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Frequently asked questions

Frequently Asked Questions

When you're looking for insurance, we know that there's lots of information to consider before you choose to buy a policy. We've pulled together the most common queries from our years of experience. If your question doesn't appear below, please don't hesitate to get in touch.

Looking for our business FAQs? Click here.

great value mobile phone insurance

Mobile phone insurance

It is important to ensure you take out appropriate cover to suit your individual needs, and is why we've chosen to offer two policy cover levels.
Each of our mobile phone insurance policies have a series of benefits which come as standard:

• We provide accidental damage cover so that if you accidentally drop your phone, crack the screen or damage the LCD, you are covered.
• You're also covered in case of malicious damage and liquid damage to your device.
• We'll help you if your phone develops a fault or suffers a mechanical breakdown. After your warranty has expired.
• We also cover your phone accessories up to £150.
• Unlimited Worldwide Insurance Cover.
• We offer cover for you & your immediate family when using the handset.

For complete peace of mind our Full Cover policy also insures you against loss, theft, unauthorised mobile payments (up to £100) and unauthorised calls/messages/downloads (up to £1,000). You also get unlimited claims as standard across both policies.

Check out the Insurance Product Information Documents in the comparison table for full details of what is included, and for information about what is not covered.

With an Insurance2go policy, our overseas cover comes as standard across both our individual and business insurance policies.

For individuals, we offer the added benefit of unlimited overseas cover – other insurers may put a limit on this. The only limitation on this is that your home address needs to be in the UK. All our other policy benefits (e.g. family usage) also apply whilst you’re away.

Some of the main UK banks and building societies include phone or gadget insurance within their packaged bank accounts. This is where you pay them an additional monthly fee for value added benefits.

Whilst this is a great way to protect your device without paying for a separate policy, you may wish to check out the level of protection to ensure you are satisfied with the level of cover it provides.

Whilst we can help bring peace of mind when it comes to protecting your phone, there are some things you can do to keep your device safe, for example, purchasing a sturdy case for your phone can help protect it against bumps and scrapes.

Additionally, when taking your device anywhere with you, you should keep it hidden and out of sight in your bag or pocket to deter pickpockets. You should never leave your phone unattended or in the possession of people you do not know or trust. If you must leave your device in the car, ensure your phone is in an enclosed storage compartment, boot or luggage space and all doors and windows are closed.

We also recommend that you regularly back up your device. Should the worst happen and you lose, or have your phone stolen, your contacts, messages, emails and photos will be up to date to the point you last backed up your phone.

It’s important to check the terms & conditions before choosing the correct policy for you. Your mobile insurance policy should reflect your lifestyle and have the appropriate level of cover for your device.

If you travel often to foreign countries, make sure your policy covers either the world or the country you are traveling too. There may also be limitations in the number of days your phone can be out of the country. Read the following to tips before choosing which policy is correct for you.

• Intentional Damage. This may seem obvious however, you cannot claim for repairs if you purposely damaged your own phone.


• Theft while unattended. Whilst certain policies cover for theft, you may sometimes not be covered if you have left your phone unattended, maybe in a coffee shop or on the train. It’s worth checking with individual insurers.


• A lost SIM Card. Mobile phone insurance doesn’t typically cover lost SIM cards. You should get in touch with your network provider to organise a replacement.


• Reporting Lost or Stolen. If your phone has been stolen in the UK or abroad, you must report your phone as being stolen with the police. You can do this online or at a local Police station. If you don’t complete this step it’s likely your claim will be declined. Delays reporting your loss can sometimes mean you are not covered. Check with your provider or review the Terms of Insurance to get the full picture.

If you've lost, or had your phone stolen, your first port of call should be to notify the police - particularly if its the latter. Being able to access the photos you've taken on your missing handset will depend on two things:

1) If you automatically send your photos to cloud storage. This will likely be either Google Drive for Android handsets, or iCloud for Apple. If you set up your phone to do this, you should be able to see all images by logging into your Google Drive or iCloud account.

2) If you don't use cloud storage (if you take loads of photos it would likely mean paying for it), retrieving your photos will be difficult unless you regularly back up your device. Regular back ups mean your photos, messages, emails and contacts will be stored either in your cloud service, or on a PC or Laptop.

Most policies will stipulate at the point of purchase that you agree that the handset is free from damage and is in your possession. In any event, in order for a claim to be considered, the incident must occur during the period of insurance, so must not already have occurred when taking out any associated insurance.

The cost to insure a mobile phone will generally vary from insurer to insurer. A key part of the policy price will be how much your phone is worth at the point of purchase. If for example, you buy the latest handset, the likelihood is that the cost to insure will be higher because the phone is worth more at that point.

You may wish to compare prices from different suppliers, and also take into account that the level of cover is what you are looking for. Most policies will insure against damage, with the option of also including cover against Loss and / or Theft.

There is no real sure fire way to say which insurance is best as you will need to consider your own needs for the policy, i.e. what you want protection against. Weigh this up against other important factors such as the price and policy term.

You may also want to look at an insurers brand reputation - what do their customers say, and how competent are they in terms of their claims process.

As long as your phone is under 36 months in terms of age, with Insurance2go, your cover will begin as soon as you have purchased your policy.

You can cancel your policy at any time. If you cancel your policy within the initial 14-day cooling-off period, you will receive a full refund of all premiums paid provided that you have not made a claim. If you cancel your policy after the 14-day cooling-off period and you pay your premium monthly, there will be no refund of premium because you will only have paid for the cover you have already received.

If you cancel your policy after the 14-day cooling-off period and you pay your premium annually, you will receive a proportionate refund of the annual premium you have paid, provided that no claim has been made.

Each of our policies cover the insured device when it is used by a family member, although the policyholder will need to be over the age of 18.

Citymain Administrators Ltd is the company who looks after our mobile phone and gadget insurance schemes. They work on behalf of the Underwriter to take payments from you and also process any claims you make on your policy.

Both Insurance2go and Citymain are part of a group of companies owned by SPB UK & Ireland Limited. This means from the point of purchase, through to your claim and repair, you are dealing with the same business.

A policy excess is standard for most types of insurance policy. It is a payment you usually make as your financial contribution to the claim you are making.

The excess amount is shown when you get a quote for your device on our website and it is also confirmed in your certificate of Insurance once you have purchased the cover.

As with traditional insurance such as your car or home insurance, we auto-renew your policy every 12 months if you have an annual policy. We write to you at least 30 days prior to your renewal to let you know your options.

If you have a monthly policy, this will be on a rolling monthly basis unless cancelled by you or us. You will receive an annual statement to remind you of the details of your cover.

If you purchase an annual policy from us, it will auto-renew on its anniversary. We will contact you by email at least 30 days prior to advise you that your policy will renew, at which point you can make a decision on whether you wish to keep it or cancel it.  You can also cancel or update your policy at any time.

For Monthly policyholders, you can keep your policy active as long as you wish - as long as you continue to pay your premium. Again, you have the option to cancel at any time.

Unfortunately, we are unable to insure a device that is purchased outside the UK.

If you buy a non-UK device from a retailer in the UK, we would insure it. However, should you then make a claim on this device, any potential replacement would be replaced with a UK model.

Each of our gadget insurance policies will cover you, the policy holder, and your immediate family who live at your home address which you provide when buying your policy.

If you change your device and wish to have it insured, you will need to tell us and we will consider transferring your policy to include your new phone, otherwise we will only be able to insure your original device. Please note that if you have upgraded to a more modern phone, there may be a change in premium.

Unfortunately not. We are only able to provide gadget insurance to individuals who reside in the UK.

Separate cover can be taken for all devices wishing to be covered. We are however continually refining our offering and may be able to provide this in the future.

To make a claim, you can use our simple online claims portal which is available 24 hours a day. You can also use it to track the status of your claim at a time convenient to you.

Claims Portal 

Alternatively, you can contact the Citymain claims team directly:

By phone: 0333 999 7905 (local rate call, 9am – 5.30pm Monday – Saturday).
By email: claims@citymain.com (9am – 5.30pm Monday – Saturday)
By post: Citymain Administrators Ltd, 3000 Lakeside, North Harbour, Western Road, Portsmouth, PO6 3FQ

The information we require when you make a claim will differ depending on the type of claim you are making.

It is standard across all claims that you will need to provide us with proof of purchase for your mobile phone. The proof of purchase must provide evidence that you own the phone and that the phone is less than 36-months old from the time the policy begins. It must also include the make, model and IMEI number of your mobile phone.

If you do not possess or were never issued with a receipt for your mobile phone because they were provided free as part of a contract, e.g. through a mobile phone service provider, you will need to provide evidence of the original order and/or contract under which the mobile phone was supplied.

Unfortunately, if you cannot provide evidence of proof of purchase, your claim may be rejected.

For loss and theft claims, in addition to your proof of purchase, you will also need to supply us with a proof of usage - which can be retrieved from your network provider and a loss or theft report. These can be filed with your local police station. 

If you are making a claim for an incident which happens overseas, we will need information such as copies of your travel documents.

We aim to assess your claim within 2 working days, although we often turn around our assessments quicker than this. You can use our 24-hour claims portal to track the status of your claim.  Click here to start your claim - www.eclaimcity.co.uk

We keep you informed of the progress of your claim at each step of the process. These communications are usually sent by email – you may need to check your Junk Folders if you haven’t received anything from us.

Once your claim has been assessed and authorised, we will send you an email with instructions of how to pay your excess. You can pay for your policy excess online using the instructions provided, or you can call us to settle this amount which will vary depending on the value of the device insured.

With Insurance2go, there are no limits to the number of claims you can make whilst your cover is in place.

We believe you deserve a courteous, fair and prompt service. If there is any occasion when our service does not meet your expectations, please contact us using the appropriate contact details below and provide the policy/claim number and your name to help us deal with your comments quicker.

Claims or service-related complaints:

Citymain Administrators Limited,
3000 Lakeside, North Harbour,
Western Road,
Portsmouth,
PO6 3FQ

Telephone: 0333 999 7905 (local rate call)
Email: info@insurance2go.co.uk

Following our complaints procedure does not affect your legal rights as a consumer. For further information, you can contact the Citizens Advice Bureau or Trading Standards.

If we have not completed our investigations into your complaint within 8 weeks of receiving your complaint or if you are not happy with our Final Response, you may ask the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) to look at your complaint.

If you decide to contact them, you should do so within 6 months of receiving our Final Response Letter.

For more information regarding the scope of the Financial Ombudsman Service please refer to www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk.

The Financial Ombudsman Service,
Exchange Tower, London E14 9SR
Tel: 0800 023 4567

Get in touch online 

If you have purchased the insurance policy online, you may also raise your complaint via the Online Dispute Resolution Portal which can be found here

This will forward your complaint to the correct Alternative Dispute Resolution scheme. For insurance complaints in the UK this is the Financial Ombudsman Service. However, this may be a slower route for handling your complaint than if you contact the Financial Ombudsman Service directly.

Once your claim is approved and your item is received, please allow 5-7 working days for us to repair and return the device to you.

Obviously, we fully appreciate what it’s like to be without your phone and we do try to repair and return your device as quickly as possible.

Once your claim is approved, please allow 3-5 working days for us to replace your item.

We will endeavour to replace your item with an identical fully refurbished item, (or new where a refurbished item is not available) of the same condition as your own.

However, in the unlikely event this is not possible, we will provide you with a fully refurbished item (or new where a refurbished item is not available) of a comparable specification or the equivalent value taking into consideration the age and condition of the item prior to your claim.

Yes – wherever possible we will supply the same make and model as you had prior to your claim, although this cannot be guaranteed.

We will let you know when organising your replacement whether we have it in stock, and if not, a potential turnaround time to get you a replacement device. At this point we can discuss alternative options in relation to colours / sizes should you want a quicker turnaround.

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