Is a second-hand appliance worth buying, and what should I check?

Second-hand appliances span four very different propositions that get discussed as one. Graded stock is new with a dent. Ex-display has been switched on in a showroom. Refurbished has been repaired and tested by someone whose business depends on it working. A private sale is a working machine at the moment you looked at it, sold by someone with no obligation to you beyond describing it accurately. The price falls across that range and so does your protection, and matching one to your appetite for risk is the whole decision.

Safety

What you'll need

• The model and serial number, before you pay
• A way to see the appliance running
• Your water hardness figure, for judging a used dishwasher or washing machine (optional)

Step by step

1. Know which of the four you are buying.Graded: new stock with cosmetic damage, usually with a warranty and full retailer rights. Ex-display: unused but handled. Refurbished: repaired and tested by a specialist, usually with a short warranty. Private sale: as-is, with almost no rights. The price difference between them is smaller than the difference in protection.
2. Understand what rights you have in each case.From a business, goods must be as described, fit for purpose and of satisfactory quality — judged against age, price and condition, and excluding faults you were told about. From a private seller, essentially all you have is that the item must match its description and the seller must own it. That is the whole of it.
3. Check the recall registers before paying.Take the model and serial number and check the manufacturer's safety page and the national recall registers. Second-hand appliances are the ones most likely to have missed a recall, because there is no route from the manufacturer to the current owner. It is a two-minute check.
4. See it running, and run it properly.Not switched on for thirty seconds. A washing machine should be run through a short cycle including a spin — listen for a bearing rumble that rises with spin speed, which is usually terminal. A dishwasher through a short programme. A fridge or freezer switched on for long enough to be cold and for the compressor to cycle.
5. Check the specific wear points for the appliance type.Washing machine: bearing noise on spin, drum play when rocked by hand, door seal for tears and mould, the sump filter for what has been left in it. Dishwasher: spray arm holes, the sump and filter, rust at the basket tips and the tub base. Fridge or freezer: door seal integrity, frost build-up, whether it reaches temperature. Oven: door hinges and seal, element condition, whether the fan is noisy.
6. Look at how it has been kept.Limescale on visible heating elements, mould in a washing machine seal or dispenser drawer, a dirty filter, a stained interior. These are not faults in themselves, but they tell you what maintenance the appliance has had, and that predicts what is coming better than the age does.
7. Establish its age from the serial number.Most serials encode a build week and year. Set that against the realistic service life for the type. A washing machine at year seven has a shorter remaining life than the price often implies, and a fridge at year seven has plenty.
8. Factor in the running cost of an older machine.An older fridge, freezer or washing machine can use substantially more electricity and water than a current one, and for appliances that run continuously that difference over several years can exceed the saving on the purchase. Look up the original energy rating and do the arithmetic.
9. Never buy certain things used.Electric blankets and portable heaters — their condition cannot be assessed from the outside, the failure mode is fire, and neither is expensive new. The same applies to extension leads, chargers and any appliance with damaged or unknown wiring.
10. Pay in a way that gives you some recourse.From a business, a credit card or a payment method with buyer protection. Never a bank transfer to a private seller before seeing the item. Meet in daylight, and take someone with you for anything you have to move.
11. Ask what warranty comes with it, and get it in writing.A good refurbisher will offer three to twelve months. A private seller offers nothing. A written line in a message thread is worth having and costs nothing to ask for.
12. Plan the collection and the connection.Washing machines should be moved with transit bolts fitted where the originals exist, and fridges and freezers kept upright and left to stand for several hours before being switched on. Neither is optional and both are commonly skipped.

Tips

• Graded stock is the best value in this whole category. A dent on the side panel of an integrated appliance nobody will ever see can take a large fraction off the price with full rights intact.
• A washing machine's bearings are the thing to listen for and the hardest to judge from a cold start. Insist on a spin cycle before paying.
• Ask why they are selling it. A kitchen refit, a house move or an upgrade is a good answer; a vague one usually means an intermittent fault.
• For a garage second fridge or a holiday let, second-hand is an excellent decision. For the main washing machine in a busy family home, it is a much bigger gamble.

Common mistakes

• Buying a washing machine without hearing it spin — Bearing failure is the most common terminal fault and it is only audible under spin load. A machine that sounds fine filling and washing can be a few months from the end.
• Not checking the recall registers — Used appliances are the population most likely to have missed a recall, because the manufacturer cannot contact the current owner. It is the single check most worth doing before paying.
• Buying a used electric blanket or portable heater — The condition that matters is inside, cannot be assessed by looking, and the failure mode is fire. Both are inexpensive new and there is no version of this that is a good trade.
• Ignoring the running cost of an old fridge or freezer — It runs continuously for years. An older, less efficient unit can cost enough more in electricity to erase the purchase saving well before it fails.

Questions people ask