The world before mobile phone insurance was a very different place.
History
If you’re much younger than about 25, you probably can’t remember the world where mobile phones didn’t really exist or if they did, they were the size of a house brick!
Even those old large 1980s mobiles tended to be the preserve of business or the rich.
Although that world has now gone, the advance of the mobile phone has brought with it some problems for owners and society at large.
Modern mobile phone ownership and risk
As children we have a painful lesson to learn – not everyone is life is nice or trustworthy. There are people around called thieves who would just love to remove your phone from you.
Then there are those annoying things in life called accidents. One moment’s bad luck and suddenly your phone is fit only for the bin or recycling point.
Another lesson to be learned is that nothing is infallible. Electronic devices are no exception and if they do break down outside of the manufacturer’s warranty period, then you’ll become very popular with the local repair shop as you start handing over large cheques to pay for it to be fixed.
Last but by no means least, if you’re a little prone to being absent minded and manage to lose your phone then once again, your personal finances may take a bit of a bashing.
Mobile phone insurance
None of these potential problems are new – they arrived with the first mobile phones.
What is true is that as the number of phones in ownership has rocketed, then inevitably the occurrences of such problems will also have gone up.
As people typically don’t like paying out twice for things, the insurance industry created a special policy that provides mobile phone insurance.
Of course, people also don’t like paying out for insurance either but compared to the costs of repairing or replacing your phone, the costs may seem modest.
What phone insurance typically offers
If you find a policy providing good protection, you may be able to obtain:
– cover against theft, accidental destruction and breakdowns outside of the manufacturer’s warranty period;
– some may offer loss protection as an optional extra;
– 48-hour replacement of your mobile phone with the clock starting once your claim is approved;
– global cover and not just if you’re in the UK;
– free data storage for your critically important contact lists (perhaps up to as much as 3GB).
As with any insurance product, terms and conditions, exclusions and limitations will apply and you may wish to read these carefully to ensure you understand them.
Mobile phone insurance policies can offer you a degree of financial protection should you encounter one or more of the above risk types. Finding out more might be in your own interests!