Mobile Phone Insurance Get iPhone cover from £5/mth

No insult intended, but it's important to understand mobile phone insurance isn't compulsory, and often deciding whether to get a policy comes down to the fact that you know yourself better than the insurers do. In particular, think about these two issues…

• How likely are you to lose or damage your phone?

  If your mobile's been perpetually clipped to your belt buckle for the last 10 years, the chance you'll lose or break it are slim. Alternatively, for social butterflies who don't know where they'll wake up, a broken or damaged phone (and a hangover) is par for the course.
  
  It important to know yourself as then you can play the odds

Unlike most insurance, mobile insurance cost doesn't usually increase with a history of loss or damage. So those who rarely have issues are cross-subsidising losers

If you've painful memories of handsets lost, insurance is definitely worth considering. If not, one option for you is to consider self-insuring and or cover phones on home insurance tips.

Self-insuring SIM(ply) means rather than paying for insurance, you put money aside each month into a top savings account. This way if you lose the phone you've got cash to pay towards a replacement and if you don't, cash and the interest is yours rather than in insurer's pockets.

This method is great for those who rarely lose or damage phones — so consider your history — though it isn't without its risk.

• You might lose the phone before you've saved up enough.
  
  While the phone may've been a 'free' upgrade, modern smartphones can cost £100s to buy new when not subsidised by a contract cost, eg, £500 for an iPhone4S. Plus now-common 18- and 24-month deals mean you could be locked in to expensive contracts without a phone.
  
  So if you lose the phone early on it can be costly. In a nutshell, the more expensive your phone is to replace, the less self-insuring is worth it - or at least couple it with a budget insurance policy.

• You'll have to pay for fraudulent calls. While insurance protects you against phone thieves running up big bills, without it you have to shoulder the cost of calls made, and downloads of music, games etc made before a bar is put in place by your operator.
  
  So if you're self insuring, ensure to report the loss or theft of a phone asap - err on the side of caution (see how to protect yourself against fraud).

To find out how much you should be aiming to save up, either ask your contract provider how much it would charge for a replacement handset or research the costs of buying a new handset, perhaps via eBay* (see eBay buying secrets) or at a high street retailer like Carphone Warehouse.

How to cut the cost of replacement handsets

Short time left on contract? Consider new mobile deal

Compromise... Don't replace like for like

Flog broken phones to offset the cost

While most standard contents insurance only covers phones if they're lost in a home burglary or house fire, some add-ons give you much more, meaning there's no point buying specialist cover.

Check whether you've accidental damage cover - which lets you claim for phones damaged at home - and 'all risks' or 'personal possessions cover' - which protects you against loss, theft or accidental damage when expensive items are taken outside of the home. You'll pay around £25 to £35 a year on top of your annual premium to get this.

These sound great and can help cover your mobile (possibly alongside self-insuring) but if you're relying on it, always check...

• You'll need to pay an excess. On most mobile insurance policies below, excesses tend to be £25-50. However, if you're claiming on your home insurance this can be from £100 up to £500, in which case self-insuring may be better.

• You may lose your no claims discount (NCD). As any claim you make will be on your home insurance policy, it can harm your coveted no claims bonus — either partially or totally. If this happens, the effective cost of insuring a mobile this way shoots up.

• It may take time to replace the phone. Some phone providers can often courier you a new handset in hours or next day, but a home insurance claim can take several days if not longer, leaving you without a handset.

• Will it pay cash? In which case, will it be the market rate for your specific phone, new or old, or the cost of network replacement?
  
  
• Will unauthorised calls be covered? Highly unlikely so at least see the protect yourself against fraud section to minimise the risk.
  
  
• Will it replace lost music - games? It's not a universal part of home insurance, so you're better off backing up your downloads. However, some insurers will pay to replace lost music and apps downloaded, possibly up to a couple of grand — though not photos.

See our full Cheap Home Insurance guide for how to find the cheapest policy

While most top bank accounts are free, if you have a paid-for packaged accounts it can be worth it IF you use the products bundled with them. The big three 'freebies' are breakdown cover, travel insurance and.... (ta da) mobile phone insurance. However...

Don't assume your mobile is automatically covered, some banks require you to register the handset, always check...

However, just because the bank account covers your mobile, that doesnt mean you're getting a good deal. If the only real bonus you get is mobile phone insurance, compare the bank accounts cost to just getting insurance by itself. Some people are paying £30 a month to cover mobiles when they could get it for £5.

If it's not worth it, ditch to a fee-free bank account and cheap mobile insurance. However, it's worth noting...

If you have a joint account, it's likely to cover both partner's phones for one fee, so it can be good 2for1 cover.

All the mobile networks have their own insurance policies, and high street retailers Carphone Warehouse and Phones4U can sell you insurance too.

This isn't usually too cheap, but it is usually the quickest way to get a new phone super-quick and with minimum hassle — they all send replacement handsets, and not cash. So if you lose your phone a lot, and it's crucial for your work, it can be worth considering.

Here's a summary of the cheapest policies from network providers that cover you for losing your iPhone...

Though do try haggling at renewal to see if you can get the insurance thrown in free — see the Mobile haggling guide.

While your first instinct may be to sob uncontrollably, many MoneySavers report success from visiting your local Apple store to see if they can fix your favourite toy. You may need to book an appointment, and it's nowhere near a dead-cert that you'll walk away problem free, but for the cost of some shoe leather this is worth a try.

We haven't heard of successes from users of other pricey smartphones yet in other manufacturer's store yet - please feedback if you've had any experience of this.

You might think this would be simple, but how your phone gets replaced can vary between companies.

Most will deliver a replacement phone to you but you are NOT guaranteed a new phone or even the same model — it depends what they have in stock. If the insurer has your type of phone, you will most probably receive a refurbished/reconditioned phone or an alternative 'equivalent' model (taking into account its age and condition).

Alternatively, insurers may choose to give you a cash equivalent. As a rule, if they can't get you the same phone as your original, they should give you a call to discuss how you'd prefer to settle the claim.

If your phone is damaged and not lost or stolen, then if you're covered insurers will try to repair it rather than simply give you a replacement, so be prepared to be mobile-less for some time.

The 'excess' is the amount you'll have to pay toward the cost of a new phone, or repairs — then the insurer pays the rest. If the cost of repair or replacement is £100, and you have a £25 excess, the insurer will only pay £75.

Yet it often works differently to other common insurances, like home and car - where you will normally receive the amount of the claim, less the excess. For mobile insurance claims, you'll usually need to send the excess payment to the insurer before the claim will be settled.

Excesses vary depending on the phone, the type of claim and if you have made a previous claim with that provider — so do not presume the same excess always applies, it may increase for subsequent claims, or if you need to claim while abroad.

If you usually pay by instalments, some standalone insurers will ask for the remainder of the premium to be paid in full before they will settle a claim.

This differs massively from other insurance policies, but it doesn't affect your ability to claim on the policy for the rest of the year — if you lost your phone again, you could still claim (though some limit you to two claims per year). It is important to check though, as if this is hard for you to budget for, self-insuring may be better.

It isn't just your handset you need to think about if it's lost or stolen: don't forget the cost of rogue calls, and nowadays downloads of apps, can run into hundreds of pounds before you notice your handset has gone missing. Plus without a phone it can delay you from contacting your network provider to slap a bar on all outbound calls.

From that point, you'll usually be covered for the cost of unauthorised calls, but you'll usually need to have reported it missing within at least 24 hours, or even 12 with some insurers (eg, Insurance2go, Jump Money and Protect your bubble).

You also need to notify the Police if the phone is stolen or lost. Again, do this ASAP and ideally within 24 hours to avoid any difficulties when claiming.

While it's rude to ask how old a lady is — and sensitive men too! — your phone's age matters. Some insurers will only accept mobiles no older than 6 months but others insure handsets up to 3 years old, so check that yours is eligible before you buy.

Where the age of the hand holding the phone does matter is if it's a child — generally they won't be covered until they are at least 16, and maybe older. So again, don't buy cover if you won't be protected, and try self-insuring instead.

Unfortunately, the mobile insurance market is becoming well known for some providers erring on the side of NOT paying out, thinking up ever more slippery excuses why they don't owe you a new phone.

Some insurers refuse to pay out for theft as a phone was taken out of someone's pocket while at a busy gig - saying that this didn't count as robbery as no force was used...

Depending on the insurer, known exclusions can be a long list, but here are some of the biggies. You may not be covered…

• In the first 14 or 21 days of the policy
• If you try to pimp up your phone, and it gets damaged in the process.
• If you need to leave it in your car.
• If your IMEI number, effectively your phone's serial number, has been tampered with.
• If you have a computer virus on your phone (see Anti-virus for mobiles for how to prevent this for free)
• Data including contacts, downloads and photographs are not usually covered, so back up regularly for free.
• If you've lost your receipt.
• If you weren't showing reasonable care eg, it was left on a café table when it went missing.