New upgrade scheme lets EE Flex Pay customers swap phones while still in contract

An Early Phone Swap service will allow around one million EEcustomers to trade in their handset and upgrade up to 12 months before the end of their device agreement.

The scheme is available immediately to eligible customers on EE Flex Pay contracts and allows them to switch to any new or refurbished handset offered by the operator.

Customers hand their existing device back to EE, and the trade-in value used to clear the outstanding balance on their current device agreement.

If the handset is worth more than the amount still owed, EE says it will pay the difference directly into the customer’s bank account.

There is no additional Early Phone Swap fee, although customers must take out a new device credit agreement with a 24-month airtime plan.

To qualify, customers must have made at least 12 monthly device payments and have no more than 12 months remaining on their existing agreement. The service cannot be used during the final month.

Devices must also be in working order, able to power up and have security features such as Find My Phone disabled. Lost, stolen or blocked devices are not eligible.

The launch coincides with EE expanding its Flex Pay financing options with new 12 and 48-month terms alongside its existing 24 and 36-month plans.

EE says customers can spread the cost of new or refurbished devices interest-free, including handsets from its recently introduced “Very Good” refurbished range.

Early Phone Swap could also encourage a greater flow of relatively recent devices into EE’s refurbishment and secondary-market channels by bringing handsets back from customers earlier in their lifecycle.

Sharon Meadows, managing director of marketing and commercial at EE, said: “We know our customers want the very best devices and the freedom to get the phone they really want.

“Early Phone Swap puts that power firmly in their hands, letting them swap their old phone and get something new every year at no extra cost.”

EE operates more than 400 stores and says almost 90 per cent of the UK population lives within easy reach of one of its retail locations.