A new cellphone is an important investment. For most of us, it will serve as our primary communications tool, and even as an entertainment provider, for at least a few years. That means that, like any other investment, it’s important to protect it.
Adding a protection plan for your device is a great way to ensure peace of mind. Just like having insurance on your home or your car, you’re protected against the unexpected: drops, spills, or other accidents that could otherwise leave you with a broken phone and a big repair (or replacement) bill.
Depending on the type of device, Consumer Cellular offers two types of plans. For those who use a flip phone, Android smartphone, or GrandPad tablet, coverage can be added at any time within 30 days of purchase through My Account online or by calling (888) 345-5509. A SquareTrade protection plan starts as low as $2 a month, and covers all manufacturing or mechanical failures that occur after the manufacturer’s warranty has expired.
It’s important to note that a SquareTrade plan only covers accidental damage and malfunctions, not loss or theft. You’re covered for cracked screens, liquid damage, and accidents. All claims include a deductible that ranges from $25 – $99 depending on the price of your phone. Plans include one claim per year. If you need to make a second claim within a 12-month period, it will be allowed, but your plan will end after the second claim. Once your claim is approved, you will be offered a fast, convenient solution that gets you back up and running quickly, including same-day repairs (in most areas), mail-in repair, or having your phone replaced.
iPhone users have 60 days after purchase to add coverage under AppleCare Plus. Every iPhone comes with a standard one-year warranty from Apple and 90 days of tech support. Adding AppleCare Plus extends the warranty for hardware and covers accidental damage for up to two years.
The cost of AppleCare Plus protection varies by device. For the fee, Apple covers up to two incidents of damage, such as a cracked screen, and adds another year of protection for mechanical failures. The plans don’t cover loss or theft. You’ll have to pay a $29 deductible to fix screen damage and $99 for other types of damage, plus tax. Repairs can be done at an Apple store, at an authorized dealer, or by mail.
Don’t let an accident spoil your enjoyment of your new phone! Add a protection plan instead. You can add a protection plan to your new device when checking out on our website, or by calling Customer Service at (888) 345-5509.
Would like the $2.00 extra a month for phone protection on my new phone
Hi Lyndelle, if you purchased your phone within the last 30 days, then you can have the protection plan added by calling our customer service team at 888-345-5509.
I had expected to pay on my account today but my account shows $18.13 in brackets and that my account is paid in full. Does this mean that the $18.13 is going to be used to pay the $ 14.25 that I owe for this month?
Hi Marion, if you have an account balance in brackets, like “($18.13)”, that means you have a credit of that amount on your account. That credit would go towards your next bill.
Have CC a station at Miami-Dade South west.
My wife got the small one at Sears,do you continue having service at the same place ?
If not what other places can be seen,around Zip code 33177,or WestKendall.
Thank You
Hi Juan, thank you for posting. The nearest retail partner we have to 33177 is a Target store at the following address: 20500 SW 112th Ave Miami, FL 33189. You can also find all of our retail partners here.
My battery for my J3 phone is bad now. Where do I get a replacement?
Hi Patricia, thanks for your post. Since the manufacturer does not supply us with replacement batteries, we’re not able to sell them to our customers. We would be happy to troubleshoot the issue with you though if you’d like to give us a call at 888-548-6490 or chat with us here for further assistance. Otherwise, you can see if there is one available via a third party seller. Please be advised though that purchasing a new battery does void out the one-year warranty we offer for our phones.
Since I have a possibly related problem, I would like to reply with a comment, too, please. Does the J3 Phone warranty include the battery. You point out to the customer that the phone has a one year warranty. A battery should last beyond one year, should it not? If so, and your customer records would indicate whether or not the phone is within that one year period, it would seem normal to 1) replace the whole phone or 2) have the manufacturer drop-ship a battery directly. If I remember correctly, the J3 has a removable, replaceable battery. I have been having some intermittent problems with my less-than-one-year old CC phone, and am about to contact CC about it, but have not isolated the problem yet.
Hi Bob, all of our factory-new phones come with a 1-year manufacturer’s warranty. This allows the phone to be replaced if a defect is found and the phone is still in like-new condition. We do not receive replacement batteries from the manufacturer, so in the event that there is an issue with the battery, the whole device would be replaced instead.
Before any device can be replaced as part of the manufacturer’s warranty, all related troubleshooting needs to be completed with an agent. This is why we ask that anyone experiencing issues with their phone contact our customer service team to troubleshoot the issue.
My husband dropped his phone today and cracked screen won’t even come on. Can I get it fixed or replaced?
Hi Vickie, thanks for your post, but I’m sorry to hear about your husband’s phone! I see that you were able to speak with our agent yesterday and went over the options for the phone. Since there isn’t an active protection plan, you can take it to a third party option to see about repairing the screen, otherwise, a new phone can be purchased to replace it. If you have any questions just let us know!
Can I keep the same phone number? Vickie
You can, Vickie. The number just needs to be active, and your current account information will be needed. This includes your account number, address, and account PIN (if there is one).
H0w do we make a claim under Square Trade? (cracked screen)
Hi Eric, you can call SquareTrade at 877-927-7268 to file a claim.
Not happy with the amount of time it took to actually (3 days) to ship,
phone. Order set at USPS portland or. from Monday till Saturday before finding out, pk may be in transit?
It would be nice to deal with a company that has the ability to actually deliver when they say they will.
What happened to integrity?
Hi Lucas, while sometimes there can be a shipping delay, our records show that your order was delivered within 3-5 business days from the order date, which is normal with our standard shipping.
I have the protection plan and I cracked my phone I just purchased, how do I go about replacing the screen?
Hi Erica, thanks for your question. I’m sorry to hear about your phone! You can reach out to SquareTrade and file a claim by giving them a call at 1-877-927-7268 or you can also do it by going online to their website here.
Does the Apple Care protection plan cover water damage?
Hi Jan, great question, thanks for asking! The AppleCare+ that is available for the phone does cover the phone in the case of accidental damage such as water damage.
Does Consumer Cellular offer protection plans for phones that are already owned by a new phone service customer? In my case, I own an iPhone 8 Plus.
Hi Brenda, that’s a great question. We are only able to offer protection plans for our phones. For your iPhone, you can check with Apple or SquareTrade directly to see if it is able to be covered.
Hahahahahaha black dogs are beautiful!!
Hi, I have been with Consumer Cellular for many years, have four lines, and have purchased at least 6 phones if not more. I have spent a lot of money with CC and have referred many people. I have always been more than happy with the service. However I have recently realized there is a problem that I hope you can fix. Prior to having service with CC I always kept insurance on all of my phones just incase of an accident but have never had to use it. That’s what I thought I had on my phones at CC all these years. I don’t really look at my detailed billing since it comes out of my account monthly. I have an iPhone x (recently bought 2 IPhone 11’s for my kids), and I pay for my mom’s line which is an IPhone 8+. Unfortunately I dropped my phone in cement and messed up the LCD even though it has a case and a screen protector (the iPhone X). I looked at the CC app to see how much I would have to pay to get it fixed and realized my phone no longer has insurance on it. I did call and speak with a customer service rep and little did I know that I never had “insurance” on our phones all this time. She informed me that I only had “Apple Care+” which only covers the phone for an extra year after the phones warranty expires but you pay for it for two years. In my past experiences I have just purchased insurance that had no expiration date no matter how old the phone was (as long as I was paying for the insurance), and if something happened to the phone it was fixed or replaced. I truly wish I had known that I did not have insurance and CC does not have insurance for phones. I cannot see my screen as I am typing because it has multiple lines going through it. I already have 2 phones on my purchasing agreement therefore I am just out of luck with no phone. I think this should be made very clear to customers so people will realize they are not covered after two years. I have thoroughly enjoyed being a loyal customer at CC and I think they are a great company, I take full responsibility for this. However when I became a customer approximately 6-7 years ago I do not remember this being an issue or being made clear to me. Unfortunately I will more than likely have to transfer my service to another company (and let them buy out the remaining 2 phone contracts) in order for me to be able to get a new or working phone. Due to the pandemic I cannot afford to purchase another one from CC right now and without the insurance that I thought I had, I see that as my only option. So please consider adding insurance so this doesn’t happen to anyone else and so you don’t lose another loyal customer. Thank you
Hi Jamie, thank you for taking the time to post. We’re not able to add a protection plan onto a line once that order is older than 30 days, and we can’t renew the AppleCare+ plan as they don’t give us an option to do so. In this case, a new phone would need to be purchased in order to get it replaced.
If I utilized the Bring Your Own Device program to use an unlocked phone for my service, would I be able to cover it with the insurance?
That’s a great question, Damian! We’re not able to offer a protection plan for a phone that isn’t purchased from us directly.
Dropped my new flip phone into a cup of coffee. I purchased the added protection .. Is my phone covered ?
Hi Grant, thanks for your question! I’m sorry to hear about what happened with your phone. If you have an active protection plan for your phone, then it does cover the phone in that case.
My phone will not charge where do I take it to get it repaired
Hi Durk, while we don’t have a repair center, you can give us a call at 888-345-5509 or chat with us here and we’ll be happy to help.
I have insurance, how long will I be without my phone if I send it back to you
Hi Karl, thanks for your question. If you need to file a claim with Allstate for replacing the phone, you will actually need to contact them directly to set that up. We won’t be able to send out a new phone until that is completed and sent over to us. You can reach out to them at 1-877-927-7268, or via their website here. You would keep your existing phone and be able to use it while we get the new phone shipped out to you.
Can we cancel the insurance on our phone?
Hi Karla, thanks for your question. You can cancel that insurance option. You can do so by giving us a call at 800-686-4460 or chat with one of our agents on our website here to follow up.
I broke my phone screen when I dropped it on the floor
That’s definitely frustrating, Daniel! We’d be happy to see if we have an active protection plan for your account for you if you’d like. Give us a call at 800-686-4460 or chat with one of our live agents on our website here to follow up on that.
I need to get a replacement phone and I already have the All-State insurance. However, I keep getting a message that calling the number listed for contact cannot be reached.
Hi Donna, thanks for your post. For your protection plan, make sure you are dialing 1-877-927-7268 to reach the correct spot. You can also go online to file a claim by going to Allstate’s website here.