Insurance for my Cell Phone?

[DRILLINDK]

Just purchase a new Android $300 cell phone from Veriozon. I have 14 days to consider getting insurance coverage for about $7/month and a $99 deductible.

Anyone recommend this option?

The phone retails for about $700.

[JoshuaHeckathorn]

I've never bought cell phone insurance, but I take great care of my phones. If you don't, it might be worth it for $7 depending upon what type of damage it will cover. Personally, I'd pass.

[greenskeeper]

I never buy the insurance. If the phone breaks I can always pick a used one up on ebay for cheap. May not be as nice but it can carry me over til the next free phone giveaway.

I actually try to keep my old phone as long as possible so at the end of the contract I am month-to-month instead of getting tied to a contract for a "free" phone.

[disneysteve]

My standard response to insurance plans and extended warranties is that they are a waste of money. What you pay vs. what you get simply isn't worth it.

We have gotten cell phone insurance once - when we got our daughter her first phone. We wanted to make sure she took good care of it. She was young and it was a new thing for her to have to be responsible for something of substantial value like that. It wasn't that we didn't trust her (or else we wouldn't have gotten her a phone at all) but just the fact that she was 11 and stuff happens. So we paid $5/mo. for the coverage. She did fine and we dropped the coverage after 6 months of her demonstrating her responsibility.

Over the past several years, we have managed to lose or destroy 3 phones between us. I lost one. My wife accidentally left hers in her pants pocket and it went through the laundry. Most recently, just last month, we were in Florida on vacation. We bought our daughter a brand new phone while there. The very next day it accidentally fell into our swimming pool. That one hurt the most but still only cost us $50 to replace since we had other upgrades available on our account. Overall, what we would have paid in insurance to keep our phones covered over the past 20 years would have been phenomenally more money than what we have spent to replace lost/damaged phones.

I say skip the insurance unless you are particularly prone to losing or damaging your devices or do some type of work that puts them at excessive risk. Even then, as greenskeeper points out, if you mess up the $700 phone, you don't have to replace it. You can get a much cheaper phone until your contract is up.

[Snoopy2645]

I agree they are a waste of money and when I was in sales the insurance they sold people on was a total rip off I had never bought warranties on anything anyways I believed it was a rip long before I went to work for that company!!!

[Frugal]

The only thing that happened to our cell phones was that one was lost in a park, and someone stole it. I don't think insurance covers things like that. I personally don't think insurance for a phone is worth it.

[Gary Barzel]

Why not self-insure your phone by transferring the $7 a month to a savings account, that way you'll be on the safe side no matter what.

[disneysteve]

Why not self-insure your phone by transferring the $7 a month to a savings account, that way you'll be on the safe side no matter what.

While self-insuring is a nice thought, putting away $7/month won't accomplish much in self-insuring a $700 phone. If something happens after 6 months, for example, you'd have just $42 saved.

[DRILLINDK]

I think I'm going to get a case off Ebay for about $10. Then I just need to keep it away from water and theives!

[cypher1]

Recently I just shattered the glass on my work smartphone into a glass web. I'm still using since it still functions but should really get it replaced. If I pay to get it done it will be 60-100 for part/labor at the mall, or 40 for glass on eBay and DIY. Either way I'd rather take the risk (and I do abuse my phones) than pay insurance on them. But a case is definitely a wise/cheap investment.

[Gary Barzel]

While self-insuring is a nice thought, putting away $7/month won't accomplish much in self-insuring a $700 phone. If something happens after 6 months, for example, you'd have just $42 saved.

The idea was that it wasn't worth it to take out insurance unless he has a problem of constantly losing his phone. That being said while you're right if he loses it after 6 months $42 won't do much for him. But suppose he doesn't lose it, and he has it for a good few years, then he will have the benefit of buying a new one with extra money that he put aside. And suppose he loses his phone after 2 years, then instead of having to pull out money that he might not have, he currently has an extra $168 towards a new phone. The way I look at it if he's not taking out insurance it's a win win situation.

[disneysteve]

The idea was that it wasn't worth it to take out insurance unless he has a problem of constantly losing his phone. That being said while you're right if he loses it after 6 months $42 won't do much for him. But suppose he doesn't lose it, and he has it for a good few years, then he will have the benefit of buying a new one with extra money that he put aside. And suppose he loses his phone after 2 years, then instead of having to pull out money that he might not have, he currently has an extra $168 towards a new phone. The way I look at it if he's not taking out insurance it's a win win situation.

Agreed. I don't think insurance is a good idea either.

[bjl584]

Extended warranties are generally a bad idea.

I would only get the coverage if you are prone to losing things or are generally hard on your possessions, or if you are regularily in situations that would cause damage to your phone. As an example, my cousin works for the power company. His phone has fallen out of his pocket and smashed to the ground while he was 50 feet in the air fixing a utility line. It has also been run over by a truck, and it has been ruined by water from him working in the rain. Insurance in his case makes sense.

[snafu]

I would check your specific homeowner's insurance to see if your cell phone is covered if stolen.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

I lose/break phones regularly. I would argue to not buy the insurance even though I buy and use it. I'm on my third phone in 6 months, thankfully I am using some old phones because my DH is insisting on waiting for the google nexus. Sigh.