BMO Mobile Device Insurance

Have you ever read the details of your BMO mobile device insurance provided by your credit card?

Understanding mobile device insurance can be beneficial as the cost of mobile devices rises drastically. This insurance can help save you money over any supplemental warranty coverage provided by the manufacturer such as Apple Care.

I have summarized important details about the mobile device insurance provided by your BMO credit card.

The following credit cards have BMO mobile device insurance:

• BMO eclipse Visa Infinite Privilege | Certificate of Insurance
• BMO Ascend World Elite MasterCard | Certificate of Insurance
• BMO eclipse Rise Visa | Certificate of Insurance

One glaring omission; BMO MasterCard do not have mobile device insurance.

Other insurance benefits information for being a BMO credit card holder is available here:

• BMO Flight Delay Insurance
• BMO Travel Medical Insurance
• BMO Car Rental Insurance
• BMO Mobile Device Insurance

The information listed below is my interpretation of the insurance policy.

When to use mobile device insurance?

Mobile device insurance provides coverage for mobile devices that are lost, stolen or accidently damaged.

Note, this warranty does not provide any additional coverage for manufacturer defect. That is available as an alternate product, offered by most credit cards that also have mobile device insurance.

Coverage Eligibility

The following conditions apply prior to being eligible to use the mobile device insurance:

• Charge the full purchase price to the credit card, or,
• The complete purchase price of the phone was financed with the credit card through a Canadian Wireless provider, or
• Charge any portion of the purchase price that is required to be paid up-front to the account, fund the balance of the purchase price through a Canadian Wireless Provider.

If you charged the full purchase price of the mobile phone on your card, then the coverage will begin from either the date of purchase or the 91st day of purchase, depending on the credit card. The coverage will end within two years of the purchase date. The Purchase Security Insurance will provide coverage of the mobile phone that is lost, stolen, or accidently damaged, within the first 90 to 180 days since the date of purchase.

If you financed the phone through a Canadian Wireless provider, the coverage will begin on the date of the first monthly wireless bill is charged to the credit card. The coverage will end within two years of the purchase date. It is expected that all monthly payments, in full, will be made using the same BMO credit card. The coverage will end on the first date of payment not made by the BMO credit card.

Who is covered?

BMO will cover the primary cardholder, the primary cardholder’s spouse and dependent children, if they all are authorized users on the credit card by holding an additional card.

Coverage Limitations

The formula to determine coverage limitation is very complex. Every claim is limited to a maximum coverage of $1,000.

However, a complex formula is still used to determine the maximum coverage at the time of incident.

Lost, Stolen, or Accidental Damage Coverage

The coverage for a lost or stolen phone has two parts, a monthly depreciation percentage and a deductible value:

• Depreciation: The depreciation is calculated as 2% of the purchase price, multiplied by the number of months since the purchase date.
• Deductible: 10% of the depreciated value, or, 10% of the repair value.

If you purchased an iPhone 16 for C$1,129, and an insurance claim is made within six months of the purchase date, the calculation will be as follows:

• Purchase Price: C$1,129
• 6 months x 2% depreciation is $135.48.
• The depreciated value of the phone is 1,129 – 135.48 = $993.52
• The deductible is $99.35
• The maximum re-imbursement amount is $894.17

As you can observe, this is a very generous amount for a phone.

If you require a screen replacement on the same iPhone 16, you could either claim the free accidental damage coverage through the credit card, or, AppleCare+ if you purchased that coverage.

The cost comparison between the two is as follows:

• A screen replacement through Apple will cost $365 for an iPhone 16.
• With your accidental damage coverage offered by the credit card, you will pay $0. Making a claim after 23 months, the maximum coverage will still be greater than $400.
• With AppleCare+, you will spend $199 for the coverage, and another $39 as the deductible.

Immediately, it is very clear, your mobile device coverage can have drastic savings if you usually buy any additional coverage from the manufacturer.

Loophole for Lost or Stolen Phones

I have not tested this out, however, if you finance a phone through the carriers, there may be an inadvertent financial loophole if you lose your phone or your phone gets stolen.

If you finance a phone through Rogers, the Pixel 9 is $1,287. However, if you purchase your phone through Google, the cost is only $949. Rogers does this to ensure your penalty for leaving a two year contract is higher than just paying for the retail price of the phone. Instead, Rogers offers a bill credit, for every month you finance the phone. With the promotion for today, you will only pay $480 for a Pixel 9, due to the bill credit available on Rogers.

If you were to lose your Pixel 9, you should get the payout value based on the retail price of the phone to Rogers. This will be drastically more than what you would pay out of pocket, if you take your two year term to maturity.

Claim Information

When making a claim for the BMO mobile device insurance, you should call 1-833-859-0497 or (416) 386-8096 in Canada or the United States.

If your phone is lost, you must notify your wireless provider to suspend your service within 48 hours of the loss. Where theft is involved, you must also notify the police within 7 days of the loss.

If you are making a claim, you must let BMO know about the claim, within 90 days of the incident occurring. If you are claiming accidental coverage, you must obtain a written estimate of the cost of repair from a repair facility.

In addition to this, you will also need the following documents to complete the claim formalities:

• The original sales receipt detailing the cost, date and description of purchase;
• The date and time you notified your wireless service provider of loss or theft;
• A copy of the original manufacturer’s warranty (for accidentally damaged claims);
• A copy of the written repair estimate (for accidentally damaged claims);
• If you charged the full purchase price of your mobile device to your card, the card statement showing the charge;
• If all or any portion of the purchase price of your mobile device was financed through a Canadian wireless service provider’s installment plan, proof of wireless installment bill payments charged to the card for up to 12 consecutive months immediately preceding the date of loss and details indicating the cost of the mobile device and amount that has been paid; and
• A police report, fire insurance claim or loss report, primary insurance documentation and payment (if the cardholder has other insurance), and any other information reasonably necessary to determine the cardholder’s eligibility for benefits hereunder.

Conclusion

The mobile device coverage is a fantastic benefit offered by BMO. I personally find both the coverage and information required for a claim to be very fair. BMO will cover anything that will happen to your phone outside of manufacturing defects. BMO provides alternate coverage for extending the manufacturer warranty. If you pay for your phone with a BMO credit card, you will be covered completely for up to two years after the purchase of your device.