For a PSA-graded Pokémon slab, PSA may request a police report or carrier claim when the owner or carrier reports it lost or stolen. The report is not automatically required in every suspected theft or fraud case. A slab is a graded card sealed in a protective holder with a certification label. PSA's terms make the request discretionary and allow certification deactivation for suspected counterfeit, tampered, cleaned, altered, or doctored items.
Table of Contents
- What triggers the possible request?
- Is the problem theft, non-delivery, or a counterfeit slab?
- What should you preserve?
- What can PSA's certification process actually do?
What triggers the possible request?
The relevant PSA policy concerns a reported loss or theft and the possible deactivation of the slab's online certification number. PSA may ask the owner or shipping carrier for a police report or carrier claim before taking that step. That distinction matters.
A report may support the account of what happened, but PSA's published terms do not say that filing one guarantees deactivation, recovery, reimbursement, or an investigation. The policy also does not establish a universal rule for every grading company, marketplace, insurer, or police agency. If the slab was graded elsewhere, check that company's reporting process instead of assuming PSA's terms apply.
Is the problem theft, non-delivery, or a counterfeit slab?
Identify the problem before contacting PSA or reporting the transaction. Different evidence supports different situations: PSA defines doctoring broadly.
Examples include trimming, recoloring, bleaching, cleaning, waxing, re-backing, and restoration intended to improve a card's appearance, condition, or content. A valid-looking certification number does not settle an authenticity dispute. PSA warns that counterfeit grading inserts can reuse genuine certification numbers obtained from public sources, so a matching lookup is evidence to examine—not proof that the physical holder is genuine.
- A slab disappeared after shipment or was taken from its owner: document the loss or theft.
- A seller accepted payment but never delivered the slab: preserve the listing, payment record, messages, and shipping promise.
- The holder or label appears counterfeit: photograph the physical slab and record where it came from.
- The card or holder appears altered or tampered with: preserve it unchanged and document the specific warning signs.
What should you preserve?
Build a clear record before details disappear. Keep the original files rather than relying only on cropped screenshots or rewritten summaries.
Describe only what you can support. Separate observed facts—such as a broken seal or missing package—from conclusions such as "counterfeit" or "stolen." That makes the record more useful to PSA, the carrier, the payment provider, and authorities.
- Photograph the front, back, edges, seals, label, and certification number.
- Save the complete sales listing, price, seller identity, messages, receipt, and payment statement.
- Retain tracking records, delivery scans, carrier correspondence, and packaging.
- Write a dated timeline covering the purchase, shipment, delivery problem, discovery, and contacts made.
- Record any duplicate listing, conflicting card image, altered label, or unexplained certification mismatch.
What can PSA's certification process actually do?
Certification deactivation can warn people that PSA no longer treats a number as active. It does not recover the slab, reverse a payment, identify a seller, or establish criminal responsibility. Do not assume PSA's guarantee is theft insurance.
PSA's guarantee terms exclude lost, stolen, damaged, tampered, and fraudulent-holder items; the guarantee addresses authenticity and, for cards, the assigned grade. If an online order never arrived, act on the payment dispute separately. The Federal Trade Commission advises U.S. buyers to retain receipts, listings, communications, shipping promises, and payment statements, promptly dispute the charge with the card issuer, and report suspected scams to the FTC.
