Table of Contents
If you bought a Kindle Fire Tablet, a TV, or any other type of electronic off of Amazon in the past few years, you may have opted for a Squaretrade warranty with it.
The SquareTrade extended warranty is great because it covers mechanical failures of electronics after the manufacturer’s warranty expires.
But how exactly do you use the warranty?
This post will cover all the things you’ll need to get your broken electronics successfully replaced or fixed using your Squaretrade warranty.
Quick Summary
You can easily file a claim and utilize your Squaretrade Warranty by going to their website and clicking on “File a Claim”. Simply follow the steps from there to get your claim registered.
For further details on filing a Squaretrade Warranty claim, keep reading this post.
How do Squaretrade Warranties Work?
Squaretrade warranties work by covering mechanical failures during the Squaretrade Protection Plan’s contract term. However, they can only be filed once the manufacturer warranty period on the product has ended.
In addition to covering mechanical failures that have happened on their own, Squaretrade warranties also cover damage that occurred to your electronics due to spills or other similar accidents.
Squaretrade charges its customers a fee for the warranty coverage. The fee depends on the item that’s being covered.
Here are some examples of Squaretrade Protection Plans and how much they cost:
- Apple iMac: $149.99
- Phone Protection Plan: $8.99 per month (single-line) or $19.99 per month (four lines)
- Gaming equipment: $89.99 per device
- Television: $500 to $600
In addition to the examples given above, there are tons of other electronics that you can find Squaretrade Protection Plans for such as
- Desktops
- Laptops
- Tablets
- iPads
- iPhones
- Smartphones
- Kitchen appliances
And much more.
Customers can select the price of the device they want to cover and also select the coverage limit. Obviously, a lower coverage limit will be more affordable than if you opt for a longer coverage limit.
A SquareTrade Protection Plan offers Accident Protection which means that they will cover accidental damage instantly. However, if your device stops working while it’s still under the manufacturer’s warranty, Squaretrade will refer you to them.
It’s important to note that Squaretrade Protection Plans depreciate in value as well. Thus, for example, you may not receive a full refund for a phone you bought years ago.
How to File a Claim for Your Squaretrade Protection Plan?
If a device you bought off of Amazon has malfunctioned and is covered by Squaretrade, you can file a claim by going to the Squaretrade website or calling them at 1-877-927-7268.
When you call Squaretrade, they will ask you about the details of your Protection Plan.
If you’re unsure or don’t remember the details, it’s no cause for concern. Simply give them the email you used during the purchase of the product and they will be able to find your plan details for you.
Once they have validated your Protection Plan details, you can mail them the damaged item as well as its receipt in order to start the replacement (or restoration) process.
On the other hand, you can also file a claim by going to their website.
Step 1: Go to Squaretrade.com and click on Claims as shown:
Step 2: Click on File New Claim.
Step 3: Set up your account.
Important note: You should always use the email to register here that you used when you were purchasing the product with the Squaretrade warranty. Otherwise, Squaretrade will not be able to track your Protection Plan.
If you no longer have access to that email, call Squaretrade at 1-877-927-7268 for further assistance.
Step 4: Once you have registered, your Protection Plan(s) will be automatically tracked and you can choose the item for which you want to file a claim.
Follow all the instructions from there and they will start processing your SquareTrade warranty.
You Should Know About Deductibles in Squaretrade’s Extended Warranties
We mentioned earlier that a Squaretrade warranty doesn’t always mean that your device will be replaced.
Instead, you can also get it sent to them in order for it to be repaired.
In the case of this repair service for devices such as smartphones, tablets, and laptops, Squaretrade charges a fee for these repairs depending on the amount of damage and type of device.
While there are some plans for this service that don’t have a deductible, they are few-and-far-between.
If you opt for a plan that does have a deductible, Squaretrade gives you the option of getting your device fixed up to 3 times in one year before they decide to replace it.
This can often be a pain for customers who just want to have their devices replaced. After all, isn’t that why you opted for this extended warranty in the first place? So that your device gets replaced in an affordable manner if it starts malfunctioning after the manufacturer warranty ends?
The Disclosures for Squaretrade Protection Plans are Irresponsible
When a retailer offers any type of extended warranty to its customers alongside the device they are selling, they are obligated by the law to provide plan-related documentation with it.
However, in the case of Squaretrade, this documentation is very rarely available to customers.
You have even less of a chance of finding any documentation related to your plan if you’re buying your device off of Amazon.
Hence, in most cases, customers have no idea how they’re supposed to file a claim, what the limitations of their extended warranty are, and how they can cancel their plan if they wish to.
Some Exclusions You Need to be Aware of
With an extended warranty you buy from Squaretrade, there are certain exclusions that customers aren’t immediately made privy to.
Some of them include:
- Most Squaretrade extended warranties cover only one replacement over a 12-month period.
- You will not be able to use your Accident Protection Plan if the manufacturer warranty for your device has not expired yet.
- Your Protection Plan will not apply to products that were not purchased at the same time as the plan.
There are many more exclusions you should know about that you can find on their Terms & Conditions page.
The Problems with Squaretrade’s Extended Warranty
While opting for such protection plans may seem like a good idea when you’re buying a device, the truth of the matter is that they’re not worth it in most cases.
Squaretrade has been plagued by bad user reviews and horror stories of customers having to wait months on end for their replacement to be delivered.
Customers have also complained about excruciatingly long hold times when you call them to file a claim.
So, while the extended warranty is there to make replacing your malfunctioned device easy, Squaretrade purposely makes it as hard as possible for you.
Furthermore, customers have reported denials of claims even though they should be covered.
One customer reported their phone not be eligible for warranty coverage because it had a cracked screen as a result of them dropping it. Even though their Accident Protection clearly says that they cover cracked screens caused due to accidents.
Wrapping Things Up…
Filing a claim for Squaretrade plans can be quite annoying but if you just follow the steps and deal with their convoluted process with patience, there’s a chance you may get a replacement relatively soon.
However, in our opinion, this is not a plan worth going for and if you’re ever going to be buying a device off of Amazon, we would recommend not going for a Squaretrade plan.
What do you think of Squaretrade Protection Plans? What was your experience like? Let us know in the comments below.
