Phone insurance a waste of money, experts say

7sr2z3fely84g5

http://www.independent.ie/business/personal-finance/latest-news/phone-insurance-a-waste-of-money-experts-say-2882533.html

CONSUMERS have been warned that mobile phone insurance is generally a "waste of money".
People have been rushing to take out insurance on their mobiles after a spate of thefts of smartphones.
But an investigation by the Irish Independent has revealed that the insurance premiums cost up to €165 a year, while insurance contracts are laden with exceptions, excesses, limitations and strict terms.
Chief executive of the Consumers' Association Dermott Jewell said that in most cases the insurance offered poor value for money.
"The number of exclusions, matched with the excess charges, make this a complete waste of money for many," he said.
All the main mobile phone operators offer insurance, with premiums being added to monthly bills. Other providers include phone seller Carphone Warehouse and Blue Insurance.
Carphone Warehouse said it was processing 380 claims a week.
The snatching of smartphones by thieves on push bikes has become the fastest-growing crime in the State, with a spate of thefts in Dublin city in particular recently.
Extra gardai have been deployed to thwart the thieves, who are zeroing in on iPhones. The iPhone 4 retails for €599.
A probe of mobile phone insurance policies found annual premiums of between €84 and €165 a year. The investigation also found:
•In many cases you cannot claim for the first €75 of your loss.
•Most insurers stop you making a claim for 60 days after taking out the insurance.
•Insurers won't pay out if the phone is left unattended.
•And limits are placed on the value of handsets that are covered on policies.
Many insurance providers also have a cap on the number of smartphone replacements they will make in 12 months. O2 and Vodafone allow only two claims a year.
O2 charges €156 a year to cover an iPhone. The first €65 of any claim is not covered.
This means that someone who pays a premium for a year and has to make a claim on an 02 policy for a €500 phone will be out of pocket for half the replacement cost of the handset.
Carphone Warehouse, which has some of the highest premiums on the market with some as high as €165 a year, insisted it had the most comprehensive offering on the market. Its policy covers the cost of calls made on the phone if it is stolen.
Smashed
Irish firm Blue Insurance has launched GadgetInsurance.ie, which sells cover for smartphones and electronic devices such as satnavs, media players, laptops and digital cameras.
For an annual price of €139 (just under €11.60 a month) GadgetInsurance.ie offers cover of €1,000 for up to five selected gadgets.
There is a €79 a year offering that provides protection up to €500.
Telecoms consultant Damien Mulley said mobile phone insurance was expensive but huge numbers of people were left with smashed screens on their smartphones after accidents.
He suggested as an alternative that people register with YouGetItBack.com, which offers a service that locks a phone if it is lost or stolen and helps locate it for fees from €1.99 a month.
A recent survey by the National Consumer Agency found that five of the nine home insurance companies in the market refused to provide cover for the loss of laptops and smart phones.

i never bothered with insurance for these items with amount of processing it takes for a claim,do you?.

Haelium

I was once offered €100 insurance for a €60 phone.

I **** you not.

johngalway

I'm a grown up who can mind my phone, so, eh, no.

stupidusername

Hmm lots of iPhone 4's going missing right before the iPhone 5 is being released? Right...

Irish Slaves for Europe

Why are the gangs targetting iphones? I thought apple was able to make the phone unusable in the event of theft?

TouchingVirus

When I was a student I bough a sim-free Nokia early days smartphone, cost €380. I had it about 6 months and then I got blotto one evening and was relieved of it while I was passed out on the street. The replacement cost pretty much the same, so I bought phone insurance.

Premium of €60 per year, no handset limit and the excess is €33 for the first claim in a 12 month period, €66 for the second and €99 for a third or subsequent claim. I've no other limitations like those mentioned in the report except the leaving phone unattended, but that's simply to get around with a white lie. It's an old plan with the company so I'm not sure if it's the same nowadays but I know the premium is €84 now. The phone got water damaged a few years ago and I was sent a replacement with no fuss, and remarkably fast too. At the same time, for two years after that I was paying that premium on a phone that was only worth about €30 given it was old tech

Still, now that I've a new phone and am on billpay I'll keep the insurance so they cover any bills racked up if I lose the phone or get mugged in the city. If the phone is broken/lost/stolen in the next 2 years it'll have been worth the premium because the cost to replace it is more than €120. It's the point of insurance really, a risk you want to run or you don't.

Fremen

Meh. Buy a new high-tech phone, and unless you're unlucky, by the time you lose it (say a year or two), it will be an old low-tech phone. By that time, you'll be able to pick up a cheapo second-hand one.

Naomi00

It doesn't really take an 'expert' to know that phone insurance is a waste of money.

dr.quirky

I took out insurance on a bog standard nokia phone from carphone warehouse, phone cost ~€50, insurance cost €20 one time fee for a year of cover. I looked into the option because i am generally just really bad with breaking/losing phones. cover basically replaced phone due to any damage once i produced the physical phone, even if it had been drove over, dropped in a pint/puddle or whatever. or replaced it within 5 days if it was stolen/lost.
inevitably i lost the phone and went in to store. explained the situation exactly as it was ie. id lost the phone 2 days previous and spent the two days looking for it hoping it would turn up, and guy in store gave me a form to get a guard to stamp it as officially "lost or stolen" . returned to the store and handed the same guy the form and he looked over it and just said " oh im sorry but your policy specify s following a loss/theft it must be reported to guardi within 48hrs or policy is invalid.

disgusted i was. not the end of the world as phone was just about cheapest available but had i encountered the same situation having spent ~300euro+ i could be going mental. fella in shop obviously knew the conditions of my policy before i went to guards with the form so he knew what he was doing.

I will never pay more than 50-100 quid for a phone anyway and following this experience i will never pay anything for insurance. I Feel people are being ripped off for what is an expensive reassurance that your stuff is safe. if people have the money to spend on such a thing and are happy to do so, more power, but the more i hear about it the more im disgusted by it.

4leto

Thanks OP
I am going to treat myself to a smart phone, for been a good boy and staying off the cigs.
I was going to consider insuring it as I am buying it outright.

rusty_racer94

Fcuk them, I insured my N8 for 6 Euro a month, time went on and I thought I'd listen to them and cancel the insurance, after 3 weeks the Screen cracked and I was left stranded uncovered. O2 were asking 60 Euro atleast but got it fixed from the Nokia shop in Galway for a reasonable amount. Just remember lads, insurance saves the day!

Fremen

rusty_racer94 wrote: »

Fcuk them, I insured my N8 for 6 Euro a month, time went on and I thought I'd listen to them and cancel the insurance, after 3 weeks the Screen cracked and I was left stranded uncovered. O2 were asking 60 Euro atleast but got it fixed from the Nokia shop in Galway for a reasonable amount. Just remember lads, insurance saves the day!

Thing there is, even if your screen breaks, you're better off without insurance as long as it doesn't break within ten months.

Stinicker

johngalway wrote: »

I'm a grown up who can mind my phone, so, eh, no.

Me too, that didn't stop me from losing it in Thailand whilst on Holiday over there. Have the iPhone4 now and have it insured so if I lost that or had it stolen it would be a total pain the arse and have a €35 excess I'd gladly pay if they gave me a new one in the worst case scenario. However if I did have my phone lost or stolen first thing is read the t&c's of the insurance and then report it to the police and then providing you are abiding by your T&C's they will have to pay out.

RichieC

Irish Slaves for Europe wrote: »

Why are the gangs targetting iphones? I thought apple was able to make the phone unusable in the event of theft?

no they can't do that, superficially they can but it can be gotten around.

longhalloween

Ah I think it depends.
Cost of my phone = 600 euro
Cost of insurance = 80 euro

Likelihood that I'm going to declare my phone stolen 2 weeks before the insurance expires = 100%

Stinicker

longhalloween wrote: »

Ah I think it depends.
Cost of my phone = 600 euro
Cost of insurance = 80 euro
Cost of insurance next year because of people like me = 80 100 euro

Likelihood that I'm going to declare my phone stolen 2 weeks before the insurance expires = 100%

FYP Anyway a stolen phone has its IMEI number blocked and becomes unusable and if you were to continue using a stolen phone then surely the Guards could track it down?

CoolHat

I dont mean to be rude, but how can anyone buy into the whole product insurance? (phone, tv, console etc) Its retarded.

Its a scam. A legal scam. They offer a seemingly "fair" service but loopholes they can get out of. Its entirely a load of bollix. Think about it, get a percent of people insuring say a tv (as pc world, dixons etc offer) AFTER they buy said product (after the store makes its money)
Logically thinking these products have a high percentage of lasting longer than the insurance policy. Its a simple maths game.

FearDark

I have insurance on my Samsung Galaxy SII for the sole purpose of "I fancy a new one 6 month into my contract" and you know what, Ill sell the old one. Ah shutup, I'll unlock it and ship it. Meh, come at me bro.

booboo88

Haelium wrote: »

I was once offered €100 insurance for a €60 phone.

I **** you not.

Im not surprised, would you be bothered your arse, they never pay out

Pdfile

my family memebers have lost phones insured and the companys basically told them to fcuk right off.

Some days i feel like DDOSing the death of all mobile companys and the ilk but then i remeber... im a decent bastard and that they Need to be arseholes to make money, i don't, if anything a decent person got me thus far. Though they might not lose sleep at night knowing they openly ripping people off... I sleep a little better knowing im not.