Many people are always asking if purchasing mobile insurance is worth it in the long run. The short answer is probably not, why would a carrier offer a service that of which is not financially beneficial to them in the long run. The short answer is possibly, it depends on how you use your phone, your contract length, and what type of phone you have. All things considered, there are definitely some times where you should purchase phone insurance, and some times when you should not.
To insure or not to insure
Many carriers will offer up seemingly reasonable sounding plans to insure your device. For a small deductible and a small monthly fee carriers will replace your top of the line smart phone. But when you do the math, is it actually worth it? I like to think a screen protector, a solid case, and some good judgment is a better policy to enact. Take a look at some of the common rates offered with most mobile phone insurance providers.
Chances are if you have a fancy phone, you obtained it via a subsidy from your carrier to enter into a two year contract. This means you probably paid roughly $150-200 for it. Most carriers want you to pay a deductible to replace the phone in the area of $200 plus a monthly payment of $6. Once all is said and done you’ll be paying roughly $300 to replace your phone that you only paid $200 for.
Personally it seems like a better deal not to invest in a plan, and just go with a solid case and some good luck. At the worst case scenario you lose or break your phone entirely and are forced to ride out the rest of your contract without help from your carrier. In this situation there are plenty of low budget phones that can help you ride the rest of those two years out. You can get an Android smart phone for around $100 these days which can easily make it until your contract is up.
Easy to protect and repair
Every mobile is prone to get damaged, that’s just a fact of life. The most common problem for smart phones is the touch screen issues. Dropping your phone even from waist high can have unfortunate consequences and crack your screen. There are plenty of heavy duty cases out there that can withstand falls from great heights. Worst case scenario you can get the screen repaired. Kits are sold on eBay for fairly cheap and Youtube videos describe exactly how to repair them.
Water damage is another big one, but it’s far easier to protect against it than to fix it. There are a variety of cases that offer water proofing, and even some phones that offer it off the factory line. However, Liquipel is a service that will waterproof all your devices from tablets to smart phones. This is the idea solution and rather than getting a waterproof case, you can just seal it with a special chemical that they use.