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SquareTrade Cell Phone Insurance Review

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Updated January 25, 2022
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9.2
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Cell phone insurance is one of those things that you’re never really sure whether you need or not, and because of this, most people don’t really tend to bother about it. This might be true if you’re walking around with a regular phone that’s relatively easy to replace in case of accidental damage, but if you’ve got yourself a top of the range device that you’d actually be scared of losing, then signing up for a protection plan should be a top priority. Many carriers offer a wide range of cell phone protection plans that you’d have to pay a premium per month for, but If you’re not quite satisfied with the cell phone protection & insurance plans that they have to offer, then a worthwhile alternative would be to look into third party insurers. Aftermarket insurers tend to offer some of the best cell phone insurance plans in the market, so if this is something that you’d like to look into, be sure to get to the end of this Squaretrade Cell Phone Insurance Review.

Why We Like It – SquareTrade Cell Phone Insurance

If you’ve traditionally stuck to your default phone carrier for your cell phone insurance, then you might be surprised to find out that there are actually great deals offered by third party insurers that you may not have heard about. As you’ll see in this Squaretrade Cell Phone Insurance review, there’s a lot that you might be missing out on. However, If you prefer to stick with insurance from the carrier, the Straight Talk Phone Insurance offers a good deal.

Pros
  • Cheaper than AppleCare+
  • Coverage for a wide range of consumer electronics also available
  • Continuous coverage when you upgrade phones
Cons
  • No loss or theft coverage

Coverage & Deductibles

The individual Squaretrade smartphone cover goes for $8.99 per month, and you can opt to buy coverage for up to 5 different phones under this package for the same price (for Sprint customers, check out the Sprint Complete Protection For Smartphone, if you are looking for a good deal). Alternatively, you can choose to go for the family smartphone protection plan, which is a bundle package where you’ll get coverage for upto 4 different phones at $19.99 monthly. These plans allow you to buy insurance for any old or new phone. With Squaretrade, you can opt to take up a one year plan for $89, a two year plan for $129, or a three year plan for $159, but regardless of the plan that you’ll sign up for, the deductibles remain the same at $99 per claim. You’ll get a $100 deductible with Akko Phone Insurance, but this scales down to $50 if you’re a student. There is an exception for select mobile phone screen repairs in particular markets, where there’s an in-home repair option that’s offered with a $25 deductible. In this case, you’ll either get a replacement phone, or get paid the value of your phone.

Backup Services

Squaretrade plans on mobile phone & device protection covers both mechanical and electrical issues that may come up with the use of your gadget. They’re quite different from other phone insurance providers in that they only cover accidental damage from handling, and not loss theft, or any additional accessories that may come with your phone. This means Squaretrade covers part of the cost of getting your phone’s cracked screen replaced, and on the upside, you’ll still be able to continue with a particular package when you upgrade your phone. The Geek Squad phone protection plan on the other hand does cover both loss & theft, so if this is a priority for you, then you should consider getting it.

Customer Service

Before you finalize your purchase, you will be offered the option to switch up to their more premium Phone Protection Plus coverage, which costs $12.99 per month for individual buyers, or $24.99 per month for family plan buyers. This plan covers everything included in the initial packages, plus Identity theft protection, Allstate Roadside Assistance, and Premium tech customer support. It still doesn’t cover loss, and in this way, it remains similar to what you’ll get from the protect your bubble phone insurance plan.

Security Features

Squaretrade inc has for the past few years remained ahead of the curve as far as smartphone protection is concerned. Their insurance plan is pretty well laid out, but you first have to decide whether you’re buying an individual plan or a family plan. Both plans cover accidental damage, and boast a turn around period of five days for repairing or replacing your device with a new phone. In case you have other consumer electronics that you’d also need covered, there are Squaretrade plans that you can look into, making them a one stop solution for your extended warranty needs.

Value

In our opinion, the additional benefits that you get under the Protection Plan Plus coverage that includes tech support, identity theft protection, roadside assistance make it well worth a $4 upgrade, but this will of course be based on your preferences. Overall, we also like that you can get your phone fixed at home thanks to in-house repair, but if not, then there’s also the option to have it fixed at the thousands of local repair shops that the company is connected to.

SquareTrade Cell Phone Insurance Wrap Up

Granted, we do see some of the ways that the insurance plans offered by Squaretrade may be difficult to wrap your head around, so best practice would be to call up customer service and have them explain to you anything that may not be as clear up to this point.

Bottom Line
Reader Rating2 Votes
3
What We Liked
What We Didn’t
9.2
Expert Rating