A device lease always ends sooner than expected. Three months before the date, the question lands on the desk of the IT or procurement manager: what do we do with the 150 phones in the fleet? Send them back, buy them out, keep them another year?
In short: for end of lease devices, you usually have three options, depending on your contract: return them to the lessor, buy them out at their residual value, or extend the lease. Selling to a buyer such as Everlink is only possible once your company owns the devices. At that point, Everlink promptly sends an offer, organises collection, erases the data in compliance with the GDPR and the Swiss nFADP, and pays you.
The three possible outcomes of a phone lease
Every contract has its own rules: term, buyout amount, return conditions, charges for damaged or missing devices. Read yours before deciding anything. Broadly, the options compare as follows:
| Option | What happens | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Return to the lessor | The devices go back to the leasing company | Condition requirements, possible charges, proof of erasure to obtain |
| Buy out, then resell | Your company pays the residual value, becomes the owner, then sells | Compare the buyout price with the resale value of the batch |
| Extend | The devices stay in service for a few more months | Tired batteries, end of software updates on some models |
Returning the devices looks simplest, but it earns you nothing and leaves you dependent on the lessor's process for data erasure. Buying out and reselling takes a calculation, but it can produce a positive balance when the residual value set in the contract is lower than what the refurbished market pays for the same devices.
Is buying out and reselling worth it? One subtraction
The test is simple: resale value of the batch minus the buyout amount in the contract. To get the first figure without committing, ask for a valuation well before the expiry date.
Send Everlink the fleet list (models, storage capacities, quantities, rough condition). You quickly receive an itemised offer, with no commitment. Set it against the buyout amount quoted by your lessor:
| Result | What it suggests |
|---|---|
| Resale value higher than buyout amount | Buying out and reselling can generate a surplus |
| Resale value lower than buyout amount | Returning the devices is usually more logical |
| Values close | Weigh the internal effort and the quality of the erasure proof each route gives you |
This rule of thumb ignores tax treatment and depreciation, so run the final figures past your finance team. Two further points avoid unpleasant surprises. First, Everlink's offer becomes firm after physical inspection of the devices, so describe their condition honestly, breakage included. Second, broken devices do not drop out of the calculation: Everlink accepts them and values them for parts. On a return, by contrast, a damaged device may trigger charges, depending on your contract.
A timeline for a well-prepared lease end
A simple backward plan prevents last-minute decisions:
- Several months before expiry: reread the contract and note the buyout amount and return conditions.
- Next: export the fleet inventory from your MDM (mobile device management) platform: models, IMEI numbers, assigned users.
- Then: request a resale valuation and compare it with the buyout option.
- Before expiry: order the replacement devices, new or refurbished, so the switchover happens without interruption.
- At expiry: collect the old devices from employees and arrange the pickup.
The longest step is rarely administrative. It is physically recovering phones from teams, especially across several sites or countries. Plan for it from the start, and keep the MDM export at hand: it becomes your checklist.
Releasing the devices: accounts, MDM and activation locks
A leased phone is usually managed by an MDM, and sometimes enrolled in a manufacturer programme. As long as it remains linked to an account or to your organisation, the next user cannot activate it.
For an individual iPhone, Apple's guidance is to sign out of the Apple Account and then use Erase All Content and Settings, which turns off Find My and Activation Lock (Apple Support). For company-owned Apple devices, Apple Business (formerly Apple Business Manager) provides a "Release from Organization" action, which cannot be undone (Apple Support). On Android, Google states that "to turn off device protection, remove your Google Account from your device" (Android Help).
If you sell to Everlink, you do not have to do this device by device. Hand the phones over as they are: administrative unlocking is worked through with you, then each device is reset and erased.
Return or resale: the data responsibility stays with you
Whether the devices go back to the lessor or to a buyer, they contain personal data. Under Article 9(2) of the Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP, the "revised" law in force since September 2023), a company that entrusts processing to a third party "must satisfy itself in particular that the processor is able to guarantee data security". Handing devices to be wiped to a lessor or a buyer fits that logic. For EU subsidiaries, the GDPR's rules on processors point the same way.
So at lease end, ask the lessor and any buyer the same question: which document proves the erasure, and at what level of detail?
With Everlink, your company receives an erasure certificate per batch and a full inventory by IMEI. You can reconcile that inventory with your MDM export and check that no device is missing. Our article on IMEI tracking for trade-in inventories describes the method in detail.
Replacing the fleet without a new carrier contract
The end of a lease is also the moment to review how you equip your teams. Everlink supplies refurbished smartphones for business, as well as tablets and computers, in consistent batches with warranty included. You can sell the old fleet and re-equip your staff with the same contact, without tying the hardware to a telecom plan. To compare this approach with carrier schemes, read independent vs carrier phone fleet buyback.
Frequently asked questions
Can we sell phones that are still under lease?
No. While the contract runs, the devices belong to the lessor. You first need to buy them out under the contract terms. Once your company owns them, Everlink can take them back like any other fleet; see how to sell company phones in Switzerland.
When should we ask for a resale valuation?
Before the expiry date, so you can compare the resale value with the buyout amount in the contract. Everlink's offer arrives quickly and carries no commitment.
What about devices damaged during the lease?
First check what your contract says about damaged devices. If you own them, Everlink takes them in the same batch and values them for parts.
Do we need to reset the phones before pickup?
No. You hand the devices over as they are. Administrative unlocking is handled with you, then each device is erased and you receive a certificate.
Does Everlink also take leased laptops at the end of the term?
Yes, under the same ownership conditions. See our guide on how to sell company laptops and IT equipment.
Is your device lease about to expire?
Send the fleet list via the contact form, at info@everlink.ch or on WhatsApp at +41 78 220 72 80. You receive a prompt resale valuation, to compare calmly with the terms of your contract.