Smartphone customers are using every trick in the book to get phone insurance claims paid

TELCOS including Vodafone, Optus and Telstra are being inundated with some weird and wacky smartphone insurance claims.

DROPPING a smartphone in a coffin and refusing to fish it out or a rogue monkey running off with a device are among the weird and wacky new excuses made on Australian insurance claims.

Some of the nation’s largest telcos are being inundated by hopeful customers with bizarre stories seeking to have their device replaced at minimal or no cost.

Vodafone said it had heard plenty of extraordinary tales including one customer who was taking selfies with a monkey in Bali only for the monkey to get the upper hand and take off with the device.

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In an even more unusual claim, a customer dropped their phone in a coffin but was too petrified to put their hands in and retrieve it so left it there.

Another customer said they had put their phone in a microwave to dry; yet another put theirs in a freezer to try and cool it down.
Despite many strange claims being lodged insurers have remained tight-lipped to whether customers were successful.

It’s understood that some do get paid, such as those where a monkey has snatched a device.

Telcos are being inundated with extraordinary smartphone insurance claims.

A Vodafone spokesman said water damage is one of the biggest cause of damage each year.

“Over 11 per cent of smartphones that are damaged each year are totally ruined by water damage so it’s a good idea to remember this when you take your phone into the shower,’’ he said.

“As many as one in 10 Australians have either damaged or broken a phone, so again having the appropriate damage or extensive cover could help reduce the repair or replacement costs involved, depending on the terms and conditions of the cover.”

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As many as one in 10 Australians have a damaged or broken smartphone.

Optus sees thousands of consumers optimise their insurance policies every year — about 20 per cent of their customers make a phone insurance claim. Holiday periods are the busiest.

Telco comparison website WhistleOut’s spokesman Joseph Hanlon said given the high cost of a smartphone, insurance is often necessary for consumers.

“Last year we saw Samsung and Apple offer phones that were $1500 and you have gone from insuring a device that you may have been able to afford to replace easily to devices that are very expensive,’’ he said.
“Sometimes it’s cheaper to take out insurance on portable devices on your contents insurance rather than taking out insurance direct with your telco.”

Replacing a smartphone can be expensive if you don’t have insurance.

Telstra’s head of mobiles Kevin Teoh said around 70 per cent of their claims relate to damaged screens as a result of drops or bumps.

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Originally published as Smartphone customers are using every trick in the book to get phone insurance claims paid