Totally confused . Verizon Iphone 4s

[summerpolice]

I bought a Verizon iphone 4s from craigslist .I got it at great price .its brand new and i was given the receipt with the price and store location etc .My intention was to use the phone in Verizon without a contract.

Issues  : The phone had the number activated and the original owner didnt port it to another phone .I went to verizon to check the Imed number , they say the number is not in the system  . The phone number seems to verizon , the recipt says verison , 611 takes me to verizon ..but the Imei number is not in system .

One of the representative told me orginal owner might have ported it to Straight talk . I couldnt locate to which network this phone belongs to .

Not sure whether i was scammed . . How does a verizon phone not be in verizon system.How can i use this phone as my own..Should i need to contact anyone in this regard. Which network the number belongs to

[poidude]

Are you trying to replace another phone that you already have on a Verizon plan with this one? Or, are you trying to add a new line (this phone) to an existing Verizon plan? Or, are you trying to establish a new account and phone number with Verizon using this phone?

[summerpolice]

Initially thought to unlock the sim for tmobile.but have decided to go with a new no contract connection with verizon

[poidude]

OK, so it sounds like you need to setup a new account. I believe the only way to do that is to call customer service or go into a store. I don't think you can activate a customer provided phone online (MyVerizon) without an existing account.

They should be able to activate that phone for you once they create an account for you. The IMEI not being in their system probably means that number is no longer active (even if the phone shows one). If you try calling the phone number from another line or call out from the phone (other than to *611 or 911) I'd bet it doesn't work (which is a good thing). Just contact Verizon and tell them you want to activate a Customer Provided Equipment (CPE).

[summerpolice]

But i can make call from  this phone ..I am even able to call this number ..i think its a bad..

[summerpolice]

Got one good information ..i called customer care and they were searching with Imei number instead of imed number ..The phone is with verizon and shows its active not reported stolen.

what should i do to change the phone to  my new number ? What happens to old phone number ? Will it get deactivated or will the original owner transfer it to another phone

[poidude]

Giving the previous owner the benefit of the doubt, can you contact him/her and ask that they (has to be the account owner which you are not) call the wireless provider to cancel the account?

The other possibility is that this person knowingly did not cancel the account, likely in order to avoid Early Termination Fees. But, this means the previous account is likely going unpaid and will eventually be cut off. The phone will likely then be blacklisted so that it cannot be activated unless the original owner pays off the account (plus any fees).

I'm not sure what your options are at this point. Try calling Verizon (or go into a store) and explain that you bought the phone used and would like to activate it with them but it is still active/working. See what they say your options are. Sorry about that.