[Resolved] IT Estate - Sony Xperia Z2 Phone Blocked 2 Months After Purchase

dealman on 29/06/2015 - 11:08
Last edited 30/06/2015 - 10:33 by 2 other users

Hey Guys,
A couple of months ago I bought a Sony Xperia Z2 339$ deal , turns out from the comments I was the only one who confirmed to have received it.

I had been using the phone for the past 2 months and all of a sudden since last weekend I couldn't make or receive any calls from it. I went to Vodafone store and they changed the simcard, still same problem. But the simcard was working on a different handset.

So after trying factory reset a couple of times and spending more than 5 hours diagnosing this issue, I noticed an error that came in initially when I insert the simcard, This error appeared for a fleeting moment in notifications : ** Phone not allowed: #MM6 **

More research and turns out the MM6 means the phone is blocked because it's reported as lost or stolen. Another hour of phonecalls to Vodafone and they send me to amta.org.au who are the organisation who have placed the block.

Couple of calls to AmTA and get a contact there who says Vodafone had reported a pallet of handsets (~1000 Handsets) as stolen and this IMEI was in that batch of a 1000 Stolen handsets. IT estate are unreachable as usual. I sent the IT estate Invoice and purchase details to AMTA and confirmed I've been using the phone since atleast a month before Vodafone reported this handset as stolen. AMTA came back and said they have spoken to Vodafone and the phone will be unblocked in 24 hours.

Posting it here because if you received the Z2 from IT Estate, be wary and call AMTA beforehand yours could be a stolen handset too.

You can check your Unblock / Block status here by entering your IMEI number on the AMTA website.

http://www.lost.amta.org.au/IMEI

Question ? What are my rights if this phone indeed happens to be a stolen one ?

TL DR: IT Estate sold me a possibly stolen Sony Experia Z2, I bought it from them with a legal Australian Tax invoice, what are my rights ?

Mod update: OP has reported that the phone has been unblocked. Issue resolved.

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• 

  [Deactivated] on 29/06/2015 - 11:26

  If you have been sold a stolen phone you should complain to the police. 1000 stolen mobiles is a big deal ($500,000+ theft)

  • 

    dealman on 29/06/2015 - 12:39

    +1

    For the moment AMTA said It's an Admin error and the phone will be back on in 24 hours, but the way IT Estate were being so DODGY and horrible in service, I'm guessing this might somehow be connected. Not sure,

    Either way based on the dates it looks like this phone was sold before the date Vodafone claimed the robbery happened. Just letting everyone know if you have a SONY Experia Z2 that gives an MM6 error and does not make phonecalls or messages, contact AMTA.

    • 

      ESEMCE on 29/06/2015 - 15:44

      So despite excellent evidence to the contrary, you're still accusing IT Estate of selling you a stolen phone?

      And you wonder why they're being cagey with you?

      • 

        [Deactivated] on 29/06/2015 - 17:53

        +1

        He has been advised his new phone was IMEI blocked because it was reported stolen and the retailer who sold him the phone in the first place had nothing to say.

        I'm surprised by how calm he is.

• 

  Randxyz123 on 29/06/2015 - 11:55

  AMTA came back and said they have spoken to Vodafone and the phone will be unblocked in 24 hours.

  The phone cannot be unblocked AFAIK. When the IMEI is blocked it is blocked forever.

  What do the AMTA suggest? Going to the police? Contacting IT estate? I'd probably do both…

  • 

    dealman on 29/06/2015 - 12:40

    What do the AMTA suggest?

    Waiting 24 hours till the unblock comes off. IT estate are useless

    • 

      Randxyz123 on 29/06/2015 - 13:27

      Edit: it seems IMEI blocks are reversible …

      If you can prove you are the owner which presumably you can it can be unblocked. This was not what I was told by Telstra last year…

      • 

        [Deactivated] on 29/06/2015 - 15:37

        Except if phone you buy was stolen, you aren't the owner, as the title wasn't the sellers to sell in the first place. (Which seems not to be the case for OP.)

• 

  crudman on 29/06/2015 - 17:44

  Vodafone directed you to an organisation with no powers (other than influential so I doubt AMTA placed a block on anyone's phone) telling you they placed a block (which has to go through a telco - Vodafone?) on a shipment of phones intended for Vodafone? Vodafone should not have directed you to them - effectively telling you to take your problems elsewhere. AMTA just sorted your problem out with Vodafone like an ombudsman.

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  Charity on 29/06/2015 - 18:08

  I knew it!

  That deal never passed the smell test. Was thinking why would Sony sell this one small-ass store such a deal… not sure what it was, but something was off.

  Anyways, yes, get a 3rd party involved for this situation.

  And don't be tempted to use these crooked companies again! (that should go without saying)

  • 

    ESEMCE on 30/06/2015 - 07:45

    +2

    The phone WASN'T Stolen..
    OP bought and received the phone before the phone was allegedly stolen…
    ie either the phone was in 2 places at the same time or there's been an error.

    It appears that there has been an error in keying the IMEI's of some stolen phones. The OP was unfortunate enough to have his perfectly legitimate phone blocked due to this keying error!

    • 

      dealman on 30/06/2015 - 09:57

      +1

      It appears that there has been an error in keying the IMEI's of some stolen phones. The OP was unfortunate enough to have his perfectly legitimate phone blocked due to this keying error!

      Yes Looks like it ScubaColes.

      THis morning, The Phone is back up as AMTA promised in 24 hours of removing the unblock, let's hope there are no more issues. However there might be a grain of truth in

      …why would Sony sell this one small-ass store such a deal… not sure what it was, but something was off….

      Either way it's working now, so I haven't lost 350$ … YET,