Sorry but that's not 'Every' case, I bought a G&L from a CC in London received the bass and did a Serial number search, That brought up a rehearsal room theft in London with the said bass being stolen.
I returned the bass with the evidence and fair enough I got a refund, I wrote a note saying 'Do the right thing', About a week later the bass appeared in the same CC again, I informed the guy who called down to the store with A PC and claimed his bass. He was very thankful for the tip off.
Probably not all CC are the same but human nature is a funny thing when It comes to money.