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stolen phone

Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
oooh i am SOOOO annoyed right now!!! :mad: :mad:

i brought my phone over to my mums' house earlier this morning - and left it on our bookshelf on the landing upstairs whilst i had a shower.
finished shower, then went for a half hour walk with the dog... came back to the house to collect phone and leave again, only to find that my phone was GONE!

i searched the whole landing, and every place i could think of that i could have moved it to - and nothing.
mum had not seen it at all either.

only explanation is that it has been taken by the builder(s) that are working on the bathroom at the moment. i mean, other than me and my mum, they were the only other people in the house at the time it went missing, so it MUST have been one of them!!! :crazyeyes

i asked them both if theyd seen it, and both of them said they saw it but did not touch it.
ARGGGG. what am i supposed to do?! tricky situation really. i cant full out blame them and accuse them of doing it because it will make the building situation bad and they might quit.. and.. well im just confused and upset.

it has all my uni friends' numbers on it that i dont have anywhere else :( dont even have many of their emails so im not going to be able to contact them over summer!! .. this sucks.

i realise there isnt much advice people can give me on this. just wanted to vent a little :mad: :mad:

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Tricky because like you say, you can't just blame them.

    are you still at the house?

    If you are I would say to them that you are going to have to phone the police because someone must have entered the house and nicked it, then say you might have left it somewhere else. If it is one of them they might decide it aint worth it and decide to put it in the kitchen or something so it looks like you just forgot where you had put it.

    Just an idea.
  • JsTJsT Posts: 18,268 Skive's The Limit
    Ask them where they saw it. If it isn't there say tell them you haven't moved it so they better put it back.

    Cunts.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    If it has been stolen, then ring up your network and get them to block the phone, it'll stop others from using it. Similar happened to my Mum last Fri, some shit stole her phone out of her pocket, we're all on virgin in our household, so we rang up them, and they're going to transfer her balance, and have blocked her old phone.

    Sorry to hear that though, it is really annoying when it happens :(
  • JsTJsT Posts: 18,268 Skive's The Limit
    If its in your own house it aint fucking on, simple as.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    i know it might seem obvious, but have you tried ringin it?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    At the end of the day if you or your mum had moved it, then you'd remember. It seems pretty clear to me one of the builders nicked it, i'd drop some lines about contacting the phone company an them being able to tell you where it is in a few days or something, i dunno just something to shit them into putting it back.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    the builders aren't exactly going to own up to nicking it!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    The builders would have to be a bit thick to steal a phone from under your nose. You're not going to forget the thing are you?

    Ring it.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Phone it. If it is turned off, and it wasn't when you had it last, then report it as stolen and have it blocked. Contact the Police - it may seem like a waste of their time, but if it has been stolen from your house by the builders, then you'll at least have some evidence of your suspicions in case anything else is found to have gone missing.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    you'd be surprised...my dad had his wallet stolen by builders who were doing something in the hallway in this posh hotel (where the beckhams had their engagement party) then tried to buy a designer watch with one of his credit cards
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Mia_16 wrote:
    i know it might seem obvious, but have you tried ringin it?
    That was my initial thought...
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    is it a big building company ? if its any half respectable firm something will be done if you complain .. better off going to the police too .. just so its reported

    id go nuts if that happened in my house, it definatly isnt on at all
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    awww fuck.

    losing the phone is about one of the worst things that can possibly happen, i hated it in the past when its happened to me, its not a case of losing the phone cos that can be replaced, its all the numbers that you have to get again. right pain.

    i'd deffo try reporting it tho if you are pretty confident they took it
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Builders nicking things shocker! Of course it was them.

    Ring the police and get the thing blocked by its IMEI. say that it was left in your house, and the only people with access were the builders. I'd also shout it very loudly in the house that you're going to the rozzers. I'd also go to the benefit cheats' helpline, but I'd do that quietly. Sure, you may have lost your phone, but at least you get to ruin some builders.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    It probably was the builders - many of them have had a colourful life. But many of them are straight-up, honest and decent guys. My Dad has worked in the building industry for many years now - he's as honest as the day is long :).

    He's not a builder though. ;)
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Kermit wrote:
    Builders nicking things shocker! Of course it was them.

    Ring the police and get the thing blocked by its IMEI. say that it was left in your house, and the only people with access were the builders. I'd also shout it very loudly in the house that you're going to the rozzers. I'd also go to the benefit cheats' helpline, but I'd do that quietly. Sure, you may have lost your phone, but at least you get to ruin some builders.

    Thats what i was going to say...get the IMEI blocked so the phone is unusable on ANY network. You can get the IMEI on most phones either by typing in *#06# or by looking at a sticker on the back of the phone with the battery removed. Its a good idea to always keep it on a piece of paper in your wallet just in case.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    thanks for all replies and info guys :)

    unfortunately at the time of the stealing - there was no way that i could have rang the phone because it was turned off!! id used the battery up the previous night so turned it off early in the morning.
    that is sooo typical as well that it was taken when it was off as well, because generally i ALWAYS have it on unless of course the battery goes.

    my mums phone also went missing from the kitchen worktop a month or two ago. at the time that that phone went missing we all assumed it was the daughter of my mums' friend (because she was seen messing with it before hand) although now we are thinking it was the builders again (they were in the house at the time too)

    so yeah - my mum rang the police and they mentioned the IMEI thing or whatever it is - so now comes the problem - WHERE THE HELL DID I PUT MY PHONE BOX?!!!
    when i bought the phone i remember putting the receipt, and info, extra cables etc in the box and then putting it somewhere - where it is now i have noo idea.
    lets hope i find it because im keen on the idea of the phone being tracked!!


    luckily my mum has lent me her phone for the time being and my dad has offered to rebuy me the same phone i had.. although my dad is also going to kill me when he finds out in the near future that a special sim card (manx telecom one) he gave me to use when im home on the island a few months ago has also been misplaced.. :no: so im going to get shouted at about that too

    *sigh* god this whole process is annoying lol
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    For the IMEI number, can you not ring up where you got your phone from and get them to check it? Or do they not hold information like this?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Your network will have a copy of the IMEI. It'll be readily available to them - and if you can persuade them that you're the legitimate owner of the phone, they'll give it to you :).
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Would the builders steal a phone from your mum a couple of months ago then steal yours as well? I lost my car keys on Friday and serched everywhere (including half an hour wearing marigolds going through the bin bags! - baked beans euw!) and couldn't find them. I eventually found them this morning in a slipper! Not that anyone would want to steal my car (!) we have builders round at the moment fitting a kitchen TBH, I did consider it had something to do with them.

    But then, it is easy to make scapegoats. I had £30 stolen from my wallet at work. Everyone thought it was the cleaners. It wasn't, it was one of the other workers.

    It just seems unlikely they would steal two phones from the same people or are they that arrogant they think they would be able to get way with it??
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Your network will have a copy of the IMEI. It'll be readily available to them - and if you can persuade them that you're the legitimate owner of the phone, they'll give it to you :).

    That's what I did, I had loads of weird questions to answer, but since the phone wasn't mine before hand (my friend hadtold them and chaged it over to my name when she gave it me luckily) I didn't have any of the box etc.

    They listed to me all the SIM cards that had been in the handset recently, and asked me to confirm the numbers etc and the owner of the sim card, and the last known postcode of the place it was nicked (luckily, I knew my school's postcode)

    They also got me to confirm all my basic details (name, DOB, address, etc)

    They might have better way of doing it now (it was almost 5 years ago....) but it was easy enough. The handset was blocked, and soon enough it was emerged at school that when it stopped working they buried it on the school field. It's stilll there now at a guess, I never got it back - or even went looking.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    city_boy wrote:
    Would the builders steal a phone from your mum a couple of months ago then steal yours as well?

    It just seems unlikely they would steal two phones from the same people or are they that arrogant they think they would be able to get way with it??

    thats what me and my mum were thinking. its a bit stupid to steal a phone and then nick another one less than a month afterwards.. but really, there is no other logical explanation other than them taking it! they were in the house both times that the phones got nicked and they had easy access to them.
    if it turns out not to be one of them then i will.. eat my own foot :yes:

    like my mum said earlier - the youngest one (barry - the one most likely to have taken it) isnt the smartest of people (bit of a ruffian really from the looks of him - although up until now ive always liked him and thought he was an honest bloke) and obviously didnt really think before doing it. i mean, its obvious that the blame would at some point be pointed at him.


    as for the IMEI - thanks for information everyone!! the phone is on an O2 contract under my dads' name so ill get him to ring up and cancell it or something.

    oh and also, will it be possible to cancel the existing contract/sim card info and get another one with the same number i used to have? its just annoying that im going to have to redistribute a new number to all my friends etc when i could just continue with the old one! (ive only just learnt the number too!! :impissed: )
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    soraliah wrote:
    like my mum said earlier - the youngest one (barry - the one most likely to have taken it) isnt the smartest of people (bit of a ruffian really from the looks of him - although up until now ive always liked him and thought he was an honest bloke) and obviously didnt really think before doing it. i mean, its obvious that the blame would at some point be pointed at him.




    you can't just assume it's him because he 'isn't the smartest of people' or because he looks like a 'ruffian'. give the poor bloke a break.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    well its either him or his dad :grump: and anyway, its not me that said that
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