Brits aren’t making smart phone buying decisions

Brits are unknowingly wasting £700 million on expired phone contracts, according to research by Barclays Partner Finance.

45% of the 2,001 people surveyed have let their contract run on after the minimum term has ended, without trading up or renegotiating their monthly fee. Four in ten Brits who opt for a monthly contract do so because they think it’s cheaper than buying a handset upfront, and then taking out a separate SIM-only deal. One in five believe that the only way to buy a handset separately from their SIM is to pay for the handset in full when they purchase it.

Barclays Partner Finance claims that customers could save up to £270 on the new iPhone 11 by purchasing the handset directly from Apple using its new pay-by-instalments deal, alongside a separate unlimited data SIM-only contract, compared to a bundled unlimited data contract from the major mobile phone networks.

Richard Brassey, Head of Retail at Barclays Partner Finance, says: “We’re proud to be giving consumers a smarter and more affordable way to own the latest iPhone, when buying directly from Apple. Interest-free finance is a win-win for consumers and retailers, because it gives consumers more control over their cash-flow, and it allows retailers to get their products into the hands and homes of a greater number of customers.”