Gadgets
Does home insurance cover a mobile phone?
The short answer
Inside your home, contents insurance usually covers a phone stolen in a break-in, and cracked screens only if you have accidental damage. Outside the home you need personal possessions cover — and many policies specifically exclude mobile phones from it.
Where the phone was matters
At home: theft after forced entry is covered; accidental damage needs the add-on. Simply losing it in the house is not usually covered.
Away from home: only personal possessions (also called 'all risks' or 'unspecified items away from home') responds — and mobile phones are a frequent carve-out.
The policies that beat home insurance
Gadget cover: designed for phones, usually covers accidental damage, liquid damage, theft and often loss worldwide, with a low excess and a short claim window — sometimes 48 hours for theft.
Travel insurance: covers theft and damage abroad, but single-item limits are low and unattended items are excluded.
Bank account packaged benefits: many current accounts include gadget or mobile cover that people forget they have.
Which to claim on first
Claim on the policy with the lowest excess and the highest single-item limit — usually gadget cover. Keep the others as a backup rather than claiming on two at once.
Report theft to the police within 24 hours and get a crime reference number; nearly every policy requires it. Blocking the IMEI with your network is often required too.
Check these on your own policy
- Crime reference number within 24 hours for theft
- Compare excesses across gadget, travel and contents
- Check the single-item limit against the handset value
- Check whether 'loss' as well as theft is covered
Common follow-up questions
Is a cracked screen covered?
Only under accidental damage or gadget cover. Standard contents insurance without the add-on will decline it.
Does it cover a phone on contract?
Yes, but the payout is for the handset. You still owe the airtime contract to your network.