Is cashforiphones.com a Scam? (Part 2)

Sellers Beware!

(Continued from Part 1)

I understand that the company was probably wrong when they failed to call me before a price adjustment, but doesn’t make them scammers or their business a scam. I received payment even if it was $20 and $24 short.

Now, I also understand that the quoted price is not really the exact price that they will pay me. In any refurbishing business buying old and used devices, they use quoting to estimate the amount of money they will shell out to the seller based on the seller’s initial evaluation of their device.

If the device is described to be working fine, with no missing parts and no obvious scratches or cracks, it will be quoted a general price based on its brand and model. As for cashforiphones.com, they will base the purchasing price of a certain iPhone on several things.

But quoting doesn’t necessarily promise a seller that he or she will receive the exact amount of money by the time the device reaches the company’s facility. This is because the company will still have it checked by their elite team of technicians to ensure that the phone is still profitable or still has more profitable parts for refurbishing.

Once they find that the phone is what as the seller described, the company will pay the exact amount of the quote they have provided. But if the phone fails to meet the description, then it’s time for some price adjustments.

Sellers Beware

To avoid having price negotiations or at least have a better chance of getting paid the exact amount quoted for your device, I have devised a guideline you can use when selling to websites like cashforiphones.com.

1.       Read about online selling. It is very important that you as an online seller, know the rules guiding its processes. Reading self-help articles are essential. You can also email and ask the site itself so they will answer your questions and clear any doubts.

2.       Check your device and make sure that you will take note of anything is wrong about it. Makes sure to observe the device when you are using it and make a list of its faults and other glitches. Take note of missing or non-working parts. Check if there are minor scratches on the screen or if the iPhone has problems with the software. Tip: this are the things they are very particular with when it comes to pricing your device so be very keen to details.

3.       Make sure that when you give out your assessment, everything is accurately done. They will provide a quote for your item based on the assessment you have given them. Do not overrate your assessment so you will not be disappointed by the actual price.

Cashforiphones.com and other refurbishment sites will surely agree that taking these steps will make online selling easier and more manageable for you. Beware of the real scammers who would not even bother to return a cent for your device.

Is cashforiphones.com a Scam? (Part 1)

Sellers Beware!

Okay, before I start clearing up the issues regarding cashforiphones.com, let me give you examples of comments posted on a thread about its mother site, cashforlaptops.com.

The comment was posted by a user named Tommy:

“Cashforlaptops.com is a scam. I sent in a Presario -- told them it will not power on, but other than that looks great. They quoted me $170. Then they sent me an email saying the laptop had a bad battery. They sent me $150, no explanation of why they deducted the money.”

Here is a response to this comment that was posted by another user named John Fairheart:

“That is not a scam. You were given money for a dead Laptop. So they were shy by $20 on their 'quote'. A quote is not a contract; it is a 'best guess' at what they may pay.”

Why did I give these comments for examples? Well, it’s because the same “scam issue” was brought up for cashforiphones.com.

I have been using cashforiphones.com since my first iPhone that was an iPhone 2G. I sold it to the site to be able to buy the iPhone 3GS using my savings and the money I got from their paycheck.

Just like what happened to Tommy, the guy who posted the first comment above, I was quoted a price but was paid $20 shy from what they offered me. Of course, I too, got angry and frustrated.

I called them and demanded an explanation why this had had to happen and why did they not inform me about it. The customer service representative told me that there had been problems with my phone that were comprised of minor scratches on the screen and lagging apps.

I came back to my senses when they told me that my iPhone was in good shape but the battery was also worn out. They apologized that they failed to notify me about the price adjustment so I conceded. That time, I realized that the cash value was actually good enough for my iPhone 2G’s worth.

Even if I experienced that kind of service from them, I decided to entrust yet another iPhone which was my iPhone 3GS. Before iPhone 4S was released, I decided to send them my 3GS so I could buy the next generation iPhone.

This time, I’d seen some good changes with the company. When they found that my phone had several glitches in the software, they notified me by email for a price negotiation. They soon called me to discuss the adjustment they could make about the price.

I was offered around $149 but they said that they were only paying me $125 because my phone was jailbroken and there were several phone functions that were not working. Actually, I felt quite guilty about it since I didn’t mention the matter during the online transaction.

So, I told them that I would still go on with the deal even if I was to be paid $24 shy of what was quoted me.

Now, I have my iPhone 4S and I’m really happy to experience Siri.

(Go to part 2)

Swimming iPhones

I think it’s safe to say that at one point in our lives, our mobile phones have fallen into water. If not, we know someone who did, like a clumsy friend, or a forgetful elder. Nobody likes to drop their mobile phones in any liquid. It’s painful to see our favorite mobile phones die out on us, especially because of our carelessness. That makes everything worse. I don’t like the feeling of being careless. And if you guessed it right, I’m writing out of anguish because of that.

Let me tell you what happened. I was at my best friend’s birthday party at his house when my iPhone got wet. Mind you, it’s an iPhone 3GS with 32 gigabytes of memory. Anyway, we were all having fun and my friends took turns playing games on my iPhone. When they returned it to me, I placed it on a table where the food was. There were no drinks there, not yet. I turned around to talk to some of my friends to have a little chitchat.

Then my best friend’s little sister came in. She wanted to help out in preparing the birthday, so she brought in a couple of pitchers of juice. A lone iPhone on the table and two pitchers of juice? That’s a recipe for disaster. She got bumped by one of the partygoers and spilled the drinks on the table! I was shocked at what I just saw. When I went to get my iPhone, the screen was already black. I didn’t turn it on immediately because if I did, I could fry the phone.

I left the phone turned off for a couple of days and I had high hopes it would come back to life. Needless to say, it didn’t. Nothing happened. At that moment I immediately knew that my phone was worthless. I checked Apple’s website, but it said that the warrant doesn’t cover iPhones with liquid damage! That’s so unfair! I felt hopeless after that.

After some thinking, I decided to sell my iPhone. I figured I could get some cash out of it. But who would want an iPhone submerged in liquid anyway? Certainly not my friends. Looking around the Internet, I found Cashforiphones.com. They buy iPhones that are mint, damaged, broken OR liquid-submerged! Just what I needed to make my day. But I wondered if cashforiphones.com is a scam. I looked for user reviews around the internet, and learned that they are a completely legitimate business. You get a quote from their site, and after that they send a box to your house. When it gets there, you are delivered a check and that’s it!

I thought that it was the best thing that could happen to me! So I went ahead to register with their website. They were willing to give me $89 dollars for my iPhone. I gladly accepted the deal because that’s plenty of money for a submerged phone. A couple of days later I was sent a box and I sent it back to them. I got an email saying they were going to lower the price to $50. At first I was bummed out, but then again, my phone was submerged in water anyway, so I couldn’t haggle with the price.

I got my check a couple of days later and now I’m going to use that money to buy a new iPhone. If you think that Cashforiphones.com is a scam, think again. My first time dealing with them went smoothly, and I’m looking to deal with them again. I learned that they also buy laptops with their other websites, and I’m thinking of selling it to them too. But now, I’m thinking of becoming a much more careful person from now on.

Cashforiphones: A Scam? No Way!

                Do not believe some hoity-toity columnist who graphically puts her creativity on paper and then throws her credibility in the nearest trash bin available. I hope she was not in a dire situation of submitting an article before she goes well past her deadline.

            In her column on news.cnet.com, Marguerite Reardon (famously known as ‘Maggie’ for which her name is as splattered as the column title itself), expresses her apologies to her readers regarding the article she wrote under the headline of “Where to unload your laptop for top dollar”. In it she assembles a chart that shows the readers what websites they can go to get cash for their used iPhones.

            One month elapsed, and Maggie pitched in another attention-grabbing article titled “Don’t get scammed when selling your old iPhone”. With it, she rambles on her mistake of misinforming the public by recommending a certain website without doing an initial business reputation check of it. And what is the website that is put in hot water? Cashforiphones.com.

            Deplorable as it is to use one’s words against oneself, I want to cite her ‘lovely’ introduction: “I am the first to admit when I am wrong. And indeed, I made a mistake a few weeks ago when I mentioned in this column a certain Web site as a place to sell an old iPhone without checking the reputation of the site mentioned.”

            She goes on by delivering the punch:

            “In the October 4 edition of Ask Maggie, headlined Where to unload your laptop for top dollar, I listed the Web site CashForiPhones.com as a place to sell a used iPhone. Since then, I've learned from various readers and through my own investigation, that this particular Web site has a reputation for offering customers a high price for their used iPhones and then greatly reducing the offer once the company has possession of the device.”

            First of all, I would like to commend Maggie for admitting her mistake in the article which was peppered with profuse apologies. True, she ought to get an A+ in the ethics department; but there are certain things I’d like to point out in defense of Cashforiphones.com.

            It was Maggie’s prerogative to retract whatever recommendation she issued previously. After all, it is her job to grab any issue she can yak about and hopefully submit for publication. But to say a certain website is a scam on the sole basis of people’s reactions (which, in the first place, isn’t representative of ALL Cashforiphones customers) is a case of fundamental attribution error.

            Complaints may arise against a company but it does not warrant one to conclude that the case affects the whole. As a matter of fact, where would Cashforiphones.com get a 99.97% customer satisfaction rating and the A+ rating from BBB (despite the company not availing of the accreditation)? Between a quantitative data that is difficult to arrive at and a qualitative remark that can be generated anytime, I would go for the verdict which has valid basis.

            As a writer, I should not misinterpret what it means to do my duty for humanity. It is good to be on the side of the people, but to lose your own bright right just because you know people will go against you, that is ridiculous.

            Given that this concerns a lot of people, why would you even try to feature something that you have not tried yet? Does that give you some sort of vicarious thrill? I hope not.

            About the ‘misquoted’ price, sellers are duly asked to provide an objective assessment of their devices. If not, this can lead to getting a price lower than what has been quoted to you. Cashforiphones.com is a recycling company: it does not thrive because its interest is on gaining profit, but in fulfilling its social responsibility. And it is expected that sellers will be honest enough to provide a good evaluation of the gadgets they own. After all, no business flourishes when both company and customers do not reside in integrity.