Buying a used cell phone should be an easy task; find the model you want, go to eBay or any other reseller, buy one and save a few bucks.  Unfortunately, buying a used cell phone isn't as easy as buying a lot of other items, like books or shoes.  As you will see, with cell phones there can be a lot of strings attached.  But doing just a little leg work, you can make buying a used phone worth while.

 

The pitfalls with buying a used cell phone.  There are many legitimate reasons why someone may want to sell you a cell phone, but you can be scammed if the are trying to sell it for one of these reasons:

 

1.  The cell phone owner ran up a huge bill.  In this case, the phone owner runs up a huge bill, then fraudulently sell the phone to whoever they can.  Unfortunately, that phone will always be tied to the dead-beats phone account and phone bill, no matter who owns the phone.  The phone company will transfer the phone to the new owner only after all phone bills and penalties are paid in full, usually costing more than the phone is worth.  There are many cases that someone purchases a used cell phone only to throw it away.

 

2.  The person who is selling you the phone either found it or stole it.  If a phone owner loses their phone, they usually call their cell provider to disable it.  Sometimes one of these phones will end up in an auction, and will be sold but cannot be activated by anyone other than the rightful owner.  If you buy such a phone, the phone company simply treats it as stolen, and will not help you.

 

3.  The phone has not been on the phone network for several years.  If a phone has been deactivated several years ago and has never been put back on the network, it is possible that it has been permanently removed from the network.  At this point, all you can do is throw your phone away.

 

The correct way to buy a used cell phone. 

 

1.  When checking out an auction for a used cell phone, find out the electronic serial number (ESN or EIN, depending on the model) to the phone being sold.  Good, knowledgeable sellers have learned to place this information right into the auctions listing, but not always.  If it is not listed, contact the owner of the auction directly and get this information.  If the auction owner does not want to comply, give up on that particular auction and look elsewhere.

 

2.  After you get the ESN or EIN, call the phone company that would provide the service.  If it is a Sprint phone, call Sprint; if Verizon is the provider, call them.  Give them the ESN or EIN, and tell them you found this phone in an auction, and you would like some information about it.  Ask them:

 

     A.  Is the phone showing up in a lost or stolen status?

 

     B.  Is the phone currently attached to a phone account with an unpaid bill?

 

     C.  Has the phone recently been active on the network?

 

Naturally, like any other auction, the sellers rating should also be considered before purchasing a phone.  Once you are satisfied with the sellers rating, and once you're satisfied with the answers you've received from the cell provider, you are now ready to make a bid. 

 

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