iPhone XR Stolen in Vodafone Store Just after I Signed Contract

LKenn adams on 26/12/2018 - 23:08
Last edited 07/01/2019 - 14:06 by 1 other user

Hey guys. I need some serious help.

Someone stole my brand new iPhone XR straight from Vodafone store. So as soon as I signed my brand new 24 months contract with Vodafone, the guy dealing with me with in to do some work and I started looking around the shop leaving the unopened box on the table of the store. Out of nowhere, a random guy walked in and took the phone (well I didn't see that myself, one of the customers told me so).

Then I told the store guy about this and he said that it's my fault that the phone which I was supposed to get was stolen from the Vodafone store. Unfortunately I didn't opt in for insurance. They have asked me to file a police report.

P.S. Given a replacement device by Vodafone

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Comments

  • blitz on 27/12/2018 - 10:19

    I started looking aroud the shop leaving the unopened box on the table of the store

    But surely you can see from Vodafone's perspective that this would be an effective way to steal a $1000 phone, right?

  • vinni9284 on 27/12/2018 - 10:23
    +40

    OP, I understand that you are very frustrated and hurt especially of purchasing a phone brand new and it gets taken underneath you.
    Also factoring that you will be funding this for 24 months.

    Obviously it just goes to show that you really cannot use this forum to vent your frustration or even ask for an opinion as you are going to get canned by majority of posters here!!

    It seems like the 80/20 Pareto rule applies here too:

    1 - 80% of posters are going to shame you over a mistake. Like they never made a mistake before.
    2 - 20% of posters here are going to be compassionate and try to advise you on recourse.

    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/426353

    I wish you all the best and hope you receive comfort from a platform that wishes you well.

    In future, if you use this platform again, search for a bargain or ask opinions on purchasing an item and hopefully you don't get smashed and regret it.

    Cheers

      • ChillBro on 27/12/2018 - 22:31
        +1

        Sarcasm and Ozbargain is like oil and water.

        • StrayfireX on 29/12/2018 - 15:13

          Sarcasm and Ozbargain is like water and water.

    • pais on 27/12/2018 - 19:50
      +7

      1 - 80% of posters are going to shame you over a mistake. Like they never made a mistake before.

      I think people are justifiably more bemused by the idea that someone else should be responsible for OP's mistake.

    • dylo on 01/01/2019 - 07:31

      Do you copy & paste this everywhere?

  • Baysew on 27/12/2018 - 10:37
    +6

    Hey guys. I need some serious help.

    What help do you need exactly?

    • Kangal on 27/12/2018 - 21:10
      +4

      If everyone online at this exact time simply donated $1, we would have collected enough money to pay for…psyche…one family's food for an entire year in a third-world country.

  • garetz on 27/12/2018 - 12:07
    +48

    Just cancel the contract citing failure to receive goods. As long as you are in the store they have a duty of care to make sure you leave with the product that was promised, if the item is stolen as you are signing up and you are in the store still as this is happening, then vodafone should take point, call the police, claim on their insurance and provide you a new phone.

    • ozhunter on 27/12/2018 - 12:19
      +1

      What if they gave it to him, but he left it on the table?

      • garetz on 27/12/2018 - 12:23
        +9

        Its irrelevant, the table belongs to Vodafone, the table is in the store that Vodafone owns, like i said they have a duty of care to provide you with the phone before you leave, technically you were in the middle of that process, so until you leave the store vodafone is legally responsible.

        • ozhunter on 27/12/2018 - 12:28
          -2

          The OP signed the contract. Placing it on the table is giving it to the OP. You don't need to have your hands physically open and them physically placing it in his hands for it to be considered them giving it to him.

          • garetz on 27/12/2018 - 12:44
            +8

            @ozhunter: You are confusing personal accountability with legal responsibility, also looking up the meaning for "duty of care"

            duty of care
            noun: duty of care; plural noun: duties of care
            a moral or legal obligation to ensure the safety or well-being of others.

            ie, do you think allowing someone to get robbed is ensuring their safety and well-being ?
            Where was Vodafone security, or any employee for that matter.

            • ozhunter on 27/12/2018 - 12:51
              +4

              @garetz: They didn't "allow" him to get robbed.

              He left his phone unattended.

              a moral or legal obligation to ensure the safety or well-being of others.

              Don't think the OP got hurt in any way

            • whooah1979 on 27/12/2018 - 12:57
              +1

              @garetz:

              duty of care
              noun: duty of care; plural noun: duties of care
              a moral or legal obligation to ensure the safety or well-being of others.

              Were OP's safety in question during the transaction?

              • garetz on 27/12/2018 - 13:04
                +7

                @whooah1979: Hurt doesnt need to be in a physical sense, it can also be in a financial sense. Thats why when you are robbed you can call the police, your life might not be in danger, but you have the right to protect your life and property.

                • ozhunter on 27/12/2018 - 13:10

                  @garetz: Vodafone did tell him to file a police report…

                • whooah1979 on 27/12/2018 - 13:16
                  +8

                  @garetz: The store is required to implement duty of care it's reasonably practicable. That's is to reduce hazards that may cause harm to their customers and employees.

                • Butt Scratcher on 30/12/2018 - 15:05

                  @garetz: The more i read your comments, the more angry i am at the nonesense you are spewing out.

                  Duty of care concerns claims dealing with personal injury. Show me a case where duty of care somehow applies to commercial transaction. There's a process required to establish duty of care (and it is only found in torts as far as i know)

                  Umm robbing someone is against the law? Of course you can report it. So is littering? And you can report someone for that. I dont see the relevance

                  Just stop mate, youre misleading a lot of people who arent read up on the law

          • akashra on 29/12/2018 - 15:32
            +1

            @ozhunter: The goods did not leave the store. This has been handled in so many cases it's not even going to get challenged. Store just needs to claim it against their insurance or write it down as a loss and move on.

        • Butt Scratcher on 28/12/2018 - 13:50
          +4

          How the hell does duty of care even come into this? Duty of care concerns the safety.

          They have a contractual obligation to provide him with said phone as stipulated in the contract. Which they did, and he carelessly allowed it to be stolen while in his possession.

          It doesnt matter if it was stolen from a table in thr store or a table just right outside of the store. Vodafone has fullfilled their contractual obligation and gave him the phone, which he then carelessly allowed it to be stolen while in his possession

        • umoddbro on 28/12/2018 - 20:23
          +1

          Does duty of care cover stupidity…

    • Maz78 on 29/12/2018 - 09:50
      +1

      Sorry, but if he signed and paid the contract and it was a done deal and he left it on the table, responsibility is on OP.
      Not sure where or why you're pulling a "duty of care". It's a retail store and it was effectively the OP's personal good if the deal was complete and their responsibility.
      Owner onus applies…

  • CandyMan on 27/12/2018 - 12:21
    +6

    Was this on a shopping Centre? They should have contacted security straight away
    Did they call the boss? I’m sure the boss would have an interest in knowing something was stolen from his store
    Did you call Vodafone and express your dissatisfaction with staff laziness in not doing anything? Maybe you can negotiate with them

  • Strahany on 27/12/2018 - 12:56
    +13

    If the OP had his current phone/wallet sitting out on the table, and left them there under the same circumstances, and had it stolen under the same circumstances, would this be Vodafone’s fault?

    If the phone was stolen whilst it was under the control of the store staff (i.e prior to contract being signed and/or being held by the staff and placed down, or kept behind the counter) then I would absolutely support the OP’s point. But this wasn’t the case, so the question is if there’s anything non-arbitrary that distinguishes the “personal possession status” such that his old phone/wallet is definitely his, and the new phone isn’t? If the OP sat at the table for 5 more minutes, does that suddenly make it no longer the possession of the store? Does the Vodafone staff have to place it in his hand and say some magic words?

    There’s a lot of people saying it’s not the OP’s fault, but I’m yet to see someone explain how this phone is no less in his possession than any other personal item that could’ve been left on the table, and I certainly wouldn’t blame Vodafone if his wallet was stolen in similar circumstances, so am finding it difficult to blame them here.

    Either way, I feel the OP is leaving finer details out; perhaps on purpose, but perhaps not. The story sound odd, either because of missing information, or because the situation is suss (possible collusion between the thief and Vodafone or the thief and OP).

    • payton on 27/12/2018 - 13:11

      +1
      Thieves testing out new ways to operate.

    • praga on 28/12/2018 - 07:29
      +3

      When you go to KFC, they call your name or number and once you approach they hand it to you, they don't just leave it on the counter table. Same principal with buying a car, the dealer will hand the keys to you, he or she won't just leave it on some table and go. How is this different?

      • MSG on 28/12/2018 - 23:38

        Though KFC does not cost anything near an iPhone.

      • Prince K on 29/12/2018 - 02:35
        +1

        What if the kfc staff put the food on the table in front of you, then leave the table while you were sitting there, but you decided to go to the bathroom to wash your hands before touching your food, come back and someone has eaten your food

        I know kfc doesn’t do table service, but that would be a scanerio equivalent to ops story

        • whooah1979 on 29/12/2018 - 09:27

          McDonald's do table service. So does every restaurant and some eateries.

          • Ughhh on 29/12/2018 - 09:57
            +2

            @whooah1979: And it's their duty of care to ensure that damn chicken enters your mouth.

  • Any thing on 27/12/2018 - 13:17
    +4

    OP what work did the staff leave to go do? Did they leave to serve someone else or for another reason?

  • Geoff-bargain on 27/12/2018 - 14:13
    +9

    I'd imagine you can open a small claims case and have it decided at a tribunal - pretty easy and low costs to do

    • pais on 27/12/2018 - 19:55

      This is good advice.

      I doubt OP would win, but it's probably the most practical thing to do.

    • itshammer on 28/12/2018 - 16:45
      +2

      I'd be interested to see if Op touched the phone when the retail assistant placed it on the counter.

      If op didn't, then the transaction isn't completed, regardless of contract being signed.

      The contract isn't legal until both parties have received benefit of some kind.

  • Brainwhacker on 27/12/2018 - 16:14
    +3

    The police should be able to check the footage to nail the culprit. Also will be interesting to know if the rep had signed off the phone to OP, and what could be more pressing than that whilst leaving it open on the table.

    • jwb1981 on 27/12/2018 - 20:20

      Unless the CCTV is crappy quality, like the shopping centre I go to. The owner won't spend money on his shopping centres, unless it's his head office in Sunnybank Plaza

  • Brendoo on 27/12/2018 - 19:47
    +18

    Gee, the staff member brought out the phone, put it on the counter and then unknown to you someone stole it before you had been handed the phone at the completion of the sale. To me this seems like Vodafone needs to give you another phone. Vodafone is insured, they can block the IMEI, no big deal to a multi-billion dollar company like them. It wasn't your fault the staff didn't keep a close eye on the phone they were in the process of selling you. If a complaint to Vodafone head office lands on deaf ears I would get a lawyer if i was you. It's pretty likely that one lawyer's letter is enough to have them do the right thing and give you another phone, especially if they know the video footage from the store shows the events as you describe them.

    • Strahany on 27/12/2018 - 20:03
      +14

      ”stole it before you had been handed the phone at the completion of the sale”

      We don’t know that this is the case, which is part of the reason why I feel the OP is deliberately leaving out information.

      If the phone was stolen prior to signing the contract/before the completion of the sales process, then it would absolutely be the liability of the staff. But I highly doubt that the phone would have left the possession of the salesperson, let alone be opened, prior to the signing of a contract.

      In the multiple years that I worked in Telco sales, a handset never left a salesperson’s possession until we were done with everything (usually solely compiling the contract and scanning out of POS systems) and the handsets were NEVER opened until the credit check was passed and the contract was signed. Otherwise we’d be stuck with an abundance of unsellable handsets in the event that someone failed a credit check and/or refused to sign due to various reasons.

      There are two main explanations I see in this scenario. The first one is that the staff member is entirely incompetent (due to leaving a phone that is still store stock out on the table, or opening a phone prior to signing the contract; or even both) and it’s is therefore their fault. The second is that the staff member did their job properly, and the contract was signed (if it wasn’t, I suspect the OP would’ve mentioned as much, because that would pre-emptively quash almost all lines of argument against them) so therefore the phone was in possession of the OP, and they were careless in their handling of it.

      As for why the staff member left the table where the interaction with the OP was occurring, I suspect it will either be due to the entire sales process having been completed (even more damning for the OP) or because the sales staff was demonstrating post-contract add ons, like cases, screen protectors, chargers etc. (which, being post-contract, is still damning for the OP). Every time that we led customers towards a different area of the shop/kiosk, the phone would either be in our (the sales staff’s) hands, or we would plainly instruct them to not leave it, but that really went without saying and is on the customer to be responsible.

      I will say, with a fair degree of confidence, that this post is just like ~80% of all posts of this nature; the OP made a mistake, so they create a post on a throwaway account which obfuscates the situation in order to trigger the responses they want so they don’t feel as stupid. But I’ll happily be proven wrong if the OP can fill us in on the crucial information which has been elusive thus far.

      • Kenn adams on 27/12/2018 - 20:56
        -2

        Well the device was not opened at that time.

        • harley on 28/12/2018 - 00:05

          My suggestion would be just to write a letter to Vodafone arguing your strongest points, e.g. as Brendoo suggested, no ifs or buts, asking for a replacement phone or contract cancellation due to their negligence, goods not being provided etc. At the end of the letter mention that you'd go to the TIO if the matter is not resolved. Then if not resolved, go to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman and see what they say. For further pointers, if you are on low income etc, try your nearest Community Legal Centre.

        • salmonroe on 28/12/2018 - 08:45

          So has the transaction been completed and the sales person went to do other work?

          What kind of response are you looking for here? People can't help you if you're providing elusive answers.

        • Ghost47 on 28/12/2018 - 17:56

          I think that's kind of trivial to be honest. If you're at a telco store and you're buying a phone, if a rep comes out from the back with a phone and says (or doesn't even say to be honest) "Here's your phone" it's obvious that the phone they have brought out is yours. It makes no sense to leave it unattended to go and browse other things in the store.

          If the contract included the IMEI number or whatever and that IMEI is the same one on the box that was placed in front of you then that's more damning against you.

      • ozhunter on 27/12/2018 - 21:50
        +3

        a handset never left a salesperson’s possession until we were done with everything

        This

        I doubt the staff member would just leave phones with customers if they haven't signed a contract.

  • Tech5 on 27/12/2018 - 20:49
    +12

    If the staff member brought out the box, put it on a bench near/next to you, then it was stolen. I do not see how it is your fault. Staff members often do that, leave it nearby, have a bit more of a chat, set up a bit more. I would not have picked it up. I would have followed the staff member if he walked off.

    If the contract was signed then and there, and the staff member said thanks, bye and went to do something else, then it is your fault.
    If the contract was signed then and there, and the staff member said, hang on let me go set some more stuff up, then it is his fault

    • spaiydz on 27/12/2018 - 22:25
      +2

      I agree with this 100%.

      Everyone else is somehow comparing this to a waiter placing food on the table hands free.

    • cameldownunder on 28/12/2018 - 12:04
      +5

      Staff should have put contract and phone in bag and handed bag to customer. This way transaction would have been closed. That's the procedure when I buy stuff.
      Leaving it on the desk, opens the opportunity for exactly such a case.

    • AlexD on 29/12/2018 - 08:25
      +2

      It’s a bit of a confusing one - if you’re so far through the contract that you definitely don’t have insurance, it might be done by that point. My personal opinion is that the transaction isn’t finished until the customer is free to leave, as they wouldn’t be in the store unless to purchase a phone. If they felt compelled to stay, what they did was still part of the sales process.

      Regardless, having worked in Telco previously, we would sign people up to plans, then carry around the phone until everything was finalised, then hand it over to the customer. It only became theirs after we offered to help them set it up. Additionally, were the phone still in shrink wrap, it hasn’t been activated yet and it’s plausible the salesperson could still add insurance or cancel the transaction at that point.

      The same thing that happened to OP happened to a customer at my store - we put everything through and walked the phone to the counter for the customer to finalise at the till, and someone reached in, grabbed the phone and walked out with it. We gave the customer a new phone.

    • snook on 30/12/2018 - 01:43

      If the contract was signed then and there, and the staff member said thanks, bye and went to do something else, then it is your fault.
      If the contract was signed then and there, and the staff member said, hang on let me go set some more stuff up, then it is his fault

      the OP has NOT answered this. Many people have questioned. Only vagueness provided.

  • myusername on 27/12/2018 - 20:58
    -2

    obvious troll

    disabled user in under 1 week

    • Kangal on 27/12/2018 - 21:35
      +1

      disabled user in 1 week day.
      FTFY.

    • ozhunter on 27/12/2018 - 21:16
      +12

      my phone was taxed by 3 African youths who broke into the changes rooms of the soccer play whilst we were out on the pitch.

      the people at Vodaphone gave Zero f***s when i went to them basically said it is not our problem

      wth lol. Why would Vodaphone be responsible for that?

      • Trying2SaveABuck on 27/12/2018 - 21:20
        +1

        Never said they would they just didnt care they could of offered a deal like i got when i chatted to the 3rd party bloke they obviously knew they could offer me another phone for a couple more bucks a month but when i asked if i could do anything they gave me the f*** off which was clearly a lie in hide sight…

        I dont blame them for not helping me im just sharing my story to OP maybe there is someone that works in the industry that can help him out too? it is important to note that people that dont work for Vodaphone but have dealings with them might be a better place to start…

    • luffyex2010 on 28/12/2018 - 12:44

      They would if you were to purchase thier insurance. The service is there for a reason/price.

      I think you are not understanding of a product and a service.

      There is a reason why they are called a service provider.

      The phone they provide is actually a fix cost to them by breaking into installments which you are paying in the monthly bill. Nothing is free and theft is never part of any standard product coverage.

      But…it's true, Asian students has a big impact on the telcos in the past by reporting lost phones and getting new ones.

    • idonotknowwhy on 28/12/2018 - 14:10

      LMFAO

  • outlander on 27/12/2018 - 21:31
    +3

    You say it was just put on the table? I would consider that to be just the storeperson gathering all the materials together before presenting them to you. I would be arguing that I never received the phone, and the terms of the contract are thus unfulfilled. Its not your job to act as security in their store. If they want to reduce theft, they have the power to implement measures to make it harder. Its their choice to make these stupid open plan stores where you have no idea where to go and if theres a line to stand in.

    • whooah1979 on 27/12/2018 - 22:03
      -5

      Someone stole my brand new iPhone XR straight from Vodafone store

      OP starts their post with my brand new iphone. It's clear that OP recognised that they had ownership of this item at the time of the incident.

      • outlander on 27/12/2018 - 23:11
        +7

        What they said or felt in this post is irrelevant to the facts of the case. If something became your property just through words I would have my own helicopter by now.

        • whooah1979 on 27/12/2018 - 23:31

          irrelevant to the facts of the case.

          What are the facts? OP has given their version of the event. We don't know CS version nor the result of the police investigation.

          • outlander on 27/12/2018 - 23:35
            +1

            @whooah1979: Precisely my point. Given that, the default position is to assume the OP is in the right (or at very least not guilty)

    • Ghost47 on 28/12/2018 - 01:33
      +1

      Whilst I agree that OP shouldn't have to act as store security, if you're sitting down with a store rep organising this kind of thing and the store rep brings out a phone (i.e. a phone that will essentially be yours) and leaves it with you, it's silly to leave it on the table and walk around the store. You're in the middle of a transaction.

      I guess if the phone hadn't been sold in the system then the store would be liable though? The store rep probably should have taken the phone with them into the back of the store if they were being super careful or thought OP would steal it because the transaction hadn't been completed.

      • ozhunter on 28/12/2018 - 01:46

        The store rep probably should have taken the phone with them into the back of the store if they were being super careful or thought OP would steal it because the transaction hadn't been completed.

        OP signed the contract though. I don't think staff members just casually leave phones in front of customer if they haven't agreed to pay for it. I'm sure the staff member would have said something to the OP too, and no just leave(even for a few minutes) without saying anything.

        • Ghost47 on 28/12/2018 - 17:34

          OP signed the contract though.

          Is signing the contract the last thing that has to be done when purchasing a phone? I haven't purchased a phone from a Telco store so not sure. As I said if the transaction hadn't been entered on the system then it could be said they were still in the middle of the transaction.

          I don't think staff members just casually leave phones in front of customer if they haven't agreed to pay for it.

          You'd hope not but I don't think everyone out there does their job properly (i.e. some people would probably leave the phone with the person by accident for example). There have been times where I've been in a store looking at something and the store rep has had to step away to take care of something else leaving the product in my hands.

          I'm sure the staff member would have said something to the OP too, and no just leave(even for a few minutes) without saying anything.

          You would hope so, but you'd also hope that the OP would understand not to leave the table when the rep has placed what would eventually be their phone on the table, even if the store rep didn't mention anything. I can't ever picture myself leaving the table if I'm in the middle of buying a phone and the store rep has placed what would essentially be my phone down in front of me.

    • Toons on 28/12/2018 - 12:11
      +1

      Agree, who gets a small expensive product plonks it on the counter then walks off to complete other things.

      Anything I've bought is held by the salesperson until all documents payments etc. are complete, then they put it in a bag and hand it to you as you were signing up to a contract they generally ask if you want it opened and set up.

      Something doesn't sound right here at all

      The Manager not being around has nothing to do with camera footage PIC should be able to handle this .

      I wouldn't have left the store and called the police to the store to take statements from OP and staff leaving and extending the time could end up leaving you with no evidence and here say on both parties.

      I asked to look at a hard drive Officeworks was completing the sale of for me she stopped what she was doing while I had a look then took it back into her possession until everything was done.

  • happydude on 27/12/2018 - 21:39
    +3

    Make a Telecommunication Industry Obmudsman complaint. They will then mediate.

    You would be arguing the goods were not received. This seems like a real grey area. Which moment a customer is considered to have recieved the goods is a very interesting legal question.

    I think you have a good chance of winning.

  • frostman on 27/12/2018 - 21:40
    -1

    Whats an iPhone XR?

    • toliman on 27/12/2018 - 22:03
      +1

      Whats an iPhone XR?

      What's an iPhone?

      it's overpriced.

    • brendanm on 27/12/2018 - 23:09
      +3

      XtremeRipoff

      • BargainKen on 29/12/2018 - 16:47

        Given their sales figures and reports, more like XtremelyRare

        I had one for a little while, wasn't bad at all TBH, but I just felt I'd rather spring for a few more bucks and get the XS.

        • brendanm on 29/12/2018 - 19:14

          Not surprising it's extremely rare, who in their right mind pays $1300 for a phone that doesn't even have a fhd screen haha. I didn't think even appleeouldtry to bend people over that hard.

  • Weezle on 27/12/2018 - 21:51
    +1

    When you think as you're reading this that no one could possibly be this stupid and it's obviously a troll… and then you suddenly realise this actually happened…. :|

    In all seriousness though, I think from a consumer perspective whilst what you did seems like downright stupidity that the store will end up in the wrong based on the facts at hand and you'll either get out of the contract or they'll honor their end and supply a new phone.

    IF this happened to me (it wouldn't) i'd be going straight to the their head office or ombudsman as it's simply not worth them tarnishing their brand for this.

  • Kironium on 27/12/2018 - 22:06

    How much is the phone?

    • DiscoJango on 28/12/2018 - 09:54

      iphone xr's are usually on sale for $120 at kmart

      • Kironium on 29/12/2018 - 03:55

        But can it make calls? Anyway jokes apart I see a lot of people with minimum wage jobs who own an iPhone X. The 2000 dollar phone is definitely normalised. It's weird.

        • DiscoJango on 29/12/2018 - 09:17

          you do realise that the reason the poor, stay poor, is because all they do is get further into debt by purchasing unnecessary things?

          $2000 is "normal" because apples marketing dept. have done their job. the next iphone will be $3000, so therfore the base model iphone will "only" be $2000. see what they've done?

  • Mikerobertsn on 27/12/2018 - 22:18
    +1

    Its not the OP’s fault, he signed a contract however since the phone was placed on the table and not given to him and told to wait its not his faut. No diifer ence if he signed a contract online and it got stolen in the mail.

    Demand a replacement. I assume this store is a franchise store and as such they will be more focused on saving money then following the law etc. I’d report it to vodafone if the store doesn’t do anything.

    • whooah1979 on 27/12/2018 - 22:36
      -5

      OP has stated that Someone stole my brand new iPhone XR straight from Vodafone store. It does sound like OP considered the item to be under OP's ownership when it was taken.

    • Ghost47 on 28/12/2018 - 18:02

      Its not the OP’s fault, he signed a contract however since the phone was placed on the table and not given to him and told to wait its not his faut.

      But if OP was sitting down with the rep at the table conducting the transaction and the rep had brought out the phone from the back (as described e.g. iPhone XR in Red 256gb) and placed it on the table, it is pretty obvious that phone would be meant for the OP?

      • Mikerobertsn on 31/12/2018 - 08:12

        My impression was they were just casually doing it at the counter, no doubt while the salesman was probling juggling 5 customers at once lol. Should have bought it online lol.

  • hypie on 27/12/2018 - 22:29
    +12

    I'm backing the OP on this one too. I don't believe the transaction was completed. Until the customer has left the store with the item. The cx can argue that the item was not received despite the contract being signed.

    i.e. What if you sign a contract on the internet for a Phone to be delivered. You could claim that until you have signed for delivery, the item is still the responsibility and ownership of Vodafone.

    I hope Vodafone does the right thing and reimburses you.

  • Ghost47 on 28/12/2018 - 01:25

    Hm so you were at the table with a store rep and you signed a contract and the phone was on the table.. then the guy went into the back of the store to do something, and you stood up and walked around the store leaving the phone unattended?

    Not sure how the legality of it all works but it seems like you shouldn't have gone around wandering looking at things if he left the phone with you, but it could also be said that if the sale hadn't been completed the store rep should have taken the phone with him into the back of the store.

    So, I don't know.

  • Levathian on 28/12/2018 - 02:01

    Wait so you bought a phone, signed the contract and they got the phone. Did he give you the phone then you left it and looked around or did the tech put it on the bench (before you had touched it) then get distracted while someone steals it? I think whether or not you had touched the phone box and 'received' it determines who is at fault here but IANAL.

  • BlacNBlanc on 28/12/2018 - 05:07
    +3

    If OP signed the contract and the rep retrieved the phone and placed it infront of another customer by mistake would op be liable?

    You can shove something down your pants but until you have left a store without paying then no crime has been committed.

    I have a friend who worked at mazzucchelli's in Perth city. Theft while mid transaction was so common that the arcade reimbursed the store for any theft if the security response time was too slow… which was most of the time.

    Unfortunately by filling a police report you have hurt your case by taking ownership for the loss. As other serious replies have said you should have asked for a refund on the spot for failure to receive goods.

    I hope you paid with a gold or platinum credit card and overlooked that fact… because then you would be covered for this theft.

    You can apply case law for parking lots and amusement parks to this scenario. Lots of scenarios that go either way but usually favour the consumer especially if there isn't proper signage.

    When you purchase a phone on a plan the store will usually gotten the box and activate the service for you. I find it odd that this didn't happen? How do you know there was a phone on the box and not a brick?

    I've also called up a for a reference for someone working at a Vodafone shop. They were let go after creatively removing stock from the store. So it may not always be the customer scamming the store.

    Good luck OP. I think you have a good chance even though it was a bad move leaving it at the counter.

  • DarkOz on 28/12/2018 - 07:41
    -1

    So as soon as I signed my brand new 24 months contract with Vodafone, the guy dealing with me with in to do some work and I started looking around the shop leaving the unopened box on the table of the store.

    The contract was signed and the unopened box was left on the table. What happened in between? It is very easy for OP clarify that but he hadn't! I feel OP has omitted some vital information here intentionally.

    a. Did the Vodafone guy say "Here is your phone" and placed it onto the table?
    b. Did the Vodafone guy say "Here is your phone" and placed it into OP's hands?
    c. Did OP accept the unopened box and then placed it onto the table?

    If ONLY a. then it's Vodafone's fault.
    If b. or c. then OP is definitely at fault.

    • ozhunter on 28/12/2018 - 08:56
      +3

      a b or c would be the OP's fault.

  • [Deactivated] on 28/12/2018 - 07:50
    +1

    Did you try Find My Iphone XR ?

  • WreckTangle on 28/12/2018 - 09:17

    What store was this?

  • DiscoJango on 28/12/2018 - 09:53
    +4

    inside job on the sale consultants behalf!

    ill distract the customer, you swoop in and steal the phone!

    rinse and repeat

    easy money

    • Bundybogan on 28/12/2018 - 10:24

      Yeah like this would work once maybe twice before it’s obvious the same person who is always selling the phone at the time the customer gets robbed. So this particular sales staff will risk going to jail for fraud and theft for a couple of grand because to get a job they must have provided ID, address and a criminal check to be hired so the store would have all information on file.. sounds like a successful way to go to jail so much be a legit theory…

      • Ghost47 on 28/12/2018 - 17:37

        I think they'd get fired first especially if they just didn't own up to it.

        "Can't believe you've done this three times now, we're just going to have to let you go."

    • WorldClassMiser on 30/12/2018 - 05:26

      OP was not distracted, they just couldn't sit still for a few minutes while the sales process was completed.

  • pgdownload on 28/12/2018 - 11:34

    It's very bad luck, but it was technically your phone that for stolen not Vodafone's.

    Note that insurance likely would not have helped as it only kicks in after you make your first SMS or first call.

    Peter Gillespie

    • Eeples on 28/12/2018 - 11:38
      +2

      He opted not to have insurance.

      Roger Rabbit.

      • pgdownload on 28/12/2018 - 12:28
        +2

        Sure? I was just pointing out having it or not was likely of no use either way. Also something most traders likely wouldn't be aware of

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