Chase Ink Business Preferred Cell Phone Protection: How It Works

Chase Ink Business Preferred Cell Phone Protection: How It Works

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The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (review) 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 the card being a potential hub card for earning Chase Ultimate Rewards points.

In this post, I wanted 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?

Chase Ink Preferred Card cell phone insurance

One of my favorite 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.

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? I’d say the only real competitive business card with cell phone protection is The Business Platinum Card® from American Express (review), which offers up to $800 per claim with a $50 deductible, and a limit of two claims per year.

There are more personal cards that offer coverage, including:

For the Platinum Card …

Coverage for a Stolen or damaged Eligible Cellular Wireless Telephone is subject to the terms, conditions, exclusions and limits of liability of this benefit. The maximum liability is $800, per claim, per Eligible Card Account. Each claim is subject to a $50 deductible. Coverage is limited to two (2) claims per Eligible Card Account per 12 month period.

  • Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply.
  • Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details.
  • Underwritten by New Hampshire Insurance Company, an AIG Company.

Those are just a few of the best options for cards popular in the miles & points world. The catch is that those cards 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 particularly 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?

For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the above benefits are provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.

Conversations (10)
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  1. yoav Guest

    I was wondering if anyone had the chance to find out what happens to know if this benefit applies to cell phone bills outside United States if I'm an Expat. Would chase acknowledge and on US cellular phone bill as eligible for this benefits on my cell phone device? They state that the benefit is for cell phone bill they don't restrict it to cellular carriers in the United States but I would like to verify that. Thanks a lot for any information

  2. ree Guest

    I am on a family plan with 5 others and will start to pay my cell phones total on the Ink card now that I know about the protection benefit. If I need to submit a claim will I have issue as the entire cell phone bill is not paid via Ink, just my 1 phone line's total monthly amount? we have At&T.

  3. Mike Guest

    Where do you see $1000/claim. I’m seeing $600/claim.

    Thanks

  4. ZJ12 Guest

    I have used this benefit- coming back from Hawaii a few years ago, my iPhone suddenly stopped being able to receive a cell signal- apparently the phone took a jolt that damaged the internal antenna. I went to the Apple store to receive a printed estimate for repair (the suggested repair was to replace it with an apple refurb for $700 or so).

    Logged into the web portal for the insurance carrier, uploaded the...

    I have used this benefit- coming back from Hawaii a few years ago, my iPhone suddenly stopped being able to receive a cell signal- apparently the phone took a jolt that damaged the internal antenna. I went to the Apple store to receive a printed estimate for repair (the suggested repair was to replace it with an apple refurb for $700 or so).

    Logged into the web portal for the insurance carrier, uploaded the estimate along with the serial number, proof of purchase, copy of chase statements showing charges to Verizon, etc. I received funds within 5 days. The entire process was surprisingly easy, although they do want *lots* of information. I would suggest keeping a copy of the sticker from a new cell phone with the serial number & IMEI number, as well as the receipt from purchase.

  5. NYGuy24 Diamond

    "or the current suggested retail price of a replacement phone that’s a similar quality to what you have." What this suggests to me is if your phone is like more than a year old you aren't going to be able to replace it with the next generation and you may not get much money back. I figure at some point the value of your phone doesn't make it worth paying the bill with the credit...

    "or the current suggested retail price of a replacement phone that’s a similar quality to what you have." What this suggests to me is if your phone is like more than a year old you aren't going to be able to replace it with the next generation and you may not get much money back. I figure at some point the value of your phone doesn't make it worth paying the bill with the credit card that has the insurance if you have a better card to pay the bill with such as one of the 5x points ink cards. I'm not sure where the exact break point is but I know my phone is barely worth the deductible and I have had it for almost 2 years exactly.

    I do have a question though: does the insurance work if you have the phone on a payment plan? Like if I go into my phone carrier and I just have them charge me monthly payments for my phone as part of my bill will the insurance still work or do I need to pay the full price of the phone upfront?

  6. StarGoldUA Guest

    I filed a claim recently for a lost phone,
    I was told it didn’t qualify as it was past the 120 day purchase. I don’t see any of that in conditions but oh well !!

  7. John Richard Stewart Guest

    We have a large family plan, but would like to pay my portion on the card, but I think you have to pay the full bill. Correct?

    1. NYGuy24 Diamond

      Yes full bill for the month that you want covered

  8. Randall Guest

    I made a claim last year when my Google Pixel 4XL had a swelled battery and stopped wirelessly charging. I had the battery replaced at my local UBreakIFix (Assurion). Fortunately the mainboard was not damaged, or unfortunately because if it had been damaged the repair would have been for free. I filed a claim and completed all of the paperwork which went really smoothly EXCEPT that I forgot about the $100 deductible thinking that it...

    I made a claim last year when my Google Pixel 4XL had a swelled battery and stopped wirelessly charging. I had the battery replaced at my local UBreakIFix (Assurion). Fortunately the mainboard was not damaged, or unfortunately because if it had been damaged the repair would have been for free. I filed a claim and completed all of the paperwork which went really smoothly EXCEPT that I forgot about the $100 deductible thinking that it was $50. Well, the representative processing the claim said that because the repair bill was $99, it fell under the deductible. Oh well. The claim process went smoothly otherwise and I wouldn't complain. On the other hand I just purchased a Google Pixel 6 Pro and covered it with the Google Care plan ($10/mo) even though it will be covered by the Ink Business plan as a screen replacement is $49 walk-in repair through Google Care at an Assurion repair depot but $149 if not covered by Google Care. If the phone survives a few drops with the screen protector and case I have installed (lots of online evidence that it is easy to crack the screen) I will cancel the Google Care plan and revert to the Ink coverage as it will be the same out-of-pocket in the end.

  9. Steve Guest

    It would be great if some readers who actually filed claims could report on their experience and if the claim was indeed approved and paid. This would give a real life insight into this benefit. Thank you !

Featured Comments Most helpful comments ( as chosen by the OMAAT community ).

The comments on this page have not been provided, reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any advertiser, and it is not an advertiser's responsibility to ensure posts and/or questions are answered.

yoav Guest

I was wondering if anyone had the chance to find out what happens to know if this benefit applies to cell phone bills outside United States if I'm an Expat. Would chase acknowledge and on US cellular phone bill as eligible for this benefits on my cell phone device? They state that the benefit is for cell phone bill they don't restrict it to cellular carriers in the United States but I would like to verify that. Thanks a lot for any information

0
ree Guest

I am on a family plan with 5 others and will start to pay my cell phones total on the Ink card now that I know about the protection benefit. If I need to submit a claim will I have issue as the entire cell phone bill is not paid via Ink, just my 1 phone line's total monthly amount? we have At&T.

0
Mike Guest

Where do you see $1000/claim. I’m seeing $600/claim. Thanks

0
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