Is Insurance worth it

[some.devil]

Does the BB insurace cover against accidental damage?

The Sprint insurance not protecting against accidental damage makes no sense to me. Wouldn't someone who damaged their phone then just need to only say that they lost it to get a new one? (And could probably sell their damaged one on ebay.)

I'm reading teh BT policy and it states this:

https://www.productassist.com/tandc/July_12_09_82693_Revised_English.pdf

1.Accidental Damage From Handling Coverage
(ADH)​

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​

​

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following products: laptop computers, digital
cameras, digital camcorders, MP3 players, iPods,
GPS units, portable video game devices,
smartphones, personal digital assistants, subscription
based mobile phones and portable​

DVD

So you'd have to pay an extra ADH fee for accidental coverage. If that is included in the $9.99 I dunno.

 

[hodgsonevo]

From what I am reading, for $7 a month, Sprint's insurance(called Total Equipment Protection(TEP)) covers ANYTHING that can happen to the phone with a $100 deductible.

Now here is how I am looking at it. I forget my phone is in my pocket as I toss my pants into the washing machine. It gets extreme water damage as well as cracking the screen. With Sprint's TEP, I can pay $100 and get a new or refurbished phone from them.

Now with the EVO plan, we're all going to eventually become Sprint Premier customers and be eligible for a new phone in 12 months if we all have our phones as the main line.

So $7 over 12 months is $84 plus a $100 deductible means that I am paying $184 for a replacement phone, which is less then what I would pay for the phone under a new 2 year agreement and a WHOLE lot less then I would have to pay for a brand new phone out of contract.

This seems like a great deal to me because even if something never happens to my phone I would only be out $84 over 12 months which honestly, I would have most likely spent on something stupid and frivolous anyway. But knowing that my phone would be protected from anything that happens is worth it IMO.

Here is the link to Sprint's TEP page. A good read if you are still on the fence.
Phone Protection Solutions

Math makes sense, logic does not, Why guarantee you have to pay $184 when if you dont need the insurance you dont pay anything? To save $15 ($199-$184).. Smart money doesnt buy the insurance if you plan on replacing it in a year anyway, if you ask me.

 

[some.devil]

Well, throwing the phone and breaking it wouldn't be considered "accidental" damage. And as far as claiming it stolen... the deductible would be $100 either way. Doesn't matter if it suffered non-accidental damage (throwing it), theft, loss... you would have to pay the deductible.

If it breaks under normal use, or if there is something actually WRONG with it they will replace it.

That was a bad example. Either way, I'm going to have to insure this phone, I just want to make sure that I'm covered if it's lost/ stolen, or by no fault of my own (not normal wear and tear)

 

[MisterEd]

Wouldn't someone who damaged their phone then just need to only say that they lost it to get a new one? (And could probably sell their damaged one on ebay.)

Amazing how many people just pass off insurance fraud as the "normal" thing to do. I wonder what kind of parents people have these days because most "morality" is learned from ones parents.

That's called insurance fraud and in many states gets you a jail sentence especially if "someone" is dumb enough to then sell it on eBay because when the person who bought it goes to register it they can very easily track it back to the owner who scammed them.

 

[some.devil]

I got more Qs then Answers now lol..

mamoru

It's like Pandora's box. I'm just glad Sprint insures their smartphones. This was not an option with At&t several years ago.

 

[unwallflower]

That was a bad example. Either way, I'm going to have to insure this phone, I just want to make sure that I'm covered if it's lost/ stolen, or by no fault of my own (not normal wear and tear)

Through Sprint's insurance, you will be covered... you'll just have to pay a $100 deductible if it is lost or stolen. Pretty much any damage and they'll replace it for free, in my experiences.

 

[T3CH]

Yes in my opinion it is worth it.

Sprint has been very good to me with my BB. Repaired my BB 8830 twice (trackball and keyboard) for no charge and replaced for me once for a 50$ deductible when I lost my phone. No hassles either.

 

[nycbhh]

Amazing how many people just pass off insurance fraud as the "normal" thing to do. I wonder what kind of parents people have these days because most "morality" is learned from ones parents.

That's called insurance fraud and in many states gets you a jail sentence especially if "someone" is dumb enough to then sell it on eBay because when the person who bought it goes to register it they can very easily track it back to the owner who scammed them.

Okay, so let's forget the ebay part of the equation since that seems to be a red herring (although I have no doubt there are plenty of people who would try doing it). Back to the question as to what keeps one from saying their phone was lost instead of damaged. Would that be considered insurance fraud? Perhaps, I don't know. I'm not a lawyer. But could it ever be proven? And if not, then what would keep people from doing it?

 

[sikclown]

Okay, so let's forget the ebay part of the equation since that seems to be a red herring (although I have no doubt there are plenty of people who would try doing it). Back to the question as to what keeps one from saying their phone was lost instead of damaged. Would that be considered insurance fraud? Perhaps, I don't know. I'm not a lawyer. But could it ever be proven? And if not, then what would keep people from doing it?

Oh I am sure people say it is lost or stolen instead of actually what happened to damage the phone... that is why lost or stolen automatically is the max deductible which is 100.00.

 

[lanenubia]

There actually three options to consider:

Personal Articles Rider added to your Home Owners, Renters or Auto Insurance
- ~$30/yr
- No deductible
- Covers water/accidental damage
- Covers lost/stolen phones
- Does NOT cover battery replacement

Sprint Insurance (Total Protection)
- $84/y (ie $7/m)
- $100 deductible
- Covers water/accidental damage
- Covers lost/stolen phones
- Does NOT cover battery replacement

Best Buy Black Tie Insurance
- $120/yr (ie $10/m)
- No deductible
- Covers water/accidental damage
- Cover battery replacement
- Does NOT cover lost/ stolen


I currently use a rider for my iPhone, but any option is worth it for a $500 device. I wouldn't suggest going without any insurance at all.

 

[RiverOfIce]

Only get the insurance if you know you are going to use it. If you baby your devices, skip it. If you throw your devices down the hallway because you are mad, get it.

Do not use homeower insurance. Please that is a trap.

I ran my phone over with a car, took it into the sprint store and they replaced it with no deductible.

If you kill your phones get the insurance. If you do not, skip it. You know your own behavior.

But a warning tell. A coworker did not have the insurance. Lost his phone, got an early upgrade, 2 months later it was stolen, had to pay the 500 bucks for a a new phone. Then broke that 3 months later. He is now1450 dollars in 5 months. With insurance. The first would be 450 for early, 100 for stolen and 100 for broke, plue 35 bucks for monthly fees. 685 (max) vs 1450. Or he could have done the insurance instead of the early it would be the first for 100, second 100, third 100. 335 (min) vs 1450? Bottom line is that you get 3 accidents per year. That is about 384 per year max. If you do the same with out insurance it is about 1450 bucks. If you are a premier line you can get it for 1250 or so.

Of course if you never break, lose, or get things stolen, you just tossed 84 down the drain. If you use them once, you save about 1/4 of the cost of new. The good news is that he was able to buy the lastest new release of everything sprint has. The lastest little scam, I have seen is to get insurance on one line and not the other. When you have a problem, switch the phones. Then claim the insurance against the broke phone. They figure what are the chances of two phones meeting their end at the same time. But this is of course insurance fraud.

 

[Talutha]

Math makes sense, logic does not, Why guarantee you have to pay $184 when if you dont need the insurance you dont pay anything? To save $15 ($199-$184).. Smart money doesnt buy the insurance if you plan on replacing it in a year anyway, if you ask me.

Well it's impossible to justify if you need insurance or not. Unless you can tell the future then there is no way to know if the insurance is worth it. Two things can happen, you can break your phone or you can not break your phone.

If you don't break your phone and you have insurance, you are only out $84, not $184.

If you do break your phone and you don't have insurance and decide you want another Evo 4G you are out $400-500.

I don't know what you are looking for logically but that is basically what it boils down to. If you are afraid something is gonna happen, get the insurance, if you are confident your phone will be fine then don't. Right now at this second there is no way to tell if it will benefit you or not .

Also upon rereading your reply, you imply that your phone will break right at the upgrade point. What happens if you break your phone in two weeks?

 

[MisterEd]

Okay, so let's forget the ebay part of the equation since that seems to be a red herring (although I have no doubt there are plenty of people who would try doing it). Back to the question as to what keeps one from saying their phone was lost instead of damaged. Would that be considered insurance fraud? Perhaps, I don't know. I'm not a lawyer. But could it ever be proven? And if not, then what would keep people from doing it?

Pretty dumb question. What "keeps one from saying" (or doing) anything that is illegal or immoral is what is known as "morality" which people seem to be lacking these days and it seems to be "reversely" proportional to their age. Obviously nothing is holding a hand over anyone's mouth preventing them from saying anything they want to say whether it is right, wrong, truth or a lie. Of course it could be proven if they wanted to. Would they? That's another story. But if one is dumb enough to sell what would now be a stolen item on eBay they are probably dumb enough to also take the chance of not being caught. How about all the people who download moives and/or music? No one THINKS they can be caught. Tell that to my niece who had to settle for $6000 damages (plus pay over $2000 in legal costs) when she got caught downloading movies last year. She never thought anyone noticed. They just decided to use her (and hundreds others) as an example. She could have fought it out (and probably still would have lost) but it wasn't worth the $50,000+ in legal fees it would have cost her.



You are obviously trying to rationalize fraud and theft by wondering if it can be proven.

 

[Tre Lawrence]

I have never bothered with insurance; I am a bit atypical. I do baby devices somewhat, so I have never had to deal with self-inflicted damage. Device issues I usually get fixed by the carrier.

 

[beano52]

The $7 Sprint plan (which is actually a combo of insurance plus warranty extension) DOES cover accidental damage, including moisture.

^^ This

 

[paradox183]

Personal Articles Rider added to your Home Owners, Renters or Auto Insurance
- ~$30/yr
- No deductible
- Covers water/accidental damage
- Covers lost/stolen phones
- Does NOT cover battery replacement

For what it's worth, I just called my State Farm agent and they said they do not offer insurance on cell phones.

 

[muncher]

I posted about this before, but sprint's $7 plan is actually two $4 plans in one. One is a service insurance and the other is the damage, theft insurance. You can get the latter without the former. Imo, this is a much better deal.

 

[MisterEd]

I posted about this before, but sprint's $7 plan is actually two $4 plans in one. One is a service insurance and the other is the damage, theft insurance. You can get the latter without the former. Imo, this is a much better deal.

Absolutely correct, especially if you only plan on keeping the EVO for a year because the 1 yr warranty that comes with it is the same as what you would be buying for the extra $3. Save $36.

 

[nycbhh]

Pretty dumb question. What "keeps one from saying" (or doing) anything that is illegal or immoral is what is known as "morality" which people seem to be lacking these days and it seems to be "reversely" proportional to their age. Obviously nothing is holding a hand over anyone's mouth preventing them from saying anything they want to say whether it is right, wrong, truth or a lie. Of course it could be proven if they wanted to. Would they? That's another story. But if one is dumb enough to sell what would now be a stolen item on eBay they are probably dumb enough to also take the chance of not being caught. How about all the people who download moives and/or music? No one THINKS they can be caught. Tell that to my niece who had to settle for $6000 damages (plus pay over $2000 in legal costs) when she got caught downloading movies last year. She never thought anyone noticed. They just decided to use her (and hundreds others) as an example. She could have fought it out (and probably still would have lost) but it wasn't worth the $50,000+ in legal fees it would have cost her.



You are obviously trying to rationalize fraud and theft by wondering if it can be proven.

Go off topic much? My questions wasn

 

[asillmon]

How does Sprint's insurance compare to a product replacement plan (e.g. Best Buy)?

Best Buys's product replacement plan doesn't cover you if the phone is lost or stolen. Sprint covers lost or stolen phones. But if you have any problems with your phone, Best Buy won't try to fix it. They will just give you a new phone right then and there. Where with Sprint, they would recommend you go to one of their repair centers and if they can't fix it then you would have to pay 50 or 100 dollar deductible and they send you a refurbished/sometimes new phone.

 

[lanenubia]

For what it's worth, I just called my State Farm agent and they said they do not offer insurance on cell phones.

Talk to State Farm central office about a Personal Articles Rider. State Farm is who myself and another friend have it through. When I originally asked about it my agent had never heard of it too, but after they did some digging they found out how to do it. Not sure if something changed on getting new riders but my rider is current. Just checked on it today just to make sure.

 

[RiverOfIce]

Talk to State Farm central office about a Personal Articles Rider. State Farm is who myself and another friend have it through. When I originally asked about it my agent had never heard of it too, but after they did some digging they found out how to do it. Not sure if something changed on getting new riders but my rider is current. Just checked on it today just to make sure.

Becareful, if you ever use it, they will report it to the clearing house. Everything you are up for renewal, it will be a black mark. My agent says not to do it, if you plan on using it. It is only for items you do not plan on losing.

Once you make the claim, you will be paying for that claim for years.

 

[pcsperson]

Renter's insurance covers phones, that is another option.

 

[JustFrozen]

If you don't break your phone and you have insurance, you are only out $84, not $184.

How is it only $84 if you're on contract with the phone for 2 years? I don't think judging prices for one year is a fair comparison, unless you know you're going to ditch the phone after only one year (which actually seems to be the going rate for me - does sprint allow for a subsidized price phone upgrade after 1 year?)

 

[JustFrozen]

I posted about this before, but sprint's $7 plan is actually two $4 plans in one. One is a service insurance and the other is the damage, theft insurance. You can get the latter without the former. Imo, this is a much better deal.

what is "service insurance"?