Obtaining a receipt from BH in New York?

I purchased my 50D from Craigslist from who appears to be a photographer. He told me that he bought the camera from BH Photo in New York in November. He promised to deliver to me a receipt, but has been delaying that for a couple of weeks now.

If I call BH with the serial number, would they be able to help me with the receipt? I signed a notorized bill of sale with the person who purchased it.

Reign wrote in post #7313081
I purchased my 50D from Craigslist from who appears to be a photographer. He told me that he bought the camera from BH Photo in New York in November. He promised to deliver to me a receipt, but has been delaying that for a couple of weeks now.

If I call BH with the serial number, would they be able to help me with the receipt? I signed a notorized bill of sale with the person who purchased it.

Unlikely. I don't know that they'd even reissue a receipt directly to the original purchaser, let alone second hand. I don't know of any other retailer who'd do it, either.

If the original purchaser did indeed buy it from B&H there is a record of his transaction online...provided he bought it online....all he has to do is go to his B&H control panel on their website, log in and select previous transactions. All the info is right there...not sure what you need his bill of sale for....it does you no good...Canon doesn't allow warranty transfers.

ibdb wrote in post #7314925
I don't know that they'd even reissue a receipt directly to the original purchaser, let alone second hand. I don't know of any other retailer who'd do it, either.

I am not sure that one can call to gather information about a receipt about someone elses purchase.

However, I do know you can call BH and have a copy of the receipt of your own purchase emailed to you - I've done this a couple of times.

SoaringUSAEagle wrote in post #7317187
I am not sure that one can call to gather information about a receipt about someone elses purchase.

However, I do know you can call BH and have a copy of the receipt of your own purchase emailed to you - I've done this a couple of times.

Thanks. I'll inquire about that email... he recently emailed me saying they're mailing him a copy of it.

Woolburr wrote in post #7315487
If the original purchaser did indeed buy it from B&H there is a record of his transaction online...provided he bought it online....all he has to do is go to his B&H control panel on their website, log in and select previous transactions. All the info is right there...not sure what you need his bill of sale for....it does you no good...Canon doesn't allow warranty transfers.

He purchased from the store in person. The bill of sale was to help provide me peace of mind that he wasn't selling a stolen camera. I have a notarized document that shows that I'm a bonafide purchaser of a camera from an individual... I didn't want him to turn around and claim that the camera was stolen from him. My apartment was broken into and I lost a 40D, so I'm a little sensitive about it.

I'm willing to be wrong, but I think if you called B&H and explained, they might give it to you if the original purchaser also contacted them and gave approval.

i'm just not sure if i believe the original owner... i'm giving it another week... then i'll call myself to see if he indeed purchased the camera there... i can show them the bill of sale that he sold it to me... i just want to know where the camera came from... this isn't about the warranty issue... i just don't want to be owning a stolen camera.

in any case, having a bill of sale protects me... there's a legal common law principal that if i knowingly bought a stolen camera from someone, the person who it was stolen from can take the camera from me... the theory of bonafide purchasers is that if i document the sale, then the original owner has a claim against the thief and would not get the camera from me... i'm held as an innocent party to the transaction because i did what i reasonably could to confirm that it was a legitimate sale.

Contact your local police department. They can do a check for you. You will have far better luck with that than you are going to have with a store giving you someone else's receipt.

Woolburr wrote in post #7319253
Contact your local police department. They can do a check for you. You will have far better luck with that than you are going to have with a store giving you someone else's receipt.

If everyone called the police after they purchased an item from Craigslist, they would have nothing else to do than looking into all those sales

You obviously protected yourself already with the signed letter and you should be fine, even if he doesn;t deliver the receipt.

Reign wrote in post #7319222
i'm just not sure if i believe the original owner... i'm giving it another week... then i'll call myself to see if he indeed purchased the camera there... i can show them the bill of sale that he sold it to me... i just want to know where the camera came from... this isn't about the warranty issue... i just don't want to be owning a stolen camera.

in any case, having a bill of sale protects me... there's a legal common law principal that if i knowingly bought a stolen camera from someone, the person who it was stolen from can take the camera from me... the theory of bonafide purchasers is that if i document the sale, then the original owner has a claim against the thief and would not get the camera from me... i'm held as an innocent party to the transaction because i did what i reasonably could to confirm that it was a legitimate sale.

So, why did you take posession if you were worried about the trail of ownership?

S.Horton wrote in post #7319394
So, why did you take posession if you were worried about the trail of ownership?

I don't think the used merchandise market is entirely predicated on a buyer's general confidence in a seller. Price, value, demand, scarcity, etc. all play a part in a decision to buy used. Like Reign said, he just wants some peace of mind and I don't blame him for it, Craiglist is, generally speaking, a shady place to purchase stuff. Sometimes the allure of an incredible deal on a forum like Craigslist is enough to compel even the most reserved of buyers.

$850 for a 3 month old 50D was pretty attractive... and the guy selling it seemed to be a fellow photog who can be found with "some" activity on photography forums dating back to '04.

*Woolburr - You have far more confidence in the police department than I do. The police relies on people reporting the serial numbers on stolen goods. I've already registered my stolen 40D onto Trace.com and I've searched for the 50D serial number. The police would basically just use that database, since they do not have another. I have friends who are police officers and there's no way they can really trace stolen merchandise otherwise.

I'm protected from my purchase with the notarized bill of sale. It's a reasonable measure and puts the sale into documentation.

ibdb wrote in post #7314925
Unlikely. I don't know that they'd even reissue a receipt directly to the original purchaser, let alone second hand. I don't know of any other retailer who'd do it, either.

B+H will email you a receipt copy "real time" if you are the original purchaser. I have done this a couple of times with them for rebate purposes to get a new receipt.

I do not know if they would do the same if you are not the original purchaser.