved a message from the seller asking me to follow a link to complete the purchase. Instantly I knew something wasn’t right and tried to cancel the purchase (why do Ebay even have that “cancel order” button. It has never, ever cancelled an order for me)

I ended up having to follow through with the scam (at Ebay’s instruction) and was assured if I didn’t receive a working iPhone XS Max I would receive a full refund back.

After several failed attempts to communicate with the seller/fraudster and the little research I’d conducted, I was able to deduce that I would likely receive an empty box or broken devicein the post (the scammer needs proof they have sent the package and that the buyer has signed for it at other end) and so decided to record the post coming.

A few days passed then the postman knocked at my door. He handed me an empty envelope with just my address and a “special delivery signed for” sticker. I Just knew this was the non existent iPhone..I asked the postman to wait while I opened it and he graciously agreed. He seemed to know what was going on without any explanation ? The envelope was empty, as predicted.

I then had to report the fraud to police. I did, over the phone. I gave Ebay the crime reference number and sent them a link to the video of me accepting the empty envelope and was refunded a week or so after. Kudos to Ebay.

Although this is completely different to OPs dilemma I think it’s still important and relevant to encourage documenting the process. From the conversations I had with eBay during and after my ordeal they tend to appreciate the effort and imo goes a long way to confirm to them that “you” are the innocent party.

As a buyer I was protected and am thankful but the complete lack of protection for sellers is why I choose not to sell anything of value on there. That and the stress involved. That iPhone ordeal shook me.

 

[noobinator]

He was 100% intending to keep the nice, unlocked phone you sent him and send you back a locked phone that he got for cheap (maybe stolen, insurance claim etc...). He was counting on you being naive and/or scared and just accepting it back and refunding him. I suspect you don't hear back.

If you do, let him know you have the serial # you sent him and pics of it. If he sends another serial # back you will be alerting eBay to the scam he is pulling.

 

[nburwell]

Hopefully this turns out in favor of the OP. As others mentioned, it definitely sounds like this person is trying to scam the OP. I stopped selling used phones on eBay years ago. I only go through Swappa now -- but since I'm on Apple's IUP, I no longer have to deal with selling my old device.

Keep us updated, OP. Hope it works out for you!

 

[AustinIllini]

Get the phone back and try again.

This garbage happens way too often on ebay.

 

[AbSoluTc]

OP, if you need proof the phone is carrier unlocked, let me know. I can do that for you. I have GSX access that shows the specifics for the phone. Takes just a second.

My guess is a scam. In one form or another. An iCloud locked phone is useless to anyone that isn’t the account owner.

 

[DVNIEL]

Awesome community thanks for the posts. Haven’t looked at my phone all day but no response yet. Have a great weekend hope to give you guys updates soon.