Read this before buying a Refurbished iPhone From Kogan

If you’re in Australia then you definitely would have heard of Kogan. Kogan started out in 2006 and is currently one of the biggest retailers in the country. If you’re in the market for a refurbished iPhone but you’d need to be extra cautious before buying from Kogan to make sure you don’t waste your money on a sub-par device. Why would I say something like that about the biggest retailer in Australia? Well, let's discuss some of the things you’d need to know before buying a refurbished iPhone from Kogan.

The Trouble with the Australia Competition and Consumer Commission

The ACCC made legal proceedings against the retail giant regarding misleading prices during sales and discounts. Kogan ran a promotion during the June of 2018 which they advertised to the customers through their websites, emails and text messages. Let's cut to the chase here, they advertised that consumers would get 10% off when they use the code ‘TAXTIME’ during the checkout but the court found out that Kogan had increased the prices of more than 600 of these products by at least 10% before the promotion. The products were back to their original prices once the sale ended. The Federal court found that they breached the Australian Consumers laws by making misleading representations during the Tax time sale.
So, you need to make sure you’re getting the right price for the Grade of the phone you’re going for. Price is one of the most important factors when you’re investing your hard-earned money in a phone and when companies have had a shady track record in the past then it’s better to be extra cautious than not at all.

Kogan Refurbished iPhone Warranty

Kogan is one of the biggest marketplaces in Australia and you can buy from a variety of merchants which is all fine and good but it can become frustrating when need to claim the warranty. Another reason why some people avoid buying refurbished iPhones from Kogan is the difference in Grading from the industry standard, for example, if you buy a phone from a reputable retailer like Phonebot, you know how they grade their devices and you'd find standardization in grades with all their devices, whereas, if you buy an iPhone 8, second hand iPhone 11, iPhone 12 or any other phone from Kogan, you don't which type of device you'd get when you order a Grade A or B since Kogan is a marketplace with hundreds if not thousands of different sellers on the platform.
This makes it really frustrating and people prefer buying phones from retailers who have been leading in the industry for quite some time now and have made a name for themselves by selling the highest quality refurbished iPhones at the cheapest prices.

Dropshipping Woes

You might not know what dropshipping is and that’s okay, we got you covered. Dropshipping is when a retailer does not stock the goods he is marketing but instead transfers the order to the manufacturer, wholesaler or some other retailer. They then ship the products directly to the consumer.
You’d find the many retailers on Kogan’s marketplace are dropshipping since there’s such a low barrier for entry. This makes it incredibly risky buying a refurbished iPhone 12 or any other phone from a seller who is drop shipping, even the seller doesn’t know the quality and condition of the device you’d be getting. The reliability of the warranty you might have been provided is a whole other story so, be very cautious when buying a refurbished iPhone from Kogan.

Refurbished Phones From Kogan - Multiple Stores

Like we discussed earlier, the entry barrier is so low for Kogan’s Marketplace that single sellers are running multiple stores on Kogan. They can quite easily manipulate the marketplace and you might end up paying a higher price. This is another reason why one should be very careful when buying from Kogan.

So, these were some of the reasons why you should be cautious before buying from Kogan. I hope this was helpful and my one last parting advice, if you’re looking for a refurbished iPhone, is that you should always buy from a reputable retailer who has had a good track record and thousands of satisfied customers.

You can read more about Kogan here.