The Phones You Should Never Buy Used
Most used phone listings are fine. A small fraction are unfixable, and they cluster into recognisable patterns.
These are the six. In every case the correct action is to close the listing, not to negotiate.
1. Activation locked (iPhone)
When an iPhone has Find My enabled, it’s tied to the owner’s Apple account. A factory reset does not clear this. Setting it up requires the previous owner’s password, and nobody else can supply it — not you, not Apple, not a repair shop, not the person selling a “bypass.”
A locked iPhone is a paperweight. It will be rejected at trade-in, because carriers check for exactly this.
Spotting it: listings saying locked to previous owner, iCloud locked, activation locked, for parts, can be unlocked easily, or the common euphemism asking for the password. Any of these means the device cannot be activated.
Verifying it’s clear: the device must be signed out before you take it. In person, the reliable test is to have the seller erase it in front of you — Settings → General → Transfer or Reset → Erase All Content and Settings — then watch it boot to the “Hello” setup screen and get past activation without asking for an Apple account password. If it asks, the transaction is over.
Do not accept “I’ll remove it remotely later.” Sometimes people mean it. It doesn’t matter — once you’ve paid, your leverage is gone.
2. Google FRP locked (Android)
Android’s equivalent is Factory Reset Protection. After a reset the device demands the Google account previously signed in. Same outcome: unusable without the previous owner.
Verifying it’s clear: same procedure. The seller resets in front of you and it boots to setup without demanding a Google account. If a sign-in screen appears referencing an existing account, walk.
Some manufacturers layer their own account lock on top with the same effect. The test is identical — reach the home screen from a fresh reset, in your hands, before paying.
3. Blacklisted IMEI
The device was reported lost or stolen. Participating carriers refuse to activate it, and a trade-in will be rejected.
There’s no legitimate purchase here. Beyond the practical problem, you’d be buying property someone has reported stolen.
Spotting it: the check catches it — see how to check an IMEI before you buy. Sellers sometimes disclose in softened language: bad ESN, blacklisted, works on WiFi, clean for international use. All of these mean blacklisted.
Some listings are honest about it and priced for parts buyers. That’s a legitimate market — it just isn’t yours, because a blacklisted device is worth nothing at trade-in.
4. Still on someone’s payment plan
Carriers sell phones on 24- and 36-month instalments. Until it’s paid off the device isn’t fully the seller’s to hand over, and if payments stop it can be blacklisted afterwards.
This is the sneakiest of the six, because the phone works perfectly on the day you buy it. The problem arrives later — either the trade-in ownership check fails, or the device gets flagged while you’re holding it.
Spotting it: a paid IMEI check often reports finance status or “in use with carrier.” Otherwise ask directly whether it’s fully paid off, and ask to see it — carrier apps show device payment status. A seller who owns it outright can show you in thirty seconds. Evasion is the answer.
5. Won’t power on
For most trade-in promos this is disqualifying, because the near-universal condition floor is that the device powers on and the screen responds.
Some promos accept non-working devices at a lower tier. If you’re buying deliberately against such an offer, fine — read the terms first. Otherwise a dead handset is worth buying only if you’re confident it’s a charging-port or battery fault and prepared to repair it, which is a different hobby with different economics.
The failure mode to avoid: buying a $30 “powers on intermittently” phone against a promo requiring a working device, getting downgraded to near-zero standard trade-in value, and keeping a fully financed new phone. The saving on the handset is trivial next to that downside. Buy comfortably above the floor, not exactly at it.
6. Not the model you think
Two variants, both easy to hit when shopping from an eligible-device list.
Wrong regional variant. Some models ship with different chipsets, band support, or model numbers by region. An import can behave differently on local networks and may not match an eligible list keyed to a specific model number.
Counterfeit. Convincing fakes of popular flagships exist. They boot something that resembles the real operating system and fail on close inspection.
Verifying: check the model number in Settings → About against the one the promo lists — the model number, not the marketing name. On a counterfeit the about screen typically shows implausible specs, the build quality is wrong in the hand, and *#06# may return a malformed IMEI.
The five-minute filter
Before spending real attention on any listing:
| Check | Disqualifying answer |
|---|---|
| IMEI provided on request? | Refuses, or sends a reused photo |
| Blacklist check | Reported lost/stolen |
| Fully paid off? | Still financed, or evasive |
| Resets to setup screen in front of you? | Asks for previous owner’s account |
| Powers on, screen responds? | No (unless the promo accepts it) |
| Model number matches the eligible list? | No |
Six questions. They eliminate essentially every unfixable device, and five of the six can be answered before you leave the house.
The remaining risk is a clean device reported after you buy it — a timing problem rather than an inspection one, handled by buying from established sellers, keeping records, and trading in promptly. The in-person procedure covers running these checks without an awkward standoff in a car park.