Buying a second-hand phone: the checks for a blocked, locked or financed handset before you pay

Every spring, the new phone launches push a wave of last year’s handsets onto Australian marketplaces, and some of the prices are very tempting. Most of those sellers are simply upgrading and want a fair return on a phone they looked after. A few, though, are selling something that will cause you trouble the moment you get it home.

That trouble usually takes one of three shapes. The phone is blocked, so your SIM won’t connect. It is locked to someone else’s account, so you can’t set it up. Or it was never fully the seller’s to sell, because it is still being paid off or it came from somewhere it shouldn’t have.

Happily, the checks for all three are free, and most of them take only a few minutes. I have put them in order below, starting with the messages you send before you meet and finishing at the moment you hand over the money. Tick them off as you go, and you will know exactly where you stand.

Blocked: start with the IMEI check

Every mobile phone has an IMEI, a 15-digit number that identifies the handset itself rather than the SIM card inside it. You can find it by dialling *#06# or by looking in the phone’s Settings, and a genuine seller should have no trouble sending it to you before you meet.

The Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association (AMTA) runs a free IMEI check. When a phone is reported lost or stolen, the provider blocks its IMEI, and AMTA explains that the block is shared across Australian networks. A blocked phone can’t make calls, send texts or use data, and putting a different SIM in won’t change that.

There is a timing catch worth knowing about. According to AMTA, a block can take 3 to 5 days to show up. If the seller tells you the phone was in use until very recently, run the check again closer to the day you meet, so that any fresh report has had time to appear.

It also helps to be clear about what a clean result means. AMTA is careful to say that its check is not proof of ownership. It tells you the phone hasn’t been reported lost or stolen so far, which is worth knowing, but it can’t tell you who the phone belongs to.

Blocked another way: the Triple Zero rule

A phone can pass the IMEI check and still be refused service for a completely different reason. Under the Telecommunications (Emergency Call Service) Amendment Determination 2024 (No. 1), telcos must not supply service to phones that can’t reach 000.

The ACMA sets out which phones are affected: 3G phones, 4G phones that rely on 3G for emergency calls, and 4G phones without VoLTE calling. Telcos also check new customers’ phones at connection, so a handset that falls into one of those groups may never work on your plan at all.

AMTA’s 3G Closure Buyer’s Guide suggests a few questions to ask before you buy. Does the phone support all Australian bands, especially 700 MHz? Does it support 4G or 5G VoLTE calling, and emergency calling? If the seller isn’t sure, ask for the exact model name and check with your carrier that the model is compatible with its network.

The same guide warns buyers to be wary of grey-market phones, which are handsets brought in from overseas outside the usual local channels. If a listing mentions an overseas or international version, treat the band and calling questions as essential rather than optional, and get clear answers before you agree to meet.

Locked: Activation Lock and Google’s protection

Modern phones have security features that tie them to their owner’s account, and those features don’t switch off just because a phone changes hands. If the previous owner’s account is still attached, you can end up holding a phone you have paid for and can’t set up.

Apple’s advice is to check for Activation Lock before you buy an iPhone from someone else. The aim is to make sure the phone has been erased and is no longer linked to the previous owner’s account. Apple describes a few screens that tell you where things stand:

• If you see “iPhone Locked to Owner”, don’t buy the phone.
• If the Lock Screen or Home Screen comes up, the phone hasn’t been erased. Ask the seller to erase it in front of you.
• If setup asks for the previous owner’s Apple Account, the phone is still linked to them, and the seller needs to sort that out before you go any further.
• If you reach the Hello screen, the phone has been erased and is ready for you to set up.

Android phones have a similar protection. Google explains that after a reset, a protected device asks for the screen lock or the Google Account that was previously on it. That is why the seller should remove their Google Account first and only then reset the phone. If a freshly reset phone asks you for someone else’s account details, stop there and hand it back.

Financed, or not theirs to sell

This is the check most buyers assume the IMEI search already covers, and it doesn’t. AMTA states plainly that its checker cannot confirm account or contract issues, outstanding payments or finance, ownership, or the seller’s right to sell.

So a clean IMEI result tells you nothing about whether the phone has been paid off. For that, you need paperwork and a direct question, asked before you travel anywhere to meet.

Ask for the receipt or invoice, ideally in the seller’s name. Check that the IMEI on it matches the IMEI on the phone and the one printed on the box. Then ask, plainly and politely, whether the phone is paid off or still on a plan. Most honest sellers will answer straight away, and a vague or evasive reply tells you something as well.

AMTA also warns about a scam that works the other way round. A seller takes your money and then reports the phone stolen after the sale, leaving you with a handset that is blocked. Proof of ownership and a record of the sale are your protection here, so keep both, even when the seller seemed perfectly pleasant.

The handover

Once the paperwork looks right, the meeting is where you confirm the phone matches the story you have been told. Meet somewhere public and busy, and if you would like a refresher on the warning signs, our guide to marketplace scams in Australia covers meeting and paying safely.

At the meeting, work through the physical checks calmly and in order. Dial *#06# and confirm the IMEI on screen matches the box and the receipt. Then put your own SIM in and make a test call, as AMTA suggests, so you know the phone connects before any money changes hands.

For an iPhone, Apple suggests checking the battery health and the parts and service history, both of which you will find in Settings. Take a minute to look over the screen, the sides and the charging port as well, since small cracks and worn ports are easy to miss in listing photos.

If it is an Android phone, ask the seller to remove their Google Account and then reset the phone while you watch. When it restarts, go through the first setup screens yourself. If it asks for the old screen lock or the Google Account that was on it before, the protection is still on, so keep your money until the seller has cleared it in front of you.

Before you leave, save the seller’s name, phone number and messages, and keep a record of how you paid. If anything goes wrong later, that record is what you will be relying on.

After you pay

Buying privately is different from buying from a shop. A private sale doesn’t come with a shop’s returns process, so the checks you do before paying are your only real safety net. Our piece on private-sale fine print explains what warranty you get and why the receipt matters so much.

Keep the receipt, the box and your saved messages together after the sale. If the phone stops making calls or using data in the days afterwards, run the AMTA IMEI check again. A block can take 3 to 5 days to appear, so a clean result on the day doesn’t rule out a report made later. If it now shows as blocked, those records are your evidence of when you bought the phone and who sold it to you.

If you have bought something bigger privately, this routine will feel familiar. Checking the history, the paperwork and the seller before any money moves is the same habit we recommend when buying a used car from a private seller, only with a bigger price attached.

Pay for the phone, not the problem

A second-hand phone can be a genuinely good buy, and most sellers are exactly who they say they are. The checks above simply let you confirm that before you pay, rather than finding out afterwards when it is much harder to fix.

Run the AMTA IMEI check before you meet, ask the band and calling questions, and make sure the phone is off the previous owner’s account. Ask about finance directly, because no free check can answer that one for you. Then hand over the money with the receipt in your hand and the seller’s details saved on your phone.

Sources: AMTA, Check if a phone has been reported lost or stolen (IMEI status) (https://amta.org.au/consumer-advice/cyber/check-the-status-of-your-handset/); AMTA, 3G Closure Buyer’s Guide (https://amta.org.au/3g-closure-buyers-guide/); ACMA, Ensuring mobiles can reach 000 after the 3G shutdown (https://www.acma.gov.au/ensuring-mobiles-can-reach-000-after-3g-shutdown); Apple Support, Activation Lock for iPhone and iPad (https://support.apple.com/en-au/108794); Apple Support, If you want to buy a pre-owned iPhone (https://support.apple.com/en-au/104999); Google Android Help, Prevent others from using your device without permission (https://support.google.com/android/answer/9459346?hl=en-AU)