Do you know what the most popular iPhone 4 app is? It’s not angry birds, and well I guess it’s not really much of an app at all, but a majority of the people I know with an iPhone 4 have at one point or another seen the dubious spider cracked screen. Almost as ominous as the Windows blue screen of death, if you’ve been fortunate enough to never drop your phone, consider yourself lucky.

About a year ago, I decided to upgrade to an iPhone 4 and within a month I had already dropped the phone and shattered the screen. I was seriously heartbroken, it takes a lot for me to make a big purchase like that(I’m cheap!) and now I was going to have to buy a new one or pay Apple a ridiculous $200 replacement fee. As I was contemplating my options, I remembered about my credit card protection plan. At the time, my card was an AMEX Gold that I was trying out. It turns out they had an awesome retail protection plan that goes way beyond lost or stolen items.

I love taking advantage of credit card sign-up bonuses but this was the first time I was aware of any type of protection plan for my purchases. In order for AMEX to cover the replacement cost of my phone, I had to write a letter saying I had no other form of insurance, get it notarized and have it sent in. I took my old phone to the Apple store, paid for a new one and AMEX credited me the $200. It was a pretty simple process and it turns out that almost all credit card companies offer some type of protection against these types of events. Continue reading →