If cash converters sell me stolen goods, who is liable?

Hypothetical question, but I’m considering spending a large sum on something there (not a bike).

They do at least pretend to check it’s not stolen.

If the worst was true and it was stolen, presumably I’d have to return the item to the genuine owner.

But would I also succeed in claiming a refund from cash converters?

No.

😯

Interesting. Can you elaborate? Would I have a case against them? Do you know of anyone this happened to?

Why not? The contract between the buyer and cash converters is on the basis that cc has legal title to the goods.

Buy it with a credit card, that would give you section 75 protection if over £100
The card company would pay you back and they’d take the money back from CC

There’s a Cash Coverters in my local shopping centre.. its not somewhere I even look in the window,let alone consider purchasing from. Anyway, surely someone signs something somewhere at sometime or they would just be a fence. Or maybe they are?
(no not one of those fences, the sort that used to be in the Sweeney an that)

You could have a go at suing them for a breach of contract, but I don’t think you’d automatically get a refund or money back.
The Police would, of course, be interested.

I would stay well away from Cash convrrtrrs just my professional opinion.

You’d loose the goods, but would have a claim against cash converters. You’d almost certainly win if it went to court. They’d have to try and get their money back from whoever sold them the goods.

What are you trying to fence?? More details might help

It’s a synth, sold by a branch of cash converters over ebay.

you would think given the scuzziness and attitude of a cash convertors store they would at least be cheap, especially on specialist stuff they’re not going to sell to chavs like camera lenses – but somehow they fail at that too.

A stolen bike showed up at CC in Bristol, to my immense surprise they had full details of the person who supplied it and bloke got his bike back. I was surprised.

Alternatively, go into the branch and buy the item with cash. There will then be no trace back to you for someone to reclaim. Harsh on the victim if it does turn out to be stolen but covers your back.

Well if it did turn out to be stolen I would want the owner to get it back!

Thanks for the advice, all.

Sounds like implied in the contract of sale is that cash converters had title (I think that’s the right word) to sell the goods. So if they didn’t I could go after them. Of course CC is a franchise so an individual store might go bust, but it sounds like paying by credit card is a very sound idea for the extra protection. It also gives me another port of call were CC to flake out on their warranty.

I too have some reservations about buying from CC due to their general scuzziness as one of you put it but as they have policies in place about checking seller ID, etc, then thinking about it rationally the chances of the goods being stolen are probably less than on ebay or gumtree.

Second hand shops do not have a duty to check whether an item they purchase is stolen or not. All they are obligated to do is ask for identification of the person bringing the item into the shop. That is not to say that they wouldnt report an item that they suspect to be stolen – but to be honest it would be very hard to prove that they bought the goods knowing or believing them to be stolen.

All second hand shops have an obligation to allow the Police to inspect their records without prior notice. (something that is done regularly where I work)

Dunno about that sideshow – how many kids or junkies are going to go to the effort of waiting x days to get paid thru eBay and PayPal to their bank and waiting x days instead of getting paid now in cash at cash converters?

Cash converters used to be brilliant for old computer games and consoles, once the new ones had been out a few years. Other than that, where you can see it makes sense to chuck them out, it is hard to know what is niced in them. I have heard them called ‘stash converters’ in dodgy areas though, they don’t have a good reputation for sure.

I would stay well away from Cash convrrtrrs just my professional opinion.

In your professional capacity (plod?) I hope you don’t *really* stay away from Cash Converters 😐

Oh I found some more info that’s relevant. Section 75 doesn’t necessarily apply to credit card transactions via paypal. Insert shocked eyed smiley here.

Nothing to worry about at all. Why do you think it is stolen anyway? Cash Converters would refund you if it was just keep the receipt

Oh I found some more info that’s relevant. Section 75 doesn’t necessarily apply to credit card transactions via paypal. Insert shocked eyed smiley here.

No because you’ve paid Paypal and they have your money, the credit card company has had no dealings with the retailer so can’t exactly claw the money back from them.
If Paypal nicked the money, the card company would have them, makes sense really.

not everyone who leaves stuff at CC is a no good thief. some people can fall on hard times and are forced to sell something that perhaps they treasured but no longer can afford to keep.

so rather than looking for the negatives perhaps a positive is that this may have been some ones pride and joy which they ve reluctantly had to part with..

It’s a lot easier to sell stolen stuff on ebay than it is to cash converters where they require ful ID plus photo

@totalshell alas I consider that another negative! In my happyworld it’s a neglected toy that someone got bored of 🙂

Update on section 75 – it’s a grey area. The consumer’s association think it might apply actually if you pay a retailer directly. http://www.which.co.uk/news/2011/06/are-your-paypal-purchases-protected-256720/

Paypal have said “I can confirm that using PayPal as a payment processor will not affect your rights with regards to section 75 of the consumer credit act 1974.”

Anyway, hopefully this is all just paranoia. Excited to be getting a new toy.