Vodafone UK Encourage More Recycling of Old Mobiles and Routers

Mobile operator and broadband ISP Vodafone UK has today unveiled new changes that aim to encourage customers to repair, trade-in and recycle their old mobiles. In addition, the operator’s programme of refurbishing and reusing fixed line routers and TV boxes in Germany, Portugal and Spain will be “expanded to further markets.”

At present Vodafone already runs a trade-in scheme for old mobiles in the UK via their MyVodafone app (here), although such schemes have tended to suffer from limited device support. Some rival operator’s, such as O2 (VMO2), have been doing something similar for a while.

Nevertheless, the operator recognises that keeping a phone handset for an extra year can reduce its lifetime CO2e impact by up to 29%, while purchasing a refurbished smartphone saves around 50 Kg CO2e (20% or less than the equivalent newly manufactured device) and removes the need to extract 164Kg of raw materials.

“More than 50,000 tonnes of CO2e could potentially be avoided for every million smartphones Vodafone receives via trade-in that are subsequently refurbished and resold,” said the operator. In response, Vodafone intends to start offering a “comprehensive” suite of services, including “insurance, support and repairs” for their devices. All of this will become available across their European markets from Spring 2022.

Vodafone’s New Services

• Insurance for new phone purchases, giving protection against accidental damage.

• Flexible trade-in options via a simple-to-use consumer app, enabling customers to swiftly receive payment for their existing handset or credit towards the purchase of a newer phone.

• Fast repair services that can extend the life of accidentally damaged devices.

• Retailing at scale a range of high-quality refurbished, pre-owned handsets alongside newer devices.

• Encouraging customers to hand back their old mobile phones for recycling or for social / charitable causes.

As above, some, albeit not all, of these services already exist in the UK and a few of their other European markets, but availability tends to be patchy and Vodafone wants to ensure that they become common features. The operator will also launch a new digital platform to make it straightforward for customers to agree trade-in options for their existing phones.

The services will be supported by a new “strategic partnership” for wholesale trade-in and asset management with Recommerce, which will enable their customers to benefit from pre-owned devices at retail.

Alex Froment-Curtil, Vodafone Group Chief Commercial Officer, said:

“Vodafone has a leading role to play in developing and driving a circular economy for mobile devices that significantly reduces their impact on the environment. We are pioneering a comprehensive, digital offering that makes it easier for our customers to extend the life of their current smartphone, or to buy and own a refurbished device.”

In addition to consumer mobile devices, Vodafone’s programme of refurbishing and reusing fixed-line broadband routers and TV set-top boxes in Germany, Portugal and Spain will be expanded to further markets, reducing the associated environmental and cost impacts. But they don’t specifically mention when this will happen in the UK. We should point out that other major ISPs, such as BT, already do something similar.

As ever, there are a lot of questions that are yet to be answered by today’s announcement, such as how much the new services will cost customers. Features such as insurance and repairs always attract a premium. In addition, you’ll often get better value for old mobiles by selling them via online auction sites than back to a mobile operator.