Stolen Goods

[iansterling]

I have been storing a large quantity of fishing tackle in a friends garage while i moved house. I went to get it back today & it is gone. My friends ex said he has sold it all. I am having trouble contacting him, what is my next move ?

[dannyk13]

Not much of a friend.Contact the police.

[aelmpvw]

his ex says he sold it, he'll probably say it disappeared from his garage

[Georgiesmum]

I was going to say ask him how much he sold it for and tell him you want cash from him., but if he has done a runner I dont know what else you can do other than contact the police.

[Barmaid]

Firstly I would report it to the police
Secondly do you have insurance?
Thirdly how do you know the ex has sold it?
Subject to what the police say you may have to consider taking proceedings in Court, which will probably be Small Claims.

[Peter Pedant]

thx BM
the lady has spoken Ian

very common it boils down to a) you have lost your fidhing stuff and b) you have lost a friend

the police wont be that interested but try anyway
and he would say - well it was there when I left..... but try anyway when you find him

[EDDIE51]

You have no proof it was stolen or who stole it or sold it if it was sold.
The police will not be interested and will not give you a crime number. Insurance will not pay out unless you can prove it was stolen and probably not even then. Unless you can get hold of the 'friend' I don't see there is anything you can do.
There was a very similar situation at a pub I was working in. A chef left but asked to store a lot of property in the pub garage until he could collect it. The pub owner agreed , but when he came to pick it up it was missing. In the end we were able to find that the bin men had taken it , there was a large pile of junk in the same garage and they were asked to take it . They took the junk and the chef's stuff as well. Insurance refused to pay out as they said it was not a theft or accidental loss.

[ummmm]

Eddie - so you're advising that Ian takes your advice and ignore that of Barmaid, the qualified barrister?

[Barmaid]

Eddie, I disagree.

I think the police should be informed - they may or may not take action. The goods belonged to IanSterling. They were stored with permission and they are not now there. Of course the ex may have a plausible reason to have sold them, that remains to be see. We cannot prejudge this because ultimately it IS theft.

[EDDIE51]

^ There is no proof it was theft. The friend may still have them but did not want to leave them with the ex. The ex may have given them away or put them in the rubbish tip but does not want to admit it. If it can be proved the items have been stolen then that is the time to report it to the police. I am certain that as it stands there is no point in reporting it to the police.

[EcclesCake]

Eddie has spoken, ever the font of all knowledge.

[Barmaid]

Eddie, in order to inform the police, the complainant does not have to prove anything. Obtaining proof is the job of the police.

Fact is the OP owned fishing gear which was stored by permission at a friend's premises and that gear is no longer there. The ex did not have permission to take or sell the goods. Whilst I absolutely accept the police may say "it is a civil matter", there is no reason whatsoever why the friend may not make a complaint.

[mccfluff]

hmmmmmm the advice from a barrister or someone who works in a kitchen (nothing wrong with that just not really an area that requires the study of laws)
Think if I was Iansterling, would be looking at barmaids answers and ignoring the rest

[ummmm]

Eddie - the police will give a crime number regardless. They don't know what type of insurance is held and most insurance companies will ask for a crime number.

[Islay]

If a car is broken into on the mainland then the police do not come out - they just issue a crime number and let you get on with it!
As far as the question is concerned - the one qualified person on here has advised you to contact the police I suggest you do so.