Question on gifting a 5

[JonH]

I have Verizon iphone 5 w/ sim card. My new VZ iPhone 6 (same as prior VZ account) does not require a sim. I want to give the 5 to a relative to use solely as a camera and for use at wifi hotspots. It will not be used as a phone.

I have done the reset/erase and 'activated' it as a new phone, skipping Apple ID. I then removed the sim.

My question is WHY should I remove the sim? I don't need it for a new device and the phone is constantly complaining that there is no sim. The person who will receive the phone will not be using it as a cell phone.

Is there a problem or unforeseen liability if I leave the sim in the phone?

 

[Skull One]

Because you deactivated it with Verizon, anyone that obtains the iPhone and Sim will have to activate it on a new or existing account. Since I doubt the person has the authorization necessary to activate it on your account, there is now zero liability with leaving the Sim in the iPhone.

I would actually recommend you leave the Sim in place. Just in case they ever want to activate the phone, instead of it being a hassle of obtaining a new Sim, they can simply make one call and they are setup.

 

[JonH]

Skull One:

Thanks, I've read a lot of stuff about removing the sim so it's good to read your advice. They will unlikely ever activate the phone, VZ is not within their resources. But it is possible they could sell the phone. As you confirmed, authorization is necessary to activate the account so hopefully even if it moves on from them it will not be a problem for me.

 

[Skull One]

I've been with Verizon for around 15 years. One thing I have learned about them is, they don't let just anyone add themselves to your account. Heck they wouldn't even let my oldest daughter, who had her Verizon phone number for a decade, change from an Android to an iPhone without my approval. LOL

 

[JonH]

So true, I've been a customer for as long as you, I originally set up the acct in my wife's name for tax purposes. I can do nothing without her being present, so for convenience I now do all that is possible online.

I was concerned about the sim because I was uncertain about how it was tied to my account and the many, rather old, articles on selling the phone that mention removing the sim.

 

[Skull One]

If it was a GSM sim, I would agree with most of what you probably read. But CDMA/LTE sims on Verizon don't store anything that I would be worried about.