Laptop And Smartphone Insurance In Kenya

Smartphone penetration has shot up very quickly in the region and especially in Kenya where the penetration rate is well over 60%. This has also had a major increase on the penetration of Internet now well over 90% of all mobile phone users in the country. Gadget sales have boomed in Kenya with major leading brands like Samsung, LG and Apple having major presence and using Kenya as a regional hub. Similar to smartphones, laptops continue to dominate the computer market owing to portability. There are a wide variety of laptop brands in the market from brand new to second hand, ultra slim and hybrid models with touch screens.

For a typical Kenyan, they will be possessing at least KSh 40,000 worth of these smart devices both at home and in the office in addition to the portable gadgets that they carry on the move.
Every device owner’s biggest worry is how to take care of their precious device, to protect it from loss or damage. Walking around the city, you will not fail to see a multitude of owners with smartphones with broken screens. It is every owner’s worst nightmare when his or her device falls and emerges with a cracked screen. In a blink of an eye, one can easily incur losses of up to KSh 100,000 for high-end gadgets like the iPhones, Samsung and Apple Macbooks. Many people use smartphone cases and covers to protect their devices from cracks, damages and spillages. Although this may work for most circumstances, spillages and cracks can still remain a damning nightmare. Indeed the ultimate loss is theft or robbery. Most thieves now target such portable high-end devices being easy to carry and disguise.
The good news is that there is a variety of insurance policies that can protect your valuable devices when the inevitable and unfortunate happens. On top of the most common insurances like health insurance and motor insurance in Kenya.

Electronic Equipment and All Risks insurance

This is a common insurance policy that is taken by most corporates alongside their general insurance covers. The general insurance covers premises of the company, stocks, employees like WIBA insurance covers and other risks like fire and burglary. The electronic equipment and all risks cover will normally cover the portal devices like computers, PABX machines, laptops, company smartphones, tablets and the like against loss or damage. This policy is one of the cheapest covers available because it is taken as a bundled insurance cover together with other general insurance policies. The only caveat is that it only covers company equipment. Therefore it is not possible to use this insurance to cover your personal devices.

Kenya Orient Device insurance

Kenya Orient Insurance Company is one of the pioneers of innovation in the insurance industry in Kenya. It launched its mobile device insurance called ORIENT MOBILE in 2013 to a lot publicity and fanfare in the media. The Orient Mobile insurance product enables clients to protect their valuable smartphones against damage, theft and loss as a standalone insurance policy. There is no need to bundle it together with another general insurance policy like fire and burglary insurance. The Orient Mobile insurance product allows anyone to insure a device no more than 2 years from the date of purchase. To activate the insurance, all one has to do is send the SMS with the word ‘MOBILE’ to the number 70707. The insurance system then sends the customer a web link via SMS. This link takes you to the Kenya Orient system that determines the make and model of your phone and its market value. You are then given the annual premium to pay for covering the device.

Home Contents Insurance Package

The third, final and possibly best insurance option for smartphones and gadgets in Kenya is the home/domestic contents insurance cover popular among most urban residents and it is offered by all the leading general insurance companies in the nation. In addition, this is a standalone insurance cover, it does not need to be taken in addition to any other policy. By taking a cheap home contents cover, one can bundle in insurance for laptops, mobile devices, cameras, tablets and similar electronic devices which are portal up to and including valuables like jewellery. The contents insurance cover will cover household contents like televisions, refrigerator, kitchenware, clothing, and bedroom possessions up to a value of KSh 400,000 for an annual premium of just KSh 3000.

Where it gets interesting is when the insured can add the ‘All Risks Cover’ on this policy to cover the handheld/electronic devices from accidental damage or loss. The devices are insured at a generous annual premium rate of 1% of the value of the device. To give a clear example, for a phone worth KSh 30,000, the total cost of insuring it for the year is a paltry KSh 300! The only catch is to compare and choose the insurance provider with the lowest deductible/excess when a claim is submitted on the policy. The lowest excess amounts start from KSh 2,500. This is the amount of money that the insured/customer has to pay first in case of a claim while the rest of the damage is bore by the insurance company.

There are no other requirements or limitations on this domestic home insurance policy, all devices are admissible provided there is proof of purchase or valuation.

Therefore, the best and cheapest way to insure electronic devices like smartphones, tablets and laptops is to include them in a basic domestic home contents insurance policy.