Spill the beans... on mobile phone insurers

londonTiger

Geeteese wrote: »

In January 2010 I insured my sons Iphone with PYB, in June 2010 my son and partner went to Brighton and were sitting on a bench with the iphone in his partners handbag which was on the bench beside her. Some lads were in front of them messing and about and then they've gone. Seconds after they found her bag had been stolen by someone behind the bench. It was reported to police. After numerous letters back and forth to PYBs underwriters Supercover Insurance Ltd they would not pay out as they said the bag should have been on her lap, under her arm or between her knees - which of course we all do when sitting on a bench!!!! Never again

insurance companies are the con artists of our day, the only difference is they have full backing of the law.

I'd love to know what someone pays in insurance throughout their lifetimes and how much they actually claim.

I'd imagine if everyone put money aside in what they pay in insurance and saved up, they'd have a huge buffer saved up that will cover all their claims no problems.

tiggybear

A clause to be aware of when using Vodafone Insurance is that they will only replace a handset if (IF) they actually stock the model themselves at the time of the claim. I fell foul of this when I had to claim for my premium Nokia phone. That phone was no longer sold by Vodafone and they refused to replace it although the model was widely available from other sources.
They will replace it with (in their opinion) the nearest equivalent phone that they do stock.
This might seem trivial but I only took out insurance because I wanted to cover my expensive Nokia Sirocco (supplied on contract by Vodafone) and then had to put up with a substantially cheaper handset in the end.
This might not be seem such a problem but it is a Small Print get out clause which left me not having the cover I thought I had bought in good faith.

lean&mean

Keen_Young_Learner wrote: »

I'm not sure how worthwhile insurance is but I've had a recent experience.

My iPhone 4 is covered by CUSC, a company I found recommended by MSE. On New Years Eve, my phone was dropped, (not by me...) and the screen smashed. Upon taking the phone to the apple shop, I was told the whole thing would have to be replaced as the screen of the iPhone 4 is connected to the hardware, and so cannot be repaired if broken. A replacement from apple would cost me £119, so I got on the phone to my insurers.

I was told that I would have to send my phone off to them for assessment, which would take up to ten days, and that they would then decide if they would replace my phone or attempt a repair. I would have to pay a £50 excess for this. However, I would not recieve a temporary handset in the meantime, which means that when postage and delays are taken into consideration, I will essentially be without a phone for around two weeks. iPhone 4s have got their own kind of sim cards, so I can't even take my sim out and put it in another handset.

I understand the ways that insurers have to work, but I feel that two weeks without a mobile phone, in this day and age, is really ridiculous. The woman in the call centre didn't seem very sympathetic when I pointed this out, and actually said, "ten days is not that long". But I rely on my mobile for work and have no landline at home, I really can't face that sort of length of time time without my mobile.

I'm in the process of saving up the money to replace the phone through apple, because at least that's instant, but does that mean that the money I spent on my insurance is wasted?

Sorry to hear about your problems with your insurer. If it's any help you CAN use your sim in another phone, so long as the other phone is unlocked or with the same network. The iPhone 4 onwards uses a microsim, which is just a cut down version of a standard one. You should be able to get an adapter (a bit of plastic really that is shaped like a full size sim) from a phone shop that will enable you to take the sim card card out of your iPhone (use a paperclip if you've lost your 'sim key' push it in the hole to pop out the sim card tray). Sim adapters can be bought on eBay but it might be quicker to pop down the shops so you can get your life back on track. Good luck.

Stuart_W

MSE_Penelope wrote: »

Some mobiles cost more than PCs - we're working on a guide to insuring them cheaply. Yet we could do with your help with feedback on good and bad insurers - how it worked for you - and any glitches or problems in cover.

Remember to include whether insurance is actually needed. For the very few of us left that have not entered the world of the smart phone, non-smart phones are increasingly cheaper and cheaper - but this does not stop phone companies trying to sell completely inappropriate, unsuitable or just down right bad value insurance.

When I joined Orange on a £5/month contract with a basic Nokia phone, I was offered £6/month insurance - with a £25 excess - for a phone that was only worth £30 anyway. :shocked:

Most mobile companies can supply a replacement SIM for a relatively low fee (typically a fiver or so) so it can be just as well to hold off on insurance and buy a basic replacement if it becomes necessary.

Very basic handsets often cost next to nothing (under a tenner, less with cashback sites taken into account) Any Orange PAYG customer that has topped up £100 over the last 12 months can get a free phone using their PhoneFund (which starts to disappear after 12 months) so you can just get a spare, free, phone, ready for that moment when you do drop your phone into the canal. Some other phone companies have similar schemes.

(this approach doesn't cover unauthorised use, however, which may still be a concern for contract customers)

Downderryboy

Some mobiles cost more than PCs - we're working on a guide to insuring them cheaply. Yet we could do with your help with feedback on good and bad insurers - how it worked for you - and any glitches or problems in cover.





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"fonesafe" mobile insurance, bought through T-Mobile. Bought new Blackberry 9360 10 November; 2 days later dropped on carpet, 1/8th screen black. Just short of 2 months later brand new 9360 delivered to home. Phoned fonesafe next day from local T Mobile store. Cant deal as insurance not registered, after a chat guy took details and I had to email 3 docs. Week later nothing heard, he had given me an incorrect email. Emailed docs again but told I would have to wait "1 month" untill first Direct Debit taken. Phoned after 1 month and recieved envelope 2 days later, took to PO and sent off (free). Told turnaround would be 5 working days from reciept of broken phone but had to wait just under a month for phone. I understand their is a lot of fraud out there but felt I was being treated as a criminal. Make sure you have your facts 'written down' before you phone and stick to them. If they read what you have reported back incorrectly, correct them.......... You will not get a call back to state progress, onus on you to keep phoning up. Be polite as I was but firm and you should get a result. Was more than happy with brand new phone, was expecting a repaired one instead.

inch71

My case is similar to the one above, whereas I dived into the pool whilst on holiday with my iPhone 3gs in my pocket. The phone gradually came back to life, but didn't work properly. I didn't have it insured, so enquired whether I was covered on my home contents insurance. As I have accidental damage cover included on my policy, I was told I am covered in & away from the home. I had to send my phone to their own repairer, but as it was non repairable I was told they send me a cheque for a new one. As the latest model at the time was iPhone 4 I was told they were approx £500, so that's the amount they'd send, less the £75 excess. A cheque for £425 arrived a few days later. I went to the O2 shop, where the guy told me I could pay my existing contract up, which worked out to about £80, start a new contract, and the phone would only cost £120. So I got a brand new iPhone 4, and I ended up in credit by £225. That's what I call a result.
So if you have home contents insurance with accidental damage, check before buying any stand alone mobile phone insurance.

mcmn18

My niece accidentally left her blackberry in the school office and when she went back 20 mins later somone else had claimed it, the school tried to get the phone back on our behalf but the child claimed it was her phone so they dropped it, I contacted the police as the contract was in my name and explained what happened they gave me a crime reference number and said they wouldn't pursue the matter as the childs family were "known to them". I sent all this info in an online form to the insurance company and 3 days later the latest model of blackberry was sent out. No quibbles no fuss, I thought at £9.99 per month it was an expensive plan but after the easy claiming procedure their cover I feel is priceless.

brianp9

I haven't had to claim but so i don't know how effective this is in the event of a claim but I had contents & buildings insurance paying £20 approx a month, added mobile ins and accidental damage to contents while away from home ( to cover my daughter while in halls at Uni ) premium then went up to about £30 a month, later when talking to Aviva about my car insurance was offered a lower premium on home insurance for more or less the same cover - went back to other insurer and they dropped the premium again rather than lose my custom now paying £24 inc. accidental damage on contents in and away from home including all mobiles !

Hopefully won't have to find out how it works out if I have to claim !

morepunk

I pay about £11 a month to the AA for my home contents insurance.

While my other half and I were seeing the sights in London, she had her bag taken from next to her. Her sparkly iPhone 4 and my digital camera were stolen!

We successfully claimed on our contents insurance policy and were issued with a new digital camera (a better model than was taken) including an SD card, and a cheque to buy a new iPhone 4 handset outright. All we paid was the £50 excess.

Shows that it can be better not to opt for a separate expensive insurance policy for mobiles, and just chuck it on the contents! :money:

Dolly_Mixture

I always had cheap PAYG phones until last Christmas when I got an iphone 4. I work in a school so it was important that it was covered for theft from my bag. I researched on here an eventually decided to change our Lloyds TSB account to a silver account for the mobile insurance. This was £3.99 for the first 3 months and £7.99 thereafter. I have not had to claim with Lloyds so far and am still not sure if my normal household insurance would be better. However, it is an expensive item which I take everywhere with me and I want to have peace of mind so for the moment I am sticking with Lloyds TSB. Good mobile phone insurance at a reasonable cost seems to be lacking and I will be very interested to see Martin's new article when it is finished.