Once they’re tested, if the phones are decent, they’re shipped abroad and sold. For example Envirofone sells phones in the Middle and Far East, Africa and South America.

 

The one thing to be aware of is, if it’s a particularly high value phone, there's a chance these companies will sell it on eBay to get the most money. Therefore if you find your phone is high value, as noted above, you may want to consider doing that yourself and cutting out the middle man.

 

If your phone is of a lower class then it'll be broken down and sold as component parts.

 

And if it’s totally worthless, these companies will dispose of it in an environmentally friendly way.

 

There are potentially noxious substances in decaying phones. It's believed cadmium batteries can infect the water system and lead, brominated flame retardants and beryllium could harm the environment if incorrectly disposed of, so even if no one will give you cash for it, don't throw your old phone out with the rubbish.

 

Non-working Phones

 

A company called Greener Solutions (which also runs Mobile2cash) works in partnership with Tesco and offers 50 Clubcard points (worth £2 in Tesco Clubcard Deals vouchers for non-working phones or donates 50p to Tesco's current nominated charity.

 

It has an online mobile recycling service, but non-working phones can only be exchanged for points by picking up a bag in-store, which are usually available from Tesco customer services.