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Selling & reselling · Budget: £500 to £1,000 · Minimum age: 13+

Phone and electronics refurbishing

Phone refurbishing means checking, cleaning and repairing used phones, tablets or watches before reselling them. Start small, test every device carefully and treat trade-in services as examples of how the market works, not as evidence of likely profit.

In plain words

• Buy one used phone that you can check.
• Check it works before you spend money repairing it.
• Remove the owner’s accounts and erase their personal data.
• Describe faults honestly, then sell the phone.
• Keep receipts, repair notes, and sale records.

Who it suits

Careful beginners who enjoy troubleshooting and can keep clear records. Younger learners should work with a parent or guardian and check the rules of any service they use.

People pay for used phones that work and cost less than new ones. Careful checks, honest descriptions and reliable records can help buyers feel confident.

Step by step

1. Choose a few phone models to learn first. Pick a narrow range and learn its common faults before buying stock. Look at models you can test and describe confidently; you can consider tablets or watches later, as these are also refurbished and resold by GRADE MOBILE. GRADE MOBILE About 1–2 hours to choose; ongoing learning.
2. Set a spending limit and buy one device. Decide the most you can afford to have tied up in a phone. Keep money aside for parts, postage and possible refunds, and do not start with an unchecked batch. About 30 minutes.
3. Check ownership and locks before you buy. Ask the seller to confirm they own the phone and that it is not locked to an account or network. Account locks can prevent processing, and Sell Your Tech says it does not accept network-locked devices. GRADE MOBILE Sell Your Tech About 10–20 minutes per device.
4. Inspect the phone and record its condition. Where possible, inspect it in person before paying. Check the screen, buttons, cameras, charging, speakers, connections and battery; note damage and decide whether a repair seems practical. About 20–40 minutes per device.
5. Estimate resale value after checking all costs. Compare similar phones in similar condition before deciding what yours might sell for. Subtract parts, postage and payment costs, and allow for the possibility of a worse fault; a trade-in quote is not the same as your resale price. About 20–30 minutes.
6. Remove the SIM, accounts and personal data. If you accept the phone, remove its SIM card and erase its data. Make sure the owner’s Apple or Google account and passcode lock have been removed before sending or reselling it. GRADE MOBILE About 15–30 minutes.
7. Clean, repair and test the phone again. Clean and repair only what you can do safely and competently, then repeat your checks. Write an honest description and disclose faults rather than calling the phone fully working when it is not. About 1–3 hours, plus any parts delay.
8. Photograph the phone and keep its records together. Take clear photos of the phone, including any marks or damage. Keep those photos with purchase details, repair notes and the sale record, and choose a payment and delivery method you can track. About 20–40 minutes.
9. Pack the phone securely and keep proof. After a sale, pack the device securely and keep proof of postage and payment. If using a trade-in service, check its inspected offer before accepting; the amount may change if the device differs from your description. Sell Your Tech About 20–40 minutes.

Your first 15 minutes

Choose one phone model, find a working example to inspect, and write a checklist of the faults and functions you will test before buying any stock.

The money

Compare prices for similar phones in similar condition, then subtract the device cost, parts, postage and payment costs. Leave room for faults, returns and unsold stock; do not treat a trade-in quote as your resale price.

Example only: Sell one phone for £120 or €140. If the phone and repair parts cost £85 or €100, and postage and fees cost £10 or €12, the amount left is £25 or €28 before tax and before paying yourself for your time.

The rules

No specific phone-refurbishing licence is identified here. Watch for hidden faults, device locks, personal data left on a phone and buyers lowering their offer after inspection. If you sell online as a business, follow the relevant consumer rules. Erase previous-owner data and remove accounts before resale. GRADE MOBILE Sell Your Tech

UK and Northern Ireland

• Tax and records. The first £1,000 a year of trading income is covered by the trading allowance. This is gross income before expenses. If your trading income is above that, tell HMRC. Check whether you need to complete a Self Assessment tax return. If you do, register by 5 October after the relevant tax year. GOV.UK Tax Help for Hustles GOV.UK
• VAT and platform reports. You must register for VAT if your taxable turnover is over £90,000. Since 1 January 2024, platforms report sellers who meet the stated thresholds: 30 or more items, or about £1,700 a year. Selling your own unwanted items is not taxed under this rule. A platform report does not by itself mean you owe tax. Business.gov.uk GOV.UK
• Online consumer sales. If you sell goods online as a business to a consumer, the usual cancellation period is 14 days from when the consumer receives the goods. There are exceptions, including regulation 31. Give the consumer the required information before the contract. If cancellation rights apply, make the cancellation form available before the contract. The consumer must return the goods within 14 days of cancelling. Refund the consumer within 14 days of receiving the goods or proof of return. The refund must include standard outbound delivery, but not the extra cost of a more expensive delivery option. Tell consumers before purchase if they must pay return costs. Unless you agree another delivery time, deliver without undue delay and within 30 days. legislation.gov.uk UK Government guidance
• Data and advertising. Erase previous-owner data and remove accounts before resale. If you process personal data for your business, use the ICO self-assessment tool to check whether you need to pay a data protection fee. Label commercial or affiliate posts as ads where relevant. GRADE MOBILE ICO ASA
• Age and local checks. There's no single minimum age for starting this activity. Check the selling platform’s age rules. In Northern Ireland, 16- and 17-year-olds usually must not work more than 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week. They must not work between 10pm and 6am. nidirect

Ireland

• Income tax. If you're a PAYE worker, use self-assessment Form 11 if your taxable non-PAYE income is over €5,000 or your gross non-PAYE income is over €30,000. Below those limits, declare it on Form 12 through myAccount. Check your position with Revenue or a tax adviser. Revenue
• VAT and platform reports. The VAT registration thresholds are €42,500 for services and €85,000 for goods. Under DAC7, platforms report sellers of goods unless they have both fewer than 30 transactions and under €2,000. A platform report does not by itself mean you owe tax. Revenue Revenue
• Online consumer sales. If you sell goods online as a business, consumers generally have 14 days from receiving the goods to tell you they want to cancel. There are exceptions. They then have a further 14 days to return the goods. Tell consumers about their cancellation right and the timescales. Provide a cancellation form and explain how to use it. Refund them within 14 days of being told about the cancellation, subject to receiving the returned goods. Use the same payment method unless they agree otherwise. Before purchase, give consumers your name, physical address, phone number and email address, product details, total price and extra charges, and cancellation information. Make clear when payment is due. Make sure consumers actively choose any extra products or services. Send an order confirmation in a durable format, such as email. Consumers pay applicable return costs. These consumer rights apply to business sales, not purchases from private individuals. CCPC CCPC
• Business name and advertising. If you trade under a name other than your own, register the business name with the CRO. Label commercial influencer content as advertising where relevant. If you're unsure what applies to your setup, check with the CRO or CCPC. CRO CCPC
• Age and local checks. There's no single minimum age for starting this activity. Check the selling platform’s age rules. For 14- and 15-year-olds, light work is allowed in school holidays only, up to 7 hours a day and 35 hours a week. 15-year-olds may work up to 8 hours a week during term. Citizens Information

Checked against official sources: 22 October 2026. Not yet reviewed by a qualified tax or legal adviser. General guidance, not legal advice. Check the official link beside each point before you start.

Common mistakes

• Buying a batch of phones before learning their common faults.
• Paying before checking ownership, account locks and network locks.
• Assuming a trade-in quote is the price you can resell for.
• Forgetting parts, postage, fees, refunds or unsold stock when setting a price.
• Leaving old accounts or personal data on a phone, or hiding faults in the listing.

AI-made demonstration: this module has a 20-second street-chat video in the interactive guide. The presenter and the people in it are computer-generated, not real people.

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