What can I do with my old stairlift?

Estimated reading time: 9 minutes

Stairlift installations can make a big difference in helping people with limited mobility, to live independently in their own homes. However, when a family member passes away or moves into a care home and the stair lift is no longer needed, you may be wondering what is the most cost-effective solution to getting rid of old stairlifts.

In this article we have all the details on how you can sell your stairlift or have your stairlift removed, so read on for all the tips and details.

What are the options to sell my stairlift?

Many people believe that they can get money when they have stair lifts to sell. However, selling your stairlift can be easy and stress-free or difficult depending on how you want to get rid of your old equipment.

The easy route is to try to sell your stairlift to a stairlift company. Check out who you bought the new stairlift from, call the stairlift company, and see if it is worth any money. You also have the option to contact other stairlift suppliers to sell your stairlift too. They may offer to buy it or charge you to remove it.

You may feel that you want to sell your stairlift yourself on classified sites but with this, there are many pitfalls which you can read in our guide below – the tips on selling your stairlift yourself.

What is my used stairlift worth?

If you contact stairlift suppliers to see if they will take your old stairlift remember that they will offer you what they deem a reasonable price to buy it from you if it is worth anything. A buyback offer could be a few hundred pounds based on a relatively new stairlift that is a few years old.

When putting forward any offer to you, a reputable company would have to factor in other costs – the refurbishing or stripping down of the used stairlifts, the engineer’s time and availability to do the stairlift removal, and leaving the staircase safe and isolate the electrics.

Normally used stairlifts that are just a few years old and are still relatively new are bought back. Old models over this age are often scrapped as are obsolete models. As stairlift technology and safety features change over time, older used stairlifts won’t necessarily comply with new standards.

The reputable company should hold a registered waste carrier licence to be able to undertake any stairlift removal and transportation of used stairlifts, otherwise, you may find yourself being fined for fly-tipping.

Do companies buy back stairlifts?

You may be able to sell your unwanted stairlift when you no longer need it, although the price you get for it when you sell your used stairlift won’t be near what you initially paid.

Whilst it is easier to reuse straight stairlifts, curved stairlifts have expensive made-to-measure rails and equipment that normally can’t be reused. In these cases, only the chair and carriage parts may be able to be used again as second-hand stairlift parts.

We buy second-hand stairlifts depending on how much stock we have for sale at the time; we normally buy unwanted stairlifts newer model versions of up to 3 years old.

We refurbish second-hand used stairlifts to sell as reconditioned stair lifts and rental stair lifts. When we sell these lifts, they go through a very rigorous process of reconditioning, testing for any maintenance issues, and all safety standards, which are labour intensive.

The price that we may offer for your lift will be reflected in the on-cost resale value of the used stair lift.

So if you’re thinking of selling your used stairlift to us for a fair price, then please give us a call to discuss how much we would pay for it. We’d need to know the stairlift model through the stairlift serial number and how old it is.

Tips on selling your stairlift yourself privately

If you have to sell a stairlift you might think that you can save money and generate more cash if you opt for selling it yourself. However, second-hand stairlifts are not in great demand and are not an everyday item that people search for, so a quicker way to disposing or selling your stairlift is to go to a stairlift company.

However, you will find many used mobility aids including second-hand stairlifts advertised on classified sites like eBay, Facebook marketplace, Gumtree, etc. The problem with buying from these sites is that prospective purchasers don’t know how old the stairlift is, what its service history is, or even whether or not it will fit their stairs or their needs. It also means that the user’s safety could be at risk if it is not removed and installed by a professional stairlift engineer.

A stairlift buyer needs to be properly assessed on what they need for a stairlift to be suitable for their needs and their stairs by a trained stairlift surveyor. They will also measure up to make a lift fit the stairs correctly. This service won’t be provided to a prospective purchaser if you sell your stairlift to them privately. These are huge safety implications to consider if you are thinking about selling your stairlift privately.

Oftentimes when looking through these for sale sites we often come across people trying to sell their model which is too old now and obsolete and should only be scrapped.

Straight second-hand stairlifts can be reused easier than curved stairlifts. However, not everyone has the same staircase, for example, 13 steps in one home may be a different measurement of 13 steps in another home. The stairlift rail can be made shorter by our highly trained technicians, but you would need to know how to calculate the exact measurement needed and have the tools to cut it too.

Most stairlifts are “handed” to go up the left or right-hand side of the stairs. You can re-hand the lift, but this should only a job for a trained stairlift engineer. It will take hours to do as it involves rerouting safety circuits and can be dangerous to the new user if it is not done correctly.

If you have a curved stairlift to sell, the rail won’t fit anywhere else unless it’s a house exactly the same in your street.

A straight stairlift shouldn’t go on a curved flight of stairs. As well as a curved stairlift won’t go on a straight staircase.

You will also have to arrange to have the stairlift removed and the buyer will have to have it reinstalled. Removing stairlifts yourself is a big job and heavy work if you don’t know what you are doing and how to split the product down and disassemble it correctly.

That’s why only reputable stairlift removal companies offer this service and it is a way of safely disposing of your used stairlift. Electricians, handymen and someone who’s great at DIY shouldn’t be installing stairlifts only manufacturers trained engineers should undertake this job for safety reasons.

How can I tell the age of an old stairlift?

Depending on the manufacturer’s model, you can often tell from the serial number what age the lift is. The serial number will start with the year and date of manufacture making it helpful to determine the age of the lift.

Stairlifts that are obsolete or no longer manufactured may not have the availability of spare parts so it’s best to contact a stairlift removal company to take these models out and dispose of them in an environmentally friendly way.

Can I do a stairlift removal myself?

All stairlift installations and stairlift removals should be done by a qualified stairlift engineer for safety reasons. You may think that doing it yourself is a more cost-effective option, but when safety is compromised it’s never a good idea.

Stairlifts are complex pieces of kit and are difficult to manually handle. A trained stairlift engineer will be able to remove an unwanted stairlift in less than an hour and make the stairs safe again.

What happens to the stairs after stairlift removals?

All stair lifts are fixed to the stairs and not the walls. The leg brackets that support the rail are screwed through the carpet and the stair treads.

When a stairlift removal happens and the lift is taken off the stairs you will normally find the screw holes and an indentation in the carpet where the lift once was. By vacuuming and rubbing over the carpet pile, the screw holes and indentations can often disappear.

How can 1st Choice Stairlifts help with unwanted stairlifts?

There are several ways that we can help you to dispose of an unwanted stairlift. These are:

• Buy It Back: If your old stairlift is good quality and just a few years old, we may be interested in buying it back from you depending upon the stairlift type. Our team will assess its condition and provide a buy-back offer for you to sell your stairlift. Any buyback amount offered for used stairlifts will be significantly lower than the price you paid and is often a few hundred pounds. Your stairlift removal will be free and we will pay you money for your unwanted equipment. We will then thoroughly refurbish the model, safety, and quality check it for sale as a reconditioned or rental model.
• Free Professional Removal: If we are unable to buy back your unwanted stairlift we may offer to remove it for free if we believe we could reuse parts of the lift. We will offer the stairlift removal and will take it away for you in this package. Our skilled technicians will carefully dismantle and take it away and make the electrics safe.
• Stairlift removals with a removal fee: If we are unable to reuse any part of the old stairlift we will be able to offer our service for stairlift removal which will incur a removal fee. Our engineers will ensure the old stairlift is removed and electrics are made safe.

Sell your stairlift to us – Manufacturers’ model types we use

Contact us today to explore your options for your no longer required old stairlift and get an accurate quote on how much it would cost to remove stairlifts or buyback offer from our Aftercare team on 01249 814528.

We are particularly interested in second hand stairlifts from a range of stairlift manufacturers including our most popular manufacturers’ models such as the curved Oto Air stairlift and Flow model stairlifts, as well as the HomeGlide stairlift, Brooks/Acorn stairlifts and Handicare straight model stairlifts.

We need to see them still in situ on the stairs, so we can check they are working and dismantle them ourselves. Any buyback offer is based on the model being correct and in good quality condition. On the rare occasion where the lift is different from what we expected, we reserve the right to vary any offer.

We can offer our buyback and removal service to you even if we did not originally install your stair lift.

We may also be interested in other stairlift models so please contact us.