Cell phone returns

holey smoke

Full Member
Joined
Dec 22, 2011
Messages
165
Location
Rochester, NY
Found a working cell today. I've found three working phones and the attempts to return are as follows:

1) Call number listed in "personal info" section. Was the guy who owned the phone before the person who lost it. "You didn't find my phone. I'm talking to you on my phone." Turns out he sold it on Craigslist and had no idea to whom. By the time he had returned my call, phone went dead. No charger. Threw the phone in the box with the dead ones.

2) Phone worked but had been shut off. Texted from my phone that I had found the phone to the number, figuring they had a new phone with the same number. Long text explaining how and where I found the phone and that I could leave it at the local grocery store's service desk for them to pick up. Got a two word response: "Who this?" Sent the same text again. No reply. Threw the phone in the box with the dead ones.

3) Today. No personal info. Called the emergency contact. Told her I found the person's phone I was calling from. She thought I was joking. No, I said. Please call this phone's owner on a different number and ask her (She had answered the call using the phone owner's first name) to call her cell so I can get it back to her. She finally decided I wasn't joking and said she would. Phone rings an hour later. It's a guy. "Do you know where the phone is?" he says. "Uh, what?" I say. "DO YOU KNOW WHERE THE PHONE IS?" I pause. "Are you asking me if I know where the phone is that you just called and I just answered you on? If it's that phone you are asking about, yes, I do know where it is. I'm holding to to my head right now." He asks, "Where is it, where are you?" I tell him where I found the phone and that I'm willing to drop it off at the local grocery store for him to pick up. "How about you take it to the Police Station instead?" He says. No, the grocery store it is. He relents but says he'll meet me there with the police. I'm getting freaked out. I say OK but take it to a different place instead and leave him a voicemail telling him where it was.


I've never lost a phone. But if I did, I'd sure be nice to someone trying to return it. And thank them. With green if they'd take it (I wouldn't). Today really put me off even trying to return cell phones. I don't think I'll try again. Granted, I have no idea what was going on with any of these people (the second two, anyway). My wife thinks maybe the woman today had her purse snatched or something and they thought I was the bad guy. Don't ask me why they thought the bad guy would then call and offer to get the phone back to her. But I sure was treated like a bad guy. I think future working phones will go right in the box with the rest.
 
who cares... take them apart and sell the motors or something here on the forum for the Cen-Tech pinpointers... or just give them away, but have the MD person just pay for postage!!! There's an idea that just came to mind. You would be helping someone with their projects!!! HH \_
 
Cell Phone

I found a high end phone the other day to, i just posted it in the craigslist "lost and found" for my area with the model, but i just say, describe it to me, the case, etc, and if they dont email back, their loss not mine. I have no choice with this phone as its dead and im not going to buy an expensive charger anyway, but it seems to be a good way to avoid dealing with a situation like that.
 
I have found 3.. Two of them I didnt even get a thankyou.. Third one i just dropped it off at the police station.. Where i was treated almost like a suspect.. Next phone I find.. I will just go through thier pics.. And send all the self nude shots to everyone on the contact list and toss the phone in the trash I quess... Lol.. Does make me feel like it though. :) The guy that answered your call was a d-bag.. Probably just like the hones owner.. That birds of a feather thing.. Im sure they wouldnt make any effort in returning yours saddly..... '' New life motto... I will stop doing for others what they would never do for me''. Now if i knew if they would do it for me.. The choice would be very easy..
 
I lost my phone on a bus in Seattle. A young kid found it and went out of his way to return it to me. I gave the guy $30 bucks. Everything I had in my wallet when we met up...
 
I found two working cell phones while riding my bike, i returned them to the people and they were grateful, third one i found was a joke, i guess if you find one you could always place in the post office boxes on the curb. Other than that, dont know what to say on this one,

by the way, i was riding yesterday and my crank came loose while i was 15 miles from home, i forgot my crank tool and i stop by a mechanic shop to borrow a alan key to tighten the crank. the guy tells me he doesn't lend out tools and I am like dumbfounded!!! It's not like I wanted the thing to keep or take somewhere, I didn't even bother again to ask him since he was on a soapbox but as I was leaving I thought of What a great way to be in business. For all he didn't know I could have been a CEO of a taxi company looking for a garage to do repairs on my vehicles. I will not go to that shop for anything. I was really shocked, I thought he would say sure-what size do you need let me get it and it will take 5 seconds.

Just remember what goes around comes around - what a d***
 
Take the thing. Through it as high and as long as possible into the water. Period. -Joe


EDIT. Just finished the end. What a jerk. Its why I don't return stuff. HH an GL -Joe


Found a working cell today. I've found three working phones and the attempts to return are as follows:

1) Call number listed in "personal info" section. Was the guy who owned the phone before the person who lost it. "You didn't find my phone. I'm talking to you on my phone." Turns out he sold it on Craigslist and had no idea to whom. By the time he had returned my call, phone went dead. No charger. Threw the phone in the box with the dead ones.

2) Phone worked but had been shut off. Texted from my phone that I had found the phone to the number, figuring they had a new phone with the same number. Long text explaining how and where I found the phone and that I could leave it at the local grocery store's service desk for them to pick up. Got a two word response: "Who this?" Sent the same text again. No reply. Threw the phone in the box with the dead ones.

3) Today. No personal info. Called the emergency contact. Told her I found the person's phone I was calling from. She thought I was joking. No, I said. Please call this phone's owner on a different number and ask her (She had answered the call using the phone owner's first name) to call her cell so I can get it back to her. She finally decided I wasn't joking and said she would. Phone rings an hour later. It's a guy. "Do you know where the phone is?" he says. "Uh, what?" I say. "DO YOU KNOW WHERE THE PHONE IS?" I pause. "Are you asking me if I know where the phone is that you just called and I just answered you on? If it's that phone you are asking about, yes, I do know where it is. I'm holding to to my head right now." He asks, "Where is it, where are you?" I tell him where I found the phone and that I'm willing to drop it off at the local grocery store for him to pick up. "How about you take it to the Police Station instead?" He says. No, the grocery store it is. He relents but says he'll meet me there with the police. I'm getting freaked out. I say OK but take it to a different place instead and leave him a voicemail telling him where it was.


I've never lost a phone. But if I did, I'd sure be nice to someone trying to return it. And thank them. With green if they'd take it (I wouldn't). Today really put me off even trying to return cell phones. I don't think I'll try again. Granted, I have no idea what was going on with any of these people (the second two, anyway). My wife thinks maybe the woman today had her purse snatched or something and they thought I was the bad guy. Don't ask me why they thought the bad guy would then call and offer to get the phone back to her. But I sure was treated like a bad guy. I think future working phones will go right in the box with the rest.
 
I've found two phones, one in a telephone box (yeah i know, why?).

I called the number under the heading 'mom' and told her about finding it and that i was leaving it in a shop beside the phone for her.

The next phone i found was dead so it being a cheap prepay...i just took it to the police station and they were fine about it, both of these happened in england where they expect teenagers losing phones other people paid for, thankfully over here they do the same thing with jewelry that other people paid for
 
I've found two prepaid phones that worked at the beach and both people that I contacted had the NERVE to ask me to send at my expense to them and one wanted me to drive 40 miles.

Told em both if they wanted them to COME GET THEM.

Neither did and one called a few weeks ago asking if I still had her phone. Told her NO .. you didn't want it bad enough to get it so I GAVE IT AWAY.

She cussed me and I told her to get bent.

From now on, what I find in the way of electronics does NOT get reported.
 
I've found two cell phones so far and simply dropped them off at the closest retail store for the respective carrier. The store personal seemed appreciative and promised they'd get them to the owner.

If I ever loose my cell phone, I hope someone will do the same for me.

Happy hunting,

John L.
 
Found a few at the beach...the last one I was going to call the info number, but took a nap instead after getting to the beach at 0430 AM...next thing I know, someone is knocking on my door wanting to know if I had their phone..they tracked it to my house..wanted to give me money, but didn't take it...nice return..Buster......:grin:
 
next thing I know, someone is knocking on my door wanting to know if I had their phone..they tracked it to my house..

Tracked it to your house? Another good reason to not take them home.
As a reminder to everyone, if you turn the phone off the phone company can still track it, to make sure it's off you have to remove the battery.
 
I've returned a few. Problem I have is what do do with all the non-working ones I have. I've got about 15 pulled out during low tide, iphones. ipods and a lot more. Totally dead. Anyway to monetized these.
 
I've returned a few. Problem I have is what do do with all the non-working ones I have. I've got about 15 pulled out during low tide, iphones. ipods and a lot more. Totally dead. Anyway to monetized these.

Perhaps you could try HelloTotem. Don't expect to get the initial quote nor a quick turnaround time. You will get some money for those broken phones though.
 
I post a lot of finds on Craigslist under the lost and found section. If the people would ever check the site the stuff is waiting for them complete with pictures!
Sometimes trying to help gets to be a one way street!
 
I would try and find the owner first. If they act like an idiot and do what some of you are saying,I'm keeping it. Then I may go try and do a trade in if it's in ok shape.
 
I found one last spring just after the snow thaw. Was dead and of all my chargers and cords none fit. Looked inside and it had an At&T Simm card. I took it out, got the number and called AT&T. Gave them the number and they told me the owner had cancelled that card number and to just throw it away. Well, Curiosity go the better of me and I put it in my comp... Pictures galore. Nothing adult or anything. Just face shots and such from a trip or casual meetings with friends. Saw the same faces over and over. Phone tossed, Card destroyed. I tried. Thats all we can do is try. WE try to do our best and help others and get zero thanks for it from most. Most of them look at us like criminals for even looking in the phone directory for contact people just so we can return it. Oh well. As said here before, Their loss, Not ours. Happy hunting guys. Just discovered a few new parks I didnt know about. :)
 
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