Chase Ink Business Preferred Cell Phone Protection: How This Useful Benefit Works

The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (learn more) is one of the all-around best business credit cards. There’s a lot to love about the card, from the huge welcome bonus, to the 3x points bonus categories, to the excellent rental car protection, to this being a good hub for the overall Chase business card ecosystem.

In this post, I’d like to specifically focus on one of my favorite benefits of the Ink Business Preferred, which is cell phone protection. How exactly does this handy coverage work?

Link: Learn more about the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

Chase Ink Preferred Card cell phone insurance

One of the most underrated benefits of the Ink Business Preferred Card is the cell phone protection it offers. Given how expensive smartphones are nowadays, this is a benefit that could prove especially beneficial for many. What makes this so great is that the card offers up to 3x Ultimate Rewards on cell phone spending, and on top of that, offers industry-leading protection.

What is the cell phone protection benefit?

With the Ink Business Preferred Card cell phone protection benefit, you can get up to $1,000 per claim in cell phone protection against covered theft or damage for you and your employees listed on your monthly cell phone bill. The Ink Business Preferred cell phone protection is supplemental to any other insurance you may have on your cell phone.

Here are some of the basic terms of the card’s cell phone protection:

• In order to take advantage of this, you need to pay your cell phone bill using the Ink Business Preferred Card
• You’re limited to three claims in a 12 month period
• There’s a $100 deductible per claim
• You can receive up to $3,000 in cell phone protection annually

Who is eligible for the cell phone protection benefit?

To be eligible, you need to charge your monthly cell phone bill to the Ink Business Preferred Card. The coverage is effective the day following your cell phone monthly bill payment, and remains in effect until the last day of the calendar month following the payment.

You don’t receive this benefit if you pay your monthly cell phone bill with another card. However, there’s no requirement to have actually purchased your phone with this card.

Does the protection benefit cover cosmetic damage?

When it comes to cell phone protection offered through credit cards, one common question is whether cosmetic damage is covered or not, and in particular, if cracked screens are covered. In the case of the Ink Business Preferred Card, cosmetic damage to the phone, or damage that doesn’t impact the phone’s capabilities and functionalities, isn’t covered.

So whether or not something is covered depends on whether it impacts the phone’s usability or not.

What isn’t covered with the cell phone protection benefit?

The following are some of the things not covered as part of the Ink Business Preferred Card cell phone benefit (I’m copying this from the benefits guide, to be thorough):

• Cellular wireless telephone accessories other than standard battery and/or standard antenna provided by the manufacturer
• Cellular wireless telephone purchased for resale
• Cellular wireless telephones that are lost or “mysteriously disappear” (meaning the vanishing of an item in an unexplained manner where there is absence of evidence of a wrongful act by a person or persons)
• Cellular wireless telephone under the care and control of a common carrier (including, but not limited to, U.S. Postal Service, airplanes, or delivery service)
• Cellular wireless telephone stolen from baggage unless hand-carried and under Your personal supervision, or under the supervision of Your traveling companion who is previously known to You
• Cellular wireless telephone which has been rented, leased, borrowed or cellular wireless telephones that are received as part of a pre-paid wireless service plan or “pay as you go” type service plans
• Cosmetic damage to the cellular wireless telephone or damage that does not impact the cellular wireless telephone’s capabilities and functionalities of the phone
• Damage or theft resulting from abuse, intentional acts, fraud, hostilities of any kind (including, but not limited to, war, invasion, rebellion, or insurrection), confiscation by the authorities, risks of contraband, illegal activities, normal wear and tear, flood, earthquake, radioactive contamination, or damage from inherent product defects
• Damage or theft resulting from misdelivery or voluntary parting with the cellular wireless telephone
• Replacement cellular wireless telephone not purchased from a cellular service provider’s retail or Internet store, (for example: Verizon Wireless, Sprint Wireless, etc.) or from an authorized cellular phone retailer
• Taxes, delivery and transportation charges, and any fees associated with the cellular service provider

How do you file a claim for the cell phone protection benefit?

To start the process of filing a claim with the Ink Business Preferred Card cell phone protection benefit, you’ll want to call the benefit administrator within 60 days of the incident. After you call you’ll be sent the claim form, which must be completed within 90 days of the incident.

You’ll need copies of your card statement reflecting your monthly cell phone bill payments during the time of the damage, and a store receipt for the purchase of your replacement cell phone, if applicable.

Depending on the circumstances, you’ll then either have your phone repaired or replaced, or will be reimbursed for the lesser of $1,000 (minus the $100 deductible) or the current suggested retail price of a replacement phone that’s a similar quality to what you have. Reimbursement should occur within 10 business days of the approval of your claim.

What’s the best credit card for cell phone coverage?

How does the Ink Business Preferred Card cell phone coverage compare to what’s offered by other major credit cards? Nowadays there are a decent number of credit cards offering cell phone protection. Generally speaking, there are a few key things to consider when comparing these plans:

• What’s the maximum amount of money you can get with a cell phone protection claim? This generally ranges from $800 to $1,000 per claim
• What’s the deductible each time you make a cell phone protection claim? This is generally $50 or $100
• How many claims can you make per year? Sometimes there’s a limit of two claims per year, and sometimes there’s a maximum total annual dollar value
• What’s covered with the cell phone protection benefit? Sometimes cracked screens and cosmetic damage are covered, while other times they aren’t

While you’ll want to consult cardmember benefits, broadly speaking:

• Amex cards with cell phone coverage have an $800 maximum per claim, a $50 deductible, and cover cracked screens, but not other cosmetic damage
• Capital One cards with cell phone coverage have an $800 maximum per claim, a $50 deductible, and cover damage that impact the phone’s usability

The catch is that many of the other good cards for cell phone protection don’t offer any bonus rewards for your cell phone bill. Personally I think the Chase Ink Business Preferred is the most well-rounded card for paying your cell phone bill:

• You can earn 3x Ultimate Rewards points for paying your cell phone bill, which I value at a 5.1% return (I consider Chase points to be worth 1.7 cents each)
• You get fantastic cell phone coverage worth up to $1,000 per claim, which compares favorably to most other cards offering up to $800 per claim in protection; while there’s a $100 deductible rather than the $50 deductible offered by some other cards, that should be worth it for the additional $200 in coverage

Bottom line

The Ink Business Preferred Card is a fantastic business credit card and offers a compelling cell phone protection plan.

The benefits are fairly straightforward, though the main things to keep in mind are that the benefit only applies to you and your employees, and you need to charge the cell phone bill to your credit card. If you meet the terms, this could easily be one of the most valuable credit card perks out there.

Personally, I charge my monthly cell phone bill to the Ink Business Preferred, given that it not only offers great coverage but also offers 3x points on cell phone spending.

Do you charge your cell phone bill to the Chase Ink Preferred? Have you ever used the coverage?