Carphone Warehouse offering to buy me out of contract - can they do that?

needhouseadvice

Currently on a SIM only deal with O2. Want to buy a Google Pixel 2 which isn't available on O2 contract so I was going to buy it outright from CW. Just called to ask about the warranty and got suckered into a conversation about the current deal I'm on.

They're offering me a cheap monthly deal saying I wouldn't have to pay for the rest of my O2 contract (which ends in 6 months) if they took over the contract and offered this phone to me as an upgrade. I didn't realise they could do this. Can they?? I know it would still be an O2 deal but I thought dealing with O2 directly and CW were totally separate things.

pmduk

They can do it if they wanted, but if you go for it get written confirmation from them that they have done so, and a closing statement from o2 and hold on to them very carefully. There are stories of this going wrong for people, granted you only hear when it goes wrong, but I believe in being careful and covering my back.

jenniewb

Yes they can do this and have offered this for years. But as with anything, there's no such thing as a free lunch. Make sure you do the maths and work out how much you're paying, what actually is being offered and that you are happy with that.

eDicky

Compare the overall cost of the new plan that you would be signing up for, against the cost of the new phone at the best price you can find and staying on the SIM-only tariff with the freedom to switch to a cheaper one when your minimum term ends.

So many people discover too late that stepping into a CPW store was unwise, having fallen victim to their salesmen's skills.

Frozen_up_north

The offer stinks, it sounds like an "upgrade" whereby you end up with a 2 year phone + SIM contract and the salesperson clocks up another commission sale.

What is wrong with buying a SIM free, and unlocked, phone (if really needed) elsewhere?

Sticking with SIM only is so much more flexible and in most cases far better value.

System

Frozen_up_north wrote: »

The offer stinks, it sounds like an "upgrade" whereby you end up with a 2 year phone + SIM contract and the salesperson clocks up another commission sale.

What is wrong with buying a SIM free, and unlocked, phone (if really needed) elsewhere?

Sticking with SIM only is so much more flexible and in most cases far better value.

You are mostly likely correct but the OP would need to do the calculations. Occasionally, the contract cost can be cheaper than buying sim free and paying for PAYG/Sim only.

boatman

eDicky wrote: »

So many people discover too late that stepping into a CPW store was unwise, having fallen victim to their salesmen's skills.

It will be more difficult to 'step' in to a CPW store...

pmduk

sadly, only 92 of them are going