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Mobile phone and gadget insurance

Last updated: 28 July 2022

On this page

  1. Types of complaint we see
  2. How to complain
  3. What we look at
  4. Putting things right
  5. Case studies
  6. Information for financial businesses

Mobile phone and gadget insurance usually protects you against things like:

  • accidental loss
  • accidental damage
  • theft

You’re normally only covered for damage that stops the phone or gadget working, not cosmetic damage.

Types of complaint we see

Customers often complain to us that the:

  • policy was mis-sold
  • policy wording was misleading
  • insurer refused to pay the claim
  • policy continued beyond the phone contract
  • policy was automatically renewed
  • replacement is a refurbished phone or gadget and not a brand new one

How to complain

Talk to your insurer first. They need to have the chance to put things right. They have to give you their final response within eight weeks for most types of complaint.

If you’re unhappy with their response, or if they don’t respond, let us know. We’ll check your complaint is something we can deal with, and if it is, we’ll investigate to understand what happened and what went wrong.

Find out more about how to complain.

What we look at

To help us consider a complaint fairly, we’ll ask you to provide some information. We’ll make our decision about what happened using evidence provided by you, the financial business and any relevant third parties. In reaching a decision, we consider:

  • the relevant law
  • any regulations that applied at the time
  • any industry codes of conduct in force at the time
  • the terms and conditions of the policy

Putting things right

If we decide you’ve been treated the unfairly, or the insurer made a mistake, we’ll ask them to put things right. Our general approach is that you should be put back in the position you would have been in if the problem hadn’t happened. For example, we may ask the insurer to:

  • make the necessary repairs – it’s important to note that policies don’t always cover a repair by the manufacturer
  • replace the mobile phone or gadget
  • offer a cash settlement

A cash settlement will generally be the cost of replacing the phone or gadget with one of the same age and condition. The replacement will come from a reputable source. It might not come from the manufacturer directly.

If we think the policy was mis-sold, we’ll normally tell the company responsible for the sale to refund the premiums you’ve paid – with interest.

We may also ask them to compensate you for any distress or inconvenience you’ve experienced as a result of the problem.

Case studies

A consumer’s claim was declined because her insurer said she didn’t ‘own’ the phone

Sadia contacted us after her insurer declined a claim she made on her mobile phone insurance policy when her phone had been stolen.

Mobile Phone Insurance

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Consumer complains that a cash settlement is not enough

Raju made a claim on his mobile phone insurance policy when he lost his phone. The insurer couldn't find the exact replacement so they offered a cash settlement. Unhappy with the outcome, Raju contacted our service for help.

Mobile Phone Insurance

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Consumer unhappy with insurer’s decision to decline claim

David was unhappy that his insurer declined his claim for a lost mobile phone. The insurer said it had evidence to show that David had acted fraudulently.

Mobile Phone Insurance

Read more 

Information for financial businesses

If you’re a business looking for information to help you resolve complaints or want to find out more technical information, you can find more detail about mobile phone and gadget insurance on our dedicated information page for businesses.