A couple of years ago, we got a new phone at Best Buy and they urged us to get the GeekSquadPlan Warranty for $9.99 a month. We were told that if anything happens to the phone (lost, stolen, damaged … anything), it will be replaced. “Really, anything? You mean if it’s dropped and the screen breaks, you’ll replace it?” we ask. “That’s right.”
Sounded like a decent plan, so we went for it. Now we’ve been paying $9.99 a month on our Best Buy bill for about 2 years and guess what, the screen cracked when the phone was dropped. So …. we walk into Best Buy and ask for it to be fixed or replace.
BUT WAIT …
Turns out there is a $150.00 deductible we were never told about. Now, we’re fairly careful people when it comes to signing contracts. We read them and we have lawyers read them if we’re not quite sure what they mean. But when you’re standing in a Best Buy store and the guy says they’ll replace the phone if anything happens to it and then there’s a little spot on a tiny checkout screen with a check box next to it asking if you agree, are you really going to say, “Hold on a minute, let me have my lawyer read this?”
But it gets worse. Having been scammed already by Best Buy and GeekSquad, we decided to check the fine print on-line for other protection plans and for the $8.00/month phone lease plans you can get through various carriers. As we expected, all of them have complex paragraphs that basically say you are gonna pay full price for this phone (around $600) unless you return it in 2 years in perfect condition.
Do you know anybody with a 2-year-old phone in perfect condition?
Caveat Emptor!
Good Morning Gloucester 
Damn the fine print gets many and need a magnifying glass to read it! Been there before my self have them put it in writing signed sealed delivered! :-O Dave
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I USE SQUARE TRADE….5.00 A MONTH 50.00 DEDUCT…HAD 1 GO UNDER & 50 BUCKS & 2 DAYS LATER A NEW PHONE( REMAN ) BUT STILL REPLACED BEST WARRENTY I HAVE FOUND
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Excellent advice. See their website here: http://www.squaretrade.com/. Thanks for this!
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Good input. Thx
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Thanks for the info on Square trade. Unfortunately, it doesn’t cover loss/theft, and the deductible is more than Assurion which is now going up to $12./month per phone. My husband dropped his new Galaxy in a snowbank last year. It was never found (by us). It cost $150 to replace it – at least we didn’t have to buy a new phone. Had good luck with our purchase at Costco.
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Hmmmmm… Looks like the lesson is more research needed …
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I hope you complained to the owner or the store manager. worst customer service.
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