Repair or replace a device in the UK: VAT, guarantees and cost per year

What to take away

Step 1: put both prices on the same VAT basis

GOV.UK says most goods and services are charged at the standard rate of 20%, with a reduced rate of 5% for some items such as children's car seats and home energy. The VAT rates page does not single out consumer electronics repairs, so assume 20% and ask the shop to confirm.

The catch is registration. GOV.UK sets the VAT registration threshold at £90,000 of taxable turnover, and says businesses below it can choose to register voluntarily. So one small shop may add 20% to its quote and the next may not. Compare totals, not line items.

Those numbers are arithmetic, not market prices. They show why the cheaper-looking quote can cost more.

The same rule applies to manufacturers. Apple's UK service page states that its out-of-warranty fee estimates are subject to VAT, so check whether an estimate is shown before or after tax.

Step 2: check who should pay

Before you spend, work out whether the seller or manufacturer owes you a remedy. These rules are for consumers buying from a trader in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Citizens Advice publishes separate advice for England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, so read the page for your nation.

A manufacturer's guarantee is a separate contract. Section 30 of the Act makes a guarantee binding on the guarantor on the terms stated, and requires it to say that your statutory rights are unaffected. Citizens Advice says guarantees and warranties add to your rights. The consumer law guide to failed repairs covers what to do if a repair itself goes wrong.

If you pay a shop to repair something, the repair is a service. Section 49 requires reasonable care and skill, section 52 requires performance within a reasonable time where none is agreed, and section 54 gives the right to repeat performance or a price reduction when the service falls short.

Whether a non-approved repair affects a manufacturer's guarantee depends on the terms of that guarantee. Read it, and ask the manufacturer before the work.

Step 3: compare cost per year, not the quote

Add the quote, the extras and the remaining life, then divide. Here is an illustration with round numbers. It is a method, not a price list.

On those figures the two options tie. If the repair total were £150 instead, it would cost £75 a year and win. If a Step 2 remedy applies, the repair costs nothing and the decision is made. That is why Steps 1 and 2 come first.

Count what a quote leaves out, such as the time without the device, moving your data, and disposal of the old one. These costs vary by person and are not quoted in any official source, so list them yourself. Where a retailer takes back old electrical items, the right to repair and WEEE guide explains what to ask.

Editorial suggestion: treat a repair quote above half the price of an equivalent replacement as a warning sign, and a repair that fixes only one of several failing parts, such as a new screen on a phone with a worn battery, as a deposit on the next fault. The remaining-life figure is your own estimate, so record the reasoning.

For price context, ONS publishes a consumer price index for repair of audio-visual equipment (COICOP 09.1.5, series L54O). Its title names audio-visual equipment and related products, so check what it covers before treating it as a guide to phone or laptop repair prices. Compare any quote with today's replacement price, not the price on your old receipt.

Step 4: pick the route

For a phone, the smartphone repair routes comparison sets the three routes side by side. If a quote changes after you agree it, use the repair quote problems guide. If you buy a replacement refurbished, the refurbished buying guide covers grades and warranty.

How repair prices and turnaround vary by region

The ONS publishes no series for repair prices or turnaround by city, so any exact London or Manchester repair price would be a guess. Two ONS sources show the direction.

Price levels. ONS's 2016 article on relative regional consumer price levels reports London as the most expensive region at 107.0 against a UK average of 100 (Table 1). Its supplementary regional table gives 107.2 for London and 98.8 for the North West, and ONS says to focus on the ranking in that table rather than the exact values. The article says divisions with a service element, such as recreation and culture, show greater price dispersion, and puts that down to regional labour costs and the cost of renting or leasing outlets. These are 2016 prices for a general basket, not repairs.

Pay. The ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, workplace analysis, gives the median gross hourly pay for full-time employees in April 2025 as £25.44 in London, £19.10 in the North West and £19.74 across the UK (Nomis dataset NM_99_1). Those figures cover all jobs, not repair technicians. On those numbers London pay is about 33% above the North West (25.44 divided by 19.10). Greater Manchester is not a published region here, so the North West is a proxy.

Higher pay and rents plausibly raise London quotes, but the evidence does not say by how much for a given repair. Editorial suggestion: get at least three written quotes, include one mail-in service, and ask each shop for a lead time in writing. Turnaround claims in shop advertising are not independently measured.

When repair is not offered at all

Some products cannot be repaired economically because parts are not sold. The Ecodesign for Energy-Related Products and Energy Information Regulations 2021 (UK Statutory Instrument 2021 No. 745, as made) include provisions on spare parts and access to repair and maintenance information for some product groups, such as electronic displays in Schedule 19. Check the right to repair guide for which devices are covered, and ask the manufacturer how long it will supply parts.

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