I guess it's true that people are mainly driven to write reviews when they have a bad experience, because my experience at Capitol Loans has done just that.
So, this was the first time I have ever pawned something, but I was in a tight spot and needed cash quick. I brought in my 64gb iPad 2 3G, PS3 w/ move and controllers, Xbox kinetic and Jawbone Jambox. Calling the shop beforehand informed me that the most I would get for my iPad was $250 tops. I was okay with that, and came prepared with more goods to pawn to hit the number I needed.
When the guy started pricing everything out, he was only able to give me another $200 for everything else, and that was with ""special bulk pricing"" and an additional $20 that he threw on at the end. I was cool with it cause i got the money i needed, but It seemed like a major lowball considering going prices on eBay and Craigslist.
Next comes me paying off the loan and picking up my gear. First, it took the guy about five minutes to find it. Lost? Misplaced? I brought my stuff in loose, and they had put it in a box, which was nice. I started pulling everything out, and the first thing I noticed was one of the rubber feet missing on my PS3. I pointed it out and they grabbed a foot off of someone elses Playstation... Mine was fixed, so I didn't think about it.
Here's my big problem. I had packed my iPad in its original box that had no marks or dents when I brought it to Capitol Loans, and the first thing I noticed was one of the corners of the box was crushed, and there were marks and scratches all over the box. Thought it was weird, and took the top off the box. My iPad was on and open to the home screen. Again, didn't think anything of it, but the last thing I did when I handed it over was turn it off by holding the top button down, then sliding the power down slider. I started to look it over, and thought I saw a scratch on the screen. I held it up at an angle to see it better, and the thing was covered in fingerprints and smudges. Not damage, but the iPad was completely wiped down with microfiber right before it went in the box. Again, ignored it, and wiped it down. This showed the scratches.
My iPad had no scratches on it when I brought it in. I brought this up to the guy that had been helping me, and he just kinda looked at me and shrugged, said they didn't do it or something like that. Immediately a man with a shaved head, I'm assuming the owner or manager, hopped over and said something along the lines of, ' we don't touch your stuff after its brought in. We put it in a box, it goes on a shelf until you pick it up. There is no way we did this.' without missing a beat, he gets on the computer and says he's blocking me from the system since their service wasn't satisfactory... In other words,' you have a complaint, and instead of figuring it out, I'm going to bar you from doing business with us.'
Are you kidding me? How was my iPad on and open in the box? Why was it covered in fingerprints? Why is the box damaged? He went on to say if I could prove it wasn't scratched when I brought it in, if I could prove that someone used it since I brought it in, if I could prove blah blah blah...
Telling someone to 'prove it' is a guilty statement to me.
He was even laughing at the fact that I was so upset... BS.
So, I left furious for both having my iPad damaged and used, and even more so because of how I was treated.
Capitol Loans was easy to work with when I got my loan setup, hence the one star, but please document the condition of everything you bring in, because if something happens against you, don't expect any help from these guys.
By the way, I still have an Xbox there, so I will write a follow-up review based on how that interaction goes.
more