dh didn't get insurance on his phone, I know, i know, ok so the first phone he got wet and it was toast, bought a new one, dropped it, he is looking into buying a used cell phone that some one is posting on craigslist, not sure why they are poting it.
Same type of phone that he dropped. i called the cell phone store and the clerk said as long as the previous owner closes the account that that should be fine, just trade out the sim card and call customer service to switch over the number.
I tend to be skeptical and don't want Dh to get screwed, does anyone have any experience with this, is there anythign to look out for?
I have sold an iphone on Craigslist. Never heard from the buyer again, so I can only assume there were no issues.
A lot of the smart phones work off of the sim card, doesn't matter who or what happened before, so a new sim card should fix you right up.
I kept my last smartphone for four years. That means, had I chose to I could have got a new one for nearly nothing two years into that. So if you pay 75 dollars for a 400 dollar phone and sell it on craiglist for say 200.... That is apparently a lot of the phones on craigslist.
You just have to look out for people that have multiple phones but when my son needed to replace his phone that is what our carrier recommended and why.
I sold a phone (only a couple of months new) when I got divorced and switched providers. Your best bet is to go to a store of the provider of the seller and you can always ask them to make sure it is in working order. Plus, buying off of craigslist, you want to meet in a safe public place anyhow.
Ebay, ebay, ebay! I will never buy a used phone from a store again. I bought one off ebay that said it didnt have a scratch on it, personally I dont think it was ever used, the seller had great reputation and I could have returned if I wanted to within 14 days.
Paid $50 for it, phone store wanted $80 for used in used condition.
I showed them. :)
I bought a "previously owned" one for hardly any money from Verizon and it arrived in new condition ( we have basic phones though). That might be another path to take, check your provider.
If it's a phone that uses a sim card ... then there is no need to close out any account since switching out the sim card changes the user on the phone.
I bought my son a phone off of e-bay. all I had to do was get a sim card with his phone number on it activated and put it in the phone. Voila no biggie. He did get some ring tones and photos that were pretty cool though ... since the previous owner didn't delete them :)
To be honest, depending on your provider, your insurance deductible may have been more than you originally paid for the phone.I work for AT&T, it's not uncommon for people to sell there old phones once they get s new one. I suggest you look to see if he has sold anything before and if there were positive reviews.If its an iPhone and you want to get it unlocked .. It won't happen unless he unlocks it first prior to you purchasing it. Ive dealt with a lot of upset people who purchased an iPhone off eBay thinking they could unlock it but there are strict policies. Also there is also a block list now with most providers, if the device comes up stolen it will not be able to be activated either. I hope this helps. There are both success stories and horror stories from purchasing from eBay. Just be careful and get as much info about the phone as possible .. Make sure there is no physical or liquid damage and that he can provide proof of purchase and you should be fine. Good luck!
