Half of adults would prefer a pre-owned gift this Christmas as we all try and save more money

MORE than half of adults would welcome a pre-owned gift this Christmas – to save others money and help them act more sustainably by extending the life of products.

The study of 2,000 people who celebrate Christmas, 19 per cent expect to receive a second-hand gift this year, with 29 per cent expecting it to be the norm due to the rise of living costs.

More than half (58 per cent) would feel positive about unwrapping such an item come December 25, and 46 per cent would happily give one.

While 37 per cent have bought a pre-owned gift for others in the past.

Top reasons for doing so were saving money (50 per cent), affording an item which would otherwise be out of their price range (44 per cent) and to help products have a longer lifespan (41 per cent).

Amazon Warehouse, which sells refurbished and pre-owned products, commissioned the research, which also revealed 38 per cent plan to take sustainability into consideration when shopping for presents this upcoming festive season. 

But 55 per cent have never given someone a present that isn’t brand new, as it has never crossed their mind (32 per cent).

And 26 per cent believe there is a stigma about giving such gifts, but don’t think there should be.

However, 31 per cent believe giving and receiving pre-owned products should be normalised.

Following the findings, an online tool has been created to show how much money you could save this festive season by buying pre-loved items, from a smart watch to a coffee machine – creating a personalised wish list to reveal your savings.

John Boumphrey, UK country manager at Amazon, said: “As a nation, we’re becoming more conscious consumers and it’s exciting to see so many people are open to shopping for nearly-new products.

“Especially this year with the rise in living costs adding even more pressure to gift buying, there is even more reason to consider shopping from nearly-new products.

“Pre-owned doesn’t have to mean worn or outdated, often products have simply been unboxed but still work as good as new.

“We believe that every refurbished, pre-owned or open box purchase helps extend a product’s life, while being great value.”

The top pre-owned items people are happy to receive were books (50 per cent), jewellery (31 per cent) and artwork (30 per cent). 

And the most popular tech gifts to get ‘nearly-new’ were mobile phones (21 per cent), laptops (20 per cent) and tablets (20 per cent). 

While eBay (55 per cent), charity shops (49 per cent) and Amazon (26 per cent) were the top places to buy pre-loved, unboxed or refurbished gifts.

Six in 10 adults have also these items for themselves, and along with buying second hand gifts, predict they have saved £128.50 on average over the past five years.

Nearly one in five (17 per cent) estimated they have saved more than £200, while 12 per cent reckons they have an extra £300 or more by buying nearly-new.

It also emerged 21 per cent of those polled, via OnePoll, are happy to gift a refurbished, unboxed or pre-loved item as a Christmas gift if it comes with savings.

A fifth (21 per cent) think it can be hard to tell the difference between these products and new goods, and 17 per cent have noticed more retailers offering nearly-new or pre-owned items.

Among the main reasons adults have refrained from gifting second-hand or nearly new items are concerns the quality may not be as good as new (27 per cent) or that they can’t be returned (18 per cent).

John Boumphrey added: “Dedicated teams check and refurbish returned items daily, so they’re ready for a new home, and customers can shop with peace of mind knowing that even nearly-new products from Amazon are covered by our return policy.”