O2 Recycle Reviews 

21,119
•
TrustScore 3.5 out of 5

3.7

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Review summary

Created with AI, based on recent reviews

Evaluating 134 reviews, most reviewers were somewhat happy with their experience overall. Customers frequently praise the knowledgeable and friendly staff in stores, finding the whole process of trading in devices remarkably simple and efficient. Many people really appreciate the quick transactions, good deals, and helpful assistance provided when upgrading their mobile phones. However, some customers also noted frustrating delays, unexpected valuation changes, and missing payments after recycling their old devices. A few consumers experienced poor communication, billing errors, and significant difficulties when trying to get support from customer service handlers. People mentioned spending hours trying to resolve account issues without receiving adequate help or prompt follow-ups.

What people talk about most

Product

Users describe ambiguous interactions with product trade-ins, as reviewers report mixed experiences ranging... See more

Service

Reviewers mention ambiguous feedback about service, with some customers praising the helpful staff and... See more

Payment

Clients share negative opinions on payment, highlighting widespread frustration regarding severe delays and... See more

Staff

Customers consistently note ambiguous experiences with staff, ranging from great satisfaction to extreme... See more

Customer service

Customers had negative experiences with customer service, highlighting prolonged hold times and a frustrating... See more

Reviews shaping this summary

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

As advised by the O2 call centre I took my old phone to the local O2 shop to recycle. The sales adviser at O2 said by refund would be received within 5 working days but 2 weeks later I’m still wait... See more

Company replied

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Great service from Amy @02 Lincoln who was very helpful, knowledgeable and approachable. Nothing was too much and appreciated the help when needed.

Company replied

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

They were very helpful. Easy process to trade in phone. Reason why for 4*s is because it’s been nearly a month and haven’t received the payment from 02

Company replied

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

PROCEED WITH CAUTION. Sent a phone for recycling on the 1st Feb, they received it on 11th Feb. No further info so phoned customer services on the 25th who told me screen was damaged (it wasn't when... See more

Company replied


Company details

  1. Cell Phone Recycling and Unlocking Service

About O2 Recycle

Written by the company

Welcome to the O2 Recycle Trustpilot page

Thanks for taking the time to share your reviews with us. We read every piece of feedback and respond wherever we can. It helps us improve our service and support you when things don’t go to plan.

O2 Recycle makes it easy to trade in the tech you no longer need.

You can sell your phone, tablet, laptop, games console, smartwatch or earbuds in just five simple steps. Choose cash or credit — whatever works best for you.

By recycling your old devices with us, you can unlock a bit of extra money and help cut down on electronic waste. Since launching in 2009, O2 Recycle has processed more than 4 million devices and paid out over £350 million to customers.

A few things that make us different:

  • We’re a zero‑landfill service
  • We’re open to everyone — not just O2 customers

If you’d like to get started, head to O2recycle.co.uk


Contact info

3.7

Average

TrustScore 3.5 out of 5

21K reviews

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3.7

All reviews

(21,119)

26 reviews in the last 12 months

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Rated 1 out of 5 stars

😭😭 I want my iPhone 13 mini back hate iPhone new sizes

They said I was getting £212 that’s why I gave up my iPhone 13 mini I loved that phone and it was perfect in size it had software issues. However if they had told me on the spot they would send me an email the next day only offering me £112 I would NEVER have let them have my phone. I have an iPhone Air which I hate all phones now are too big?? Ugly I don’t want a thin phone. I want a small one like iPhone 13 mini. That’s why I kept it so long it wasn’t poverty it was size.
Just send me the phone back!

October 4, 2025
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Reply from O2 Recycle

We appreciate you sharing your experience. We're sorry to hear the final offer for your iPhone 13 mini differed from the initial quote, especially since you loved its size. Thank you for your feedback.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Great service from Amy @02 Lincoln who…

Great service from Amy @02 Lincoln who was very helpful, knowledgeable and approachable. Nothing was too much and appreciated the help when needed.

September 26, 2025
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Reply from O2 Recycle

We're happy to hear that the assistance you received was so helpful! It's great to know that the support provided was valuable and met your needs. We appreciate your feedback.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Very useful part of 02.

I've used this way of changing handsets a few times and have to say it's incredibly simple. As it has to be done in-store you get all the guidance and knowledge from terrific staff who are really happy to help. At the most your in and out in 15 minutes with your old handset traded in and a new one in hand.
As far as I know this is the only network provider doing this currently.
Yes it's a little extra per month, it used to be an extra bolt on now it's by way of an extra usage allowance, no problems with that at all.
People say 02 is expensive, maybe slightly more than others but from my point of view it doesn't bother me at all. I currently have 3 handsets on my account and can only say I've never had any problems in any areas with 02.
Highly recommend them.

October 4, 2025
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Reply from O2 Recycle

We're glad you found changing handsets simple and appreciate the in-store staff's guidance. It's great to know the extra usage allowance works well for you and that you haven't experienced any issues with our services. Thank you for recommending us!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Our hastings was so helpful and helped…

Our hastings was so helpful and helped me choose the right phone for me as i was disapointed with the flip phones so optted for the galawy ultra and she hot my phone up and running for me too ,i felt i got the ip most treatment and left the srore with confediance with all the team so thany you

October 4, 2025
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Reply from O2 Recycle

We're happy to hear that you had such a positive experience. It's great to know that our team member was so helpful in guiding you to the perfect phone and getting it set up for you. We appreciate your kind words and are glad you left feeling confident!

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Don’t do it if your phone isn’t in store!

3 switch ups I’ve done and yet again another one gone wrong!!!
When they need to be sent to our home there is issue after issue!
My bill should be £50, trying to charge me over £100. Spent 3HOURS on the phone to various people, absolutely appalling! Better yet the exact same thing happened to my husband as well!! SORT IT OUT!! Raised a complaint, didn’t hear when they told me I would. Told me my app will be sorted in 24hrs, a week later till showing over £100 so phoned again!! Another 1.5hrs on hold and waiting to get it sorted, told id get a call back at 6pm last night when my husband was home, and nope didn’t happen. STILL WAITING.

October 4, 2025
O2 Recycle logo

Reply from O2 Recycle

We're very sorry to hear about the billing issues and the time you've spent trying to resolve them. We appreciate you bringing this to our attention. We'll investigate the multiple incorrect bills and communication failures. Thank you for your feedback, as it helps us improve our service.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Good experience

Good got good value for my old device didn’t think would be as much as valued so very please process was quick and simple.

October 4, 2025
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Reply from O2 Recycle

We're happy to hear that you were pleased with the value offered for your device! It's great to know the process was quick and simple for you. Thanks for your feedback.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Very friendly

Very friendly, know the phones well

October 4, 2025
O2 Recycle logo

Reply from O2 Recycle

We are happy to hear that you found our team friendly and knowledgeable! Thank you for your positive feedback; it means a lot to us.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Everything was very simple and…

Everything was very simple and helpfull, thanks o2 for the good service

October 4, 2025
O2 Recycle logo

Reply from O2 Recycle

We're happy to hear that everything was simple and helpful for you. We appreciate you taking the time to share your positive experience with us!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Everything was smooth transaction

Everything was smooth transaction , will be using the switch up service again and again

October 3, 2025
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Reply from O2 Recycle

We're happy to hear that you had a smooth transaction! Thank you for your positive feedback; we appreciate you choosing our service and look forward to serving you again.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

Late arrival of recycle bag.

I was told I would receive a recycle bag within 3 days. I waited 7 days the packaged up the phone ready to post after the weekend. The bag actually arrived on the tenth day as I was about to post it using a printed label.

October 2, 2025
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Reply from O2 Recycle

We regret that the recycle bag arrived later than expected. We appreciate you bringing this to our attention, and we'll review our delivery process to improve our service. Thanks for your feedback.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

Sent phone on 25/09/25 and it was…

Sent phone on 25/09/25 and it was delivered on 26/09/25 but it took a week to be notified you had received it. Luckily I didn’t wait for the box and bag to be received in the post as this was only received on 02/10/25 and with only 14 days to return the old phone this would have been cutting it close. Also sent back a 1tb iPhone 16 pro max but every communication say 256gb not 1tb…..

October 3, 2025
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Reply from O2 Recycle

We appreciate you sharing your experience. We're sorry to hear about the delay in notification and the discrepancy regarding your iPhone's storage capacity. We'll investigate these issues to improve our processes. Thank you for your feedback.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Awesome service as always

Very pleasant staff, friendly very knowledgeable with products, nice to be kept in contact throughout the service.

October 2, 2025
O2 Recycle logo

Reply from O2 Recycle

We're happy to hear that our staff were pleasant and knowledgeable! We appreciate you acknowledging our communication throughout the service. Thanks for the feedback!

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

I have phoned you twice in a row…

I have phoned you twice in a row because I’m asking for assistance because of my dyslexia and each time I tried to get through to you I’ve been told to wait and then nobody comes to the phone or nobody finishes what I’ve been asking for. You say you are going to call me back and nobody does. I made a new contract with you for an iPhone 17 and the lady that was dealing with it said I will call you back in seven days to make sure everything’s good and you’ve received your phone and she didn’t. This is not acceptable. You’re saying you doing things and you don’t do them and you cause more problems than is necessary. I don’t know why your assistance aren’t doing their jobs properly. If you say you’re going to do something then do it.

October 3, 2025
O2 Recycle logo

Reply from O2 Recycle

We regret that you've had this experience, especially regarding the support you require. We apologize that our team did not follow through as promised and for any added difficulty this has caused. We'll address this internally to improve our service. Thanks for your feedback.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

No customer support

Have been contacted and followed instructions but have still not received payment or been told anything.

October 2, 2025
O2 Recycle logo

Reply from O2 Recycle

We regret to learn about the payment issue you've experienced after following our instructions. We're looking into this and will provide updates.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Absolutely shocking,I’ve just used…

Absolutely shocking,I’ve just used switch up for the 1st time had an email saying that o2 has received my old phone back etc & they are still saying on my account I have two devices! So I’m being charged £81.42 a month instead of the £54.00 I’m meant to be charged & none of the three call handlers I’ve spent pointless hours talking to have fixed this! I am now reporting to the financial ombudsman for breaching contract. I do not ever recommend this company do not use them or their shoddy service even D Turpin wore a mask!

September 29, 2025
O2 Recycle logo

Reply from O2 Recycle

We're very sorry to hear about the billing issues and the difficulties you've experienced with Switch Up. We appreciate you bringing this to our attention. We'll investigate this situation thoroughly and work to resolve it. Thank you for your feedback.

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