Figures from a leading Irish insurance provider reveal that the top reason for claims on appliance policies is cracked tablet screens.
According to
Allianz Global Assistance Ireland’s appliance protection business data for the year 2016, tablets are the most popular product consumers are seeking insurance coverage for. Following tablets are notebooks, flat screens, washing machines, printers and dryers.
The same analysis found that a cracked tablet screen is the leading reason for claims on protection policies, followed by a faulty washing machine drum, no picture on a flat screen, a cracked flat screen, laptop hard drive failure and a heating element fault in a dryer or oven.
Consumers should carefully consider taking out sufficient insurance cover when they are purchasing devices this Christmas, said Roland Hesse, Country Manager for Allianz Global Assistance in Ireland. She explained that coverage should give customers peace of mind, even when a manufacturer’s warranty runs its course.
“In the next few weeks, millions of euro will be spent on purchasing a wide range of high tech devices as Christmas presents,” Hesse told
The Avondhu. “Many households will also be upgrading their TVs so they can enjoy hours of viewing time over the holiday season. While they will be rightly seeking out the best value possible, we strongly advise they don’t take short cuts when it comes to having proper appliance protection cover. That can prove more costly in the long run.”
Hesse argued that thanks to innovations in technology, flat screens have become thinner in order to create a better picture, but have subsequently become more fragile as a result. Despite this, she pointed out that most flat screen televisions come with only a one-year guarantee.
“The average flat screen repair costs are now €280. And the average cost of a replacement flat screen is between €600 and €699. So it is an expensive business when something goes wrong,” she added.
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