Your smartphone is an incredibly sophisticated and useful device. You can get almost everything you need with a few taps on your cellphone screen. Need a ride to the office? Open your ride-sharing app. Want to buy a new pair of shoes? Place an order online. The usefulness of your smartphone is mind-boggling.
Which makes it annoying that you can damage it so easily by accident. Dropping it from a height may crack the delicate screen. Forgetting that it’s in your back pocket may snap it in half. Given that so many things turn your smartphone to a useless chunk of plastic, should you invest in smartphone insurance?
Device in Danger
Unless you go to an affordable smartphone repair store, it can cost you a lot of money to fix it. Some tech experts have suggested that the most likely culprits of cell phone damage are their owners. Hence you can save more by using cheapest phone plans with unlimited everything.
According to some surveys, 45 percent of people who own a smartphone will damage it themselves. It will only take an average of 10 weeks to break a phone you just purchased, indicating that most people are no longer as cautious about their mobile devices after some time. The statistics for owner-inflicted damage include the following:
- 28 percent of smartphone owners will accidentally drop their devices straight into some liquid. This could happen while you’re drinking or when you’re in the bathroom.
- 38 percent will fumble with their smartphones and let it drop from their hands. Sudden phone calls or even just taking it out of your pocket awkwardly result in a screen-shattering fall.
- 8 percent will spill something right on their phones. When you’re eating something or washing your hands, be mindful of where you’ve put the device to avoid getting liquid on the surface.
Although these numbers make it seem buying insurance for your phone is smart, a closer look at the numbers involved will help you make an informed decision.
A Closer Look at Smartphone Insurance
There are many different cell phone insurance providers, from the manufacturers themselves to your preferred cell phone carrier. Each of these providers has different monthly prices for their insurance policies. AppleCare+ clocks in at $5.99, whereas Sprint will charge you about $15.
The rates may seem cheaper than paying to get your phone fixed, but you should know that these policies have a pre-set number of claims per year. More generous providers, like Verizon, allow you to file claims up to three times in a given year, and not-so generous ones will only cover your damage twice per annum. In case you go over this small number of claims per year, you’ll need to pay the full price to repair your phone. There will also be instances when you’ll still have to cover part of the repair cost, even if you bought insurance.
Given these numbers, should you purchase cell phone insurance? It depends on how often you damage your phone.
For example, if your job routinely exposes your device to danger, buying insurance off-sets the constant repair costs. If not, you’re probably better off going to affordable repair stores than paying for an insurance policy you won’t be using.
The best insurance policies will always be care and vigilance. When you’re cautious with and aware of your phone, you can avoid paying for damage or insurance altogether.
