Adding Insurance

[sail4fun201]

Hey everyone,

I'd like to add insurance to my HTC Incredible - this weekend, my friend accidentally knocked it out of my hand and it ate it. The screen was broken, and now it's kindof a nightmare going through HTC to get it fixed. Looks like i'm going to be using my old phone for some 2 weeks.

When I get my phone back will I be able to add insurance? I bet I coudl call Verizon or take it to the store and add insurance, right? SquareTrade only works 30 days after you buy it, so I guess that's out unless I try to contact them like Verizon.

I just want the Verizon one. What do I do to get it?

 

[primetime]

Asurion the insurance company for VZW will only allow insurance to be added to a phone within the first thirty days of purchase. If your outside that time limit the feature cannot be added.

 

[ggp]

Just as primetime says... wanting to throw in... next time you upgrade, don't forget to add it!

 

[sail4fun201]

If my Incredible is replaced under the manufacturer's warranty, will I be able to add asurion to the refurb that they send me?

 

[primetime]

If my Incredible is replaced under the manufacturer's warranty, will I be able to add asurion to the refurb that they send me?

Nope, it's thirty days from the original purchase date of the phone. Certified like new phones do not count. If you bought a Certified Pre Owned phone then you could.

 

[Shorte85]

Not trying to hi-jack this thread or anything. I just recently bought myself a DInc and didn't add the insurance. Should I, and is it worth it? What does the insurance cover, and doesn't cover? Thanks...

 

[3devious]

Buying the insurance is like gambling. If you don't buy it, you are betting that you won't need it or are willing to cover the cost if you do. If you do buy it, you're betting on your unluckiness and that the cost of insurance payments will be less than the cost of replacing the phone outside of contract.

I have a tendency to lose/destroy phones so I get it. I also cancel it as I get closer to the upgrade date because I can always use an older phone until it is time to upgrade.

PS: @Shorte85, the insurance covers everything but intentionally modifying the hardware/ROM of the phone. I think if you have more than one claim a year, they get kind of suspicious of you. Also, I think there is an $80 deductible on smartphones, so when you get to the point that you could replace your phone more cheaply on eBay, you might want to consider dropping your insurance. Also, make sure that the $35 activation fee VZW will charge you is included in your estimates. You don't have to pay that if you submit the claim, but the 3rd party route is not covered.

 

[g-android10]

^ agree w/ the last point. In 2-3 months when these LTE devices come out the Incredible might be able to be found on eBay/CL for somewhere around $150 so if something does happen you could find one if you opt not getting insurance

 

[Shorte85]

PS: @Shorte85, the insurance covers everything but intentionally modifying the hardware/ROM of the phone. I think if you have more than one claim a year, they get kind of suspicious of you. Also, I think there is an $80 deductible on smartphones, so when you get to the point that you could replace your phone more cheaply on eBay, you might want to consider dropping your insurance. Also, make sure that the $35 activation fee VZW will charge you is included in your estimates. You don't have to pay that if you submit the claim, but the 3rd party route is not covered.

Whaaaat? I didn't see anything about $35 activation fee from VZW? Unless I'm not understanding correctly, if not then I apologize... Also, I plan on being stuck with this phone for 2 years, so maybe it is a good idea that I get the insurance? I guess my thing is... Is it worth getting the insurance, if you are a little tight on money as far as possibly having to pay for another one and etc... ?

 

[3devious]

The activation fee is applied if you buy a phone from someone else. If Assurion/VZW replaces your phone, you don't have to pay that. A lot of people balk at spending about $100 for insurance premiums over the year and then paying the $80 copay when you can pick up a Droid 1 on eBay for less than that. A lot of people will pick up the phone (not a Droid 1, but another smartphone) for $150 shipped and think they got over, but they forgot that they'll have to pay for activation. So long and short of it is that you should make sure that your replacement is less than $145 shipped in order to feel smug about not paying for a year of insurance.

Then again, that eBay phone might not come with any warranty, either.

 

[Shorte85]

Yeah. I know what you mean...

I am more than likely going to end up adding insurance just to be on the safe side with this phone. I do not have money to fork over if something ever does end up happening to the phone. Better safe than sorry, and I think it may be a good idea because mine isn't technically "brand new" but it is a certified used but new phone if that makes sense? lol

This phone is my baby, and will be for the next two years. ha


UPDATE: I tried looking in Verizon site to change features of a particular phone, and I couldn't find where you can select the insurance option. Am I missing a step or is that found somewhere else on the verizon site after signing in and going into the my account area?

 

[3devious]

You probably have to call them. The website doesn't show you all the options that are available to you.

 

[Shorte85]

Yeah, I ended up getting the insurance on my phone. I got the expensive one, something about it being a little better not sure if that's true or not, but I didn't want to take the chances.

 

[Sailingmaster]

Just as a point of information, you only pay an activation fee when you start a new line of service. You will not pay an activation fee for changing a phone on a phone line. Even if that phone is secondhand, or third-hand, or brand new, or a Certified Pre-Owned, or a warranty replacement or an insurance replacement.

 

[3devious]

Just as a point of information, you only pay an activation fee when you start a new line of service. You will not pay an activation fee for changing a phone on a phone line. Even if that phone is secondhand, or third-hand, or brand new, or a Certified Pre-Owned, or a warranty replacement or an insurance replacement.

I had a different experience than that. I bought a phone from a friend and when I activated it on my line, they required an activation fee for it.

 

[OMJ]

I had a different experience than that. I bought a phone from a friend and when I activated it on my line, they required an activation fee for it.

It depends on who you get at verizon. I just activated a fascinate last week and was not charged the $35. In the past they tried to charge me that and I argued my way out of it.

 

[Sailingmaster]

I had a different experience than that. I bought a phone from a friend and when I activated it on my line, they required an activation fee for it.

Then you had to have done it at an indirect store, what VZW calls a reseller. They get to add their own fees and such. For example, many indirect stores will charge a fee to take a bill payment. Verizon Wireless won't.

I train people to take calls for Verizon Wireless customer service. There is no activation fee to change what phone you have on your line, no matter where you get it. You only get charged activation fees for starting new lines of service. I've been there well over a year, never seen it happen.

 

[3devious]

Nope, I called the 800 number. I don't go into the store unless I want to play with a phone. I don't normally have a good experience in dealing with the people in the Verizon stores in my area. It is so heavily trafficked that they don't value the customers that come in and are often rude on top of being clueless.

Activations take significantly less time over the phone, too. I am not sure that it is worth $35, but it is faster.

 

[Sailingmaster]

The activation fee is applied if you buy a phone from someone else. If Assurion/VZW replaces your phone, you don't have to pay that. A lot of people balk at spending about $100 for insurance premiums over the year and then paying the $80 copay when you can pick up a Droid 1 on eBay for less than that. A lot of people will pick up the phone (not a Droid 1, but another smartphone) for $150 shipped and think they got over, but they forgot that they'll have to pay for activation. So long and short of it is that you should make sure that your replacement is less than $145 shipped in order to feel smug about not paying for a year of insurance.

Then again, that eBay phone might not come with any warranty, either.

There is no activation fee for putting a phone on a line. None. Zero. Zilch. Nada. Activation fees are charged for starting new lines of service, not for changing an ESN/MEID.

 

[3devious]

There is no activation fee for putting a phone on a line. None. Zero. Zilch. Nada. Activation fees are charged for starting new lines of service, not for changing an ESN/MEID.

Whatever you say your policy is does not change what happened when I bought a friend's EnV (replacing my LG V) and activated it on my line that I had since 1998. That may not be the policy now, but as I said "I had a different experience." I would not be surprised if things had changed I also wouldn't be surprised if they hadn't.

PS: I've only paid an activation fee the first time I started my service with Verizon. I bought new phones and new lines for the other people on my Family Share Plan and was only charged an activation fee for the first person about 10 years ago. The other two lines did not incur fees for whatever reason.

 

[butthead007]

It depends on who you get at verizon. I just activated a fascinate last week and was not charged the $35. In the past they tried to charge me that and I argued my way out of it.

You and devious are so wrong, I am wondering who charged you these fees and where they worked.

seriously, do you know what you are talking about? I really do not think you do.

 

[Sailingmaster]

You and devious are so wrong, I am wondering who charged you these fees and where they worked.

seriously, do you know what you are talking about? I really do not think you do.

That's why I brought up Indirect Stores. I've seen Indirects charge for taking payments, doing cellebrite transfers, and try to charge a customer a fee for helping them file an asurion claim. It would not surprise me at all if an Indirect charged someone an "activation" fee for changing an ESN.

It's sort of like this, guy has a newsstand. A customer goes to purchase a 25

 

[3devious]

You and devious are so wrong, I am wondering who charged you these fees and where they worked.

seriously, do you know what you are talking about? I really do not think you do.

I don't care what you think. In 2007, I switched from an LG V to an LG EnV that my friend gave me with a clean ESN. I called the Verizon 800 number and was charged $35 to change the ESN. What you think about what happened is irrelevant. What actually happened to my bank account is what matters.

 

[bigbadwulff]

As far as I'm concerned the only thing worth buying an "extended warranty"(not that this is what this thread is about) for is a digital camera. I wore/ broke/ had three of them give out and got them all replaced under the original warranty. Those things break easier than an egg dropped from a building.

 

[Knewz]

get Total Equipment Coverage. it covers whatever phone you have on that line for as long as the line is active