bad esn#

I purchased a nokia 6016i on ebay 6 months ago without checking the esn # (i know , dumb move) . i just called Sprint to activate it, and the esn is not valid. is there anything i can do to make the phone work or do i have an expensive paperweight ? thanks

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Do you know why it's invalid? If the phone is branded for a different carrier, then you'll never be able to use it. If it's a Sprint phone, the previous owner probably hasn't paid their bill, and if they ever decide to do so, then you could use the phone. Unfortunately, there is nothing you can do to make it work for you, and if you can't return it, you're stuck with a paperweight.

In the future, you can request the ESN from the ebay seller and check with Sprint before you make the purchase. Sorry that doesn't help with this situation, but don't let it dissuade you from using ebay to buy another phone, you can get a good deal if you shop around, and feedback is of course very important to read.

I may be able to help if you give me the ESN #. Past due balances can be resolved in some instances.

the esn# is ***********
thank you

cellaris, how can they be resolved?

I have a bad ESN as well. Bought the phone from a prepaid company and I can use it on the network by buying their service. I'm guessing there is a small unpaid balance. Can you help out ESN ***********

Bad idea to post ESN's in public places. Bad things can happen! If you need to get an ESN to somebody, use a PM, and even then be careful.

Originally Posted by roberts1953

Bad idea to post ESN's in public places. Bad things can happen! If you need to get an ESN to somebody, use a PM, and even then be careful.

I removed all ESN numbers from this post. Take roberts' advice and protect that ESN number! Ever heard of a cloned phone? If someone knows how to do it, they can steal your service and use your minutes.

Sorry, I should have made it clear in my previous post that I was expecting a pm with your ESN. That's why i never responded, I never received any pms! But, yes, roberts1953 & brad729 are both correct about posting your ESN publicly, cloning is possible but not likely.

To answer your question Renee, we are an authorized retailer for Sprint PCS. We can in some instances get an ESN cleared in order to get a customer to stay with or join Sprint. Sprint PCS has no problem clearing an ESN hold worth $100 if they are getting a new 2 year contract. Also, being the #1 retailer for Sprint in Columbus, Ga we can sometimes get an ESN cleared as a favor. Not often but it doesn't hurt us to try.

I was given a used treo 600 by a friend who upgraded their phone. However, they must have replaced the battery and the ESN number is not there anymore. I know there is a way to get the ESN number on the phone to get it reactivated, but I can't figure it out.

Can anybody shed some light on this for me?

Thanks!

If you can power on the phone, you can get the esn from the phone by pressing ##786#. Not sure how this works on treos but it works on other phones on sprint even the ppc-6700.

i just received i sprint treo 650 but it has a bad esn number.... i aready have a sprint phone i just want the service to be swiched to the treo.. will i have to get the esn cleared to do it... will sprint even clear it...?

Originally Posted by meazy baby

i just received i sprint treo 650 but it has a bad esn number.... i aready have a sprint phone i just want the service to be swiched to the treo.. will i have to get the esn cleared to do it... will sprint even clear it...?

Hi there, welcome to the forums! When I saw the title of your thread, I remembered seeing an older thread with the same title, and they are basically the same question so I merged them together. I think the discussion in this thread will answer your question, it's unlikely they will activate that phone for you but if you can get the right CS rep to feel sympathetic for you, they might be able to do something. I'm not making any promises, the majority of people with a bad ESN are outta luck.

I had the same problem with my Treo 650. Also an Ebay purchase. The seller no longer is active with Ebay. After giving my CSR the esn # she told me to wait a little while before using the phone. I waited, waited, & waited. I finally called them back & was informed the ESN# was no good! Why wasn't I informed the 1st time? So I was advised to go to a Sprint store and speak to a manager. Have the manager contact the supposed owner and ask if they were still interested in the phone. Well that took almost a week & a half. He was never there or too busy or he couldn't contact the supposed owner. When he finally claimed to have contacted the person...according to him(manager), the person said he didn't even know his phone was missing! I decided to press the voicemail key and got a number that I decided to call on my own. There was a voicemail with the person's name which was the same name on the screen at the Sprint office BUT he stated "you have reached the Sprint office"! Now I'm thinking scam. I was once told of bad esn# phones being sold then the phone being returned to the previous owners once confiscated and they can sell again & collect monies on the same phone again. Or the insurance scam when a person wants an upgrade & reports their phone stolen. What can I do?

I'm afraid there's not much I can tell you, unless you can sweet-talk a rep into clearing the ESN, which is highly unlikely but not impossible. It's hard to say the seller was the scammer, I'm not sure I understand what you mean by the recording on the voicemail, it was kind of confusing. But if the phone was reported lost or stolen, they still let you walk out the store with it? Weird.