When you buy products on Amazon you often have the option to buy an Amazon Protection Plan. It costs more money, but it could save you money should the product break due to your own doing or something else.
But is the Amazon Protection Plan worth it? Should you spend the extra money? Find out in our review below.
What is the Amazon Protection Plan?
Amazon offers protection on many of its products including electronics (laptops, computers, tablets, phones, etc.), power equipment, furniture, and jewelry. The provider of each plan varies depending on the type of product purchased.
- Electronics – Asurion
- Power equipment – Asurion
- Jewelry – Assurant
- Watches – Allstate
- Furniture – Allstate
How Does the Amazon Protection Plan Work?
Despite the different providers of the protection plan, the premise is the same. You buy the policy (an extra charge separate from the price of the item). Amazon emails you a copy of the policy immediately after purchasing.
Most plans start the day you purchase them but only for accidents, spills, or other human-related damage including cracked screens on electronics. Any issues regarding manufacturer defects, malfunctions, or breakdowns are covered by the manufacturer’s warranty first and the Amazon Protection Plan doesn’t kick in until the warranty expires.
If you purchase an Amazon Protection Plan for electronics, your plan also includes expert tech help 24/7. The professionals can help you set up your product, troubleshoot, or fix connectivity issues.
Most plans don’t charge anything extra for shipping, repairs, or labor. You can cancel the plan at any time, but you only get a full refund if you cancel within the first 30 days.
If you give the item away as a gift, you can transfer the protection plan to the new owner by logging into your dashboard and clicking ‘Transfer.’ You’ll provide information about who you transferred the product to so the protection plan information will be forwarded to the new owner.
How to File a Claim?
All Amazon Protection Plans have an easy claim filing process that you can do via the mobile app, online, or over the phone. You typically receive an answer on your claim within minutes. If they can repair the item, they’ll send you shipping instructions (at no cost to you). But if they can’t repair the item, they’ll send you an Amazon e-gift card to buy the product again.
If you don’t like filing claims online, you can call the customer service number provided in your policy.
What’s the Cost?
The cost of the Amazon Protection Plan varies by provider and item purchased. Prices start at $2 and go up to $1,000 again depending on the product value.
For example, a 2-year Portable Electronic Protection Plan for tablets priced $25 – $50 costs $2.05 and protects power surge protection from day one and protection for all other issues after the manufacturer warranty expires, but it does NOT cover cracked screens or spills.
It’s important to always read the fine print and not assume you’re getting full coverage at an incredible deal. $2.05 sounds like a no-brainer, but when you realize it only covers power surge issues initially, it may not be worth it if you were looking for coverage for your clumsy 2-year old who you know will drop the tablet often.
Here’s another example. You buy a couch from Amazon that’s worth between $2,000 and $2,499 and buy the protection plan. It will cost $349.99 but covers product damages including rips, tears, and spills from day one. All other issues are covered once the manufacturer warranty expires.
What’s Covered on the Amazon Protection Plan?
As we discussed above, the Amazon Protection Plan coverage varies by product type, but here’s what’s covered the most.
Electronics and Power Tools
- Accidents including drops, liquid damage, and cracked screens from day one
- No extra cost for repairs or labor
- No shipping costs
- Coverage defects or breakdowns after the manufacturer warranty expires
Jewelry
- Covers most jewelry items including necklaces, earrings, bracelets and rings
- Mounting repair is covered
- Restringing pearls
- Repairing kinks or knots in chains
- Resetting stones
Watches
- Covers most accidental damage from day one
- All malfunctions or breakdowns are covered after the manufacturer warranty expires
- No extra cost for labors or repair
- No shipping costs
What’s Excluded from the Plan?
None of the Amazon Protection plans no matter who issues them cover the following instances:
- Loss
- Theft
- Vandalism
- Cosmetic damage (scratches or dings)
- Anything covered under the manufacturer’s warranty
What are the Benefits of the Amazon Protection Plan?
- It may provide peace of mind knowing you may get your item repaired or a refund if they can’t fix it
- It protects your investment if you’re on a limited budget and couldn’t replace the item with a new version if it broke
- You may receive a replacement product within 2 to 3 days if the item can’t be fixed
- You can transfer the plan to someone else if you gift the item to someone
What are the Downsides?
- There’s no guarantee the ‘issue’ you have will be covered, the insurance company has final say
- You’re ‘banking’ on something going wrong with the product, when it may be just fine and be useful for its intended use
- It’s only effective after the manufacturer’s warranty expires, which at that point, you may want a new product
- The cost of the plan may exceed the average cost of typical repairs
Amazon Protection Plan FAQs
How do you use the Amazon Protection Plan?
You must buy the Amazon Protection Plan when you buy the product or within 30 days of buying it. If you buy it when you purchase the product, you’ll see it as an option on the right side of the screen before you add the product to your cart.
No matter how you purchase it, Amazon will email you a confirmation with steps to register the product and file a claim should you need to. You’ll need proof of purchase (receipt), the item, and your protection plan information to file the claim.
How do you purchase an Amazon Protection Plan after you buy a product?
You have 30 days from the day you bought the product to add the Amazon Protection Plan. In Amazon, search for ‘protection plan for XYZ’ replacing XYZ with the type of product you bought, such as TV, tablet, or power equipment. You’ll see a variety of options to choose from, make sure you choose the plan that covers the product you purchased at category and price.
What happens to your protection plan if you return the product?
You have 30 days to cancel your Amazon Protection Plan to receive a full refund. If you return the item within that time, log in to your Amazon account and cancel the insurance plan too. You may also have to call the insurance company (Asurion, Assurant, or Allstate) to cancel it.
Can you transfer your Amazon Protection Plan?
Yes, you can transfer your Amazon Protection Plan if you give the item to someone or sell it. You would need to call the customer service number for your plan (located on your plan documents) and give them the information to transfer the plan to the new owner.
Does the Amazon Protection Plan cover cracked screens?
Yes, the protection provided by Asurion covers cracked screens from day one of the purchase. If you go home and drop your tablet or laptop with Asurion coverage, they will cover the cost to repair the screen. You may have to be without your item for a couple of days, but it shouldn’t cost you any money in shipping, labor, or repair costs.
How long are Amazon Protection Plans good for?
Amazon Protection plans have their own length. Most protection plans are available in 2 or 4-year increments, but a few are available in 3-year increments as well. Think about how long you’ll keep the item. If you’re the type to buy the latest and greatest products, don’t waste your money on a protection plan that lasts longer than the product’s usefulness.
Should you Sign up for the Amazon Protection Plan?
Is the Amazon Protection Plan worth it? It can be, but only in very rare situations. Unless you’re buying a very expensive product with a short manufacturer’s warranty, it’s typically not worth the cost.
Weigh the cost and what it covers with the average cost of repairing the item. Typically you’ll find that you come out ahead not buying the protection plan and taking your chances.
Unless you know you are the type to constantly drop your electronics or you have bad luck with products, skip the protection plan and instead put the money away in an interest-bearing account so you have the money should you need to fix or replace the product.
Completely worthless for made in China tools: warranty is in effect only after the manufacturer’s warranty expires.
Chinese power tool manufacturers selling on Amazon offer 2 or even more years warranty because they know nobody will ship the tool at own expense to China for repair, so you will have to wait 2+ years to use the Amazon extended protection.
Don’t waste your money!
I disagree. Of course, it’s not necessary with every item. But I had on it several items that are liable to fail, and it was more than worth it. For a a small fraction of the price, you get full protection for every problem. I had it for earbuds, a water cooler, and a freezer. I was refunded the full amount every time, sometimes more than a year after. It is not only after the one-year warranty. You have to use the warranty if it’s a manufacturers’ problem. But with accidents, you can use the protection plan any time.
I pay £1.49 a month on my Mobil plan what do l get for my money