How insurance works on your Xiaomi smartphone

Xiaomi Care, what is it?

This is insurance for your smartphone in case of accidental damage and/or theft. This insurance program is provided by Allianz, the German insurance group. It only concerns newer Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco smartphones.

You must subscribe at the time of purchase by adding the insurance to your basket. You can insure a model that you have already purchased, provided that the purchase was made in France and the smartphone was not activated more than 30 days ago at the time of subscription. To do this, simply enter the IMEI of your smartphone as indicated on this page of the Xiaomi website.

The list of supported models is quite small and I will talk about it in more detail just below. Here is the official page on the Xiaomi website if you are interested. The coverage spans 24 months and Xiaomi offers two plans. One against accidental damage and one against accidental damage and theft.

With Xiaomi Care, you also get up to 90 days of global coverage when you travel outside your home country. The repair must be handled in France once you have returned from the country where the device was damaged.

You have access to an online complaints platform 24/7. Shipping costs are free when sending your damaged smartphone for repair. And repairs will be done by an official authorized partner using original Xiaomi parts.

How much does Xiaomi Care cost?

As for prices, they vary from 39 to 79 euros, depending on the formula chosen and the model in question. As with all insurance policies, read the fine print. But here too, I explain to you below what each formula covers, exactly how and how much it costs you. Regardless, Xiaomi is still unclear in its communication. The press service stated that:

Xiaomi Care is exclusively designed to protect the brand’s latest devices, including Xiaomi 14 Ultra, Xiaomi 14, Xiaomi 13 Pro, Xiaomi 13, Xiaomi 13 Lite, Redmi Note 13 Pro+, Redmi Note 13 Pro, Redmi Note 13 and POCO F6 Pro.

But in France this is not the case. I don’t know why and I will update this article if the list of eligible models ever changes. Here is the list of smartphones currently supported by Xiaomi Care in France:

How does Xiaomi Care work?

Here are the two Xiaomi Care insurance plans in more detail and what they cover:

• against accidental damage: This plan includes 24 months of accidental damage coverage, allowing up to two repair requests in a 12-month period and one replacement or refund request in a 24-month period.
• against accidental damage and theft: This plan includes coverage for accidental damage as described above. But it also includes protection against theft. You can submit up to two repair requests in a 12-month period and one replacement or refund request for the stolen or damaged device in a 24-month period.

Basically, over the 24 months of coverage, you can have your Xiaomi smartphone repaired four times, with a limit of two repairs per year. And you can get it replaced or refunded only once, no more.

The fine print

By “accidental damage”, Xiaomi means that which affects the operation of your smartphone and its safe use. These could be:

• cracks on the screen or back of the device
• camera damage
• liquid damage

For insurance against theft, Xiaomi Care only covers the following cases:

• theft from locked buildings
• theft from locked vehicles
• theft against your person in case of assault

A number of deductibles to pay

In addition to the price of each formula, there is a deductible or additional costs in case of repairs, replacement or reimbursement. Each of these services, if you claim for them, will be billed to you by the insurance company. The size of these deductibles depends on the purchase price of your smartphone.

I am linking the terms and conditions here to help you understand better and avoid unpleasant surprises. And you can find the price of each franchise in the table below.

How to report a claim and use Xiaomi Care insurance?

In the event of a claim, details must be submitted via the Allianz eClaim portal. Depending on the type of claim, several supporting documents must be submitted:

• Proof that your phone is insured under Xiaomi Care (your insurance certificate number)
• Your proof of purchase of the insured unit (the invoice)
• A full description of what happened to your device
• For accidental damage claims, a photo of the damage
• For claims relating to theft, a police report or the crime number

Note that you can cancel the insurance within the first 30 days after taking out the policy and get a full refund of the premium. You must call 0805370916 and not have already reported a claim.

Should you insure your smartphone with Xiaomi Care?

Personally, I would wait for Xiaomi to clarify its offer a bit. As is often the case, communication is woefully incomplete and operations are quite messy.

The page to insure a model already purchased with IMEI works for example. not at the moment. Likewise, the list of supported models announced by Xiaomi in its press release does not match the one actually offered on the website.

As for the prices, I don’t find them particularly prohibitive. We can try to compare with Apple Care and Samsung Care. I chose iPhone SE 3 (test) and Samsung Galaxy A55 5G (test), sold for around 500 euros. If we refer to Xiaomi Care’s franchise price list for a similar price model (€501-800), the prices are quite similar. The Samsung Care franchise is significantly cheaper.

Personally, I find the benefit of this type of insurance quite limited to mid-range or even entry-level smartphones. Let’s take the Redmi Note 13. It sells for 179 euros.

With the “accidental damage and theft” formula, you pay 59 euros. If your smartphone is stolen and you get it replaced, you have to pay 80 euros. And above all, once this replacement is made, your coverage ends. In total, you will have paid 139 euros.

What do you think about Xiaomi Care? Did this article help you see things more clearly? Are you planning to take one of these plans when you buy your next Xiaomi smartphone? Would you be interested in guides and comparisons of smartphone insurance such as Apple Care or Samsung Car?