Choosing your iPhone Insurance – Compare Here!
The iPhone is an incredibly useful device that has revolutionized the way people use their phones for both work and play, especially with the arrival of mobile broadband. It is a considerable expense though at about £550 for newer models and at least £350 for the older iPhone 3G or iphone 3GS. Like most smart phones, it needs to be protected from loss, theft, and damage. Although you may have your iphone warranty or extended warranty, you can still lose your phone. Even the most careful owner cannot keep it safe at all times though so an iPhone insurance is a good way to at least protect owners from the cost of replacing a lost, stolen, or damaged iPhone. The good news is that in the UK, there are several options for acquiring an iPhone insurance policy. These include major and independent insurance providers, banks, and home contents insurance providers. We have partners such as Bluehost who have come on board with our comparison system as well.
iPhone Insurance Providers
The major phone insurance providers are the first option that come to mind when people think of getting insurance coverage. These include Orange, 3, Vodafone, T-Mobile, CarPhone Warehouse and O2. These offer great coverage but are almost uniformly expensive with monthly fees from Orange and 3 at £12, Vodafone and T-Mobile at £12.99, CarPhone Warehouse at £13.99 and O2 at outrageous £15.
Fortunately, there are also a good number of independent insurance providers that offer iPhone insurance or other smart phones such as Samsung galaxy, Samsung conquer, verizon iphone, sprint iphone, ATT iphone and mozart smart. These companies are smaller, but they offer very competitive rates, so you can pay monthly as low as £5.99 a month and only £1.00 for every additional gadget. Finding a good provider does entail a bit more research. A Google search for iPhone insurance will yield thousands of hits. This is both a bane and a boon. More providers mean more choices, but also more research to find a reputable company that offers good products. The prospect of potential savings of up to 50% compared to bigger providers makes the extra effort well worth it though. In addition, smart phone insurance comparison sites have recently become available making it easier to compare iphone insurance. With a good comparison site, all it takes is to choose the gadget and the model and the system will list insurance providers, premium costs, and the specific coverage details each provides.
iPhone Insurance from Banks
What most iPhone owners do not realise is that they may actually qualify for a free iPhone insurance from their bank. Lloyds, for instance offers free mobile insurance for customers who have a premium bank account. Excess limits, maximum payout and other terms and conditions may not be as competitive as mainstream policies so these must be checked carefully. For instance, banks do not cover the full replacement amount of an iPhone, typically offering a maximum payout of only up to £350. It is still a good deal though since it is free for premium account holders and offers instant cover. The only downside is the massive amount of paperwork usually required to insure a mobile device.
iPhone Insurance from Home Insurance Providers
Another option that not many iPhone owners know about is that their home insurance company might also include iPhone insurance. A home insurance that includes contents insurance will also cover personal belongings such as jewelry, watches, and mobile phones even when they are used outside the house. Alternatively, some home insurance providers offer homeowners the option of paying a minimal amount of less than £2.00 a month for a years iPhone insurance with a maximum payout of £400. Like bank-provided iPhone insurance, terms and conditions, excess amounts, and maximum payouts must be carefully checked. In any case, paying a minimal additional amount for a no claims bonus protection will be very useful.
How to Choose an iPhone Insurance Provider
Both banks and home insurance providers offer free or cheap iPhone insurance plans. In both cases though, the excess amounts and maximum payouts are not very attractive. Paperwork also tend to be burdensome and phone replacement periods longer. Worse, for contents insurance, making a claim can potentially affect the no claims bonus and subsequent premiums on the primary home insurance policy. With all these in mind, iPhone owners who want a worry-free iPhone insurance that offers payout amounts that cover the full replacement cost of their device and phone accessories (eg; bluetooth headset) will do better to choose an independent insurance provider that specializes in iPhones, eg; Gocare iphone.
What to Look For in an iPhone Insurance Policy
To qualify for UK iPhone insurance, owners must be UK residents and can present proof of ownership or proof of purchase of their phones. The iPhone it self must have been purchased new within the last 6 months. Good iPhone insurance should provide coverage against loss, theft, and accidental damage, including water damage or other liquid damage. Aside from basic benefits, choose an iPhone insurance provider that is accredited by the Financial Services Authority, does not set high excess amounts, and has an easy claims process. It would also be useful to know the whether there is a 24 or 48 hour cell phone replacement guarantee for the lost phone so that owners do not suffer too much downtime in the event of an insurance accident.
Premium iPhone insurance coverage can include a back up option, fraudulent call coverage, and international coverage. Since the loss of an iPhone will entail loss of valuable data, some insurance policies offer an option to back up data online from the existing mobile number. This back up is very useful for getting important information set up on the replacement phone. Fraudulent call coverage is a benefit that protects mobile phone owners from having to pay for the cost of any unauthorized calls made from a stolen iPhone. A premium iPhone insurance policy should have fraudulent call coverage of at least £500 for all calls made after a theft. Other policies will cover only calls made from your phone number after the theft is reported, which is practically useless since the phone company will suspend the account as soon as theft is reported. International coverage extends cover to locations outside the UK, which is very useful for iPhone owners who are frequent travellers.
Premium iPhone insurance does cost significantly more than basic plans and iPhone owners might find them too costly. The cost of personally replacing a lost, stolen, or damaged phone is even more expensive though. With instances of iPhone theft rising rapidly in the UK, good iPhone insurance can turn out to be cheap in the end.
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