Care Refresh Renewal?

[Chaosrider]

It's been almost a year since I started flying DJI drones, and DJI just sent me a reminder that my Care Refresh on my "first slot" Mini-2 is coming up for renewal. My question is: Is it worth doing?

It will cost me 50 bucks to renew, and another 50 bucks the first time I use it. So if I use it once in a year, that's a "premium" that's 25% of the value of the aircraft. That's pretty steep. And many repairs don't cost more than $100.

If it was the only drone I had, I'd definitely do it. But it isn't my only drone. It's not even my only Mini-2.

If I was just getting started in droning, and had no concept of my actual personal risk level, I'd definitely do it. That's why I did it originally, and it paid off.

But now? I haven't used a Care Refresh claim in almost a year. I'm very comfortable with the Mini-2 now, and very familiar with the flying conditions in my canyon. Neither of those were true when I first bought the Care Refresh.

I never really had any doubt that I'd renew it when it came due, but now that it has, I'm not so sure. Now, I don't think the cost is worth the risk mitigation that it provides with me in my now-vastly-greater-experience condition.

Thoughts? Renew, don't renew?

I have to decide in the next few days.

Thx!

 

[old man mavic]

@Chaosrider its the whole how long is a piece of string conundrum
if you dont do it you will wish you had when the next mishap happens
if you do ,do it and never use it , you will think what a waste of time that was
its really a bit like insurance ,thats not compulsory ,but gives you peace of mind
i totally agree with you that the more experienced you become at flying ,then ultimately your chances of crashing or loosing your drone does diminish
and its also a fact, that its very easy to become overfamiliar with the tech and your own abilities ,
and thats when it all goes south ,do whats best for you and move on

 

[66427cobra]

Even though you have more than one drone, don't overlook a few key factors:
- The return process is simple. Fill out online form. Pay the $50. Pack up the drone and return using the prepaid shipping label.
- The turnaround time is relatively quick. About 7-10 days from the time you ship it out until you get a replacement.
- The replacement is either brand new or perfectly reconditioned and comes in a new, shrink wrapped box.
- The price is the same regardless of the amount of damage.
- Added benefit of flyaway coverage.

I am speaking from experience and mine was a good one. I have my 107 cert and the quick return was important as I had a real estate shoot coming up on my calendar. A replacement was shipped out the day it was received in Texas.

Just one man's perspective...

 

[Obsid1anwolf]

You have been flying for a while and have more than one drone. I would only insure new drones that would carry some emotional weight if they crashed. If you wrecked your mini 2, would you prefer to invest that $100 into a mini 3 or get another mini 2? If it is a fly away, you are on the hook for $275. If you do crash it, the repairs from DJI might not cost much more than the combined refresh and replacement costs. I would say for new flyers, care refresh is a good idea to inspire confidence. It is hard to recommend unless the replacement of a drone would carry serious hardship financially.

Bottom line, carrying the insurance beyond one year is probably a waste if you are actively into the hobby. If you wreck it after a year, look at it as an opportunity to upgrade to the latest tech.

 

[GadgetGuy]

It's been almost a year since I started flying DJI drones, and DJI just sent me a reminder that my Care Refresh on my "first slot" Mini-2 is coming up for renewal. My question is: Is it worth doing?

It will cost me 50 bucks to renew, and another 50 bucks the first time I use it. So if I use it once in a year, that's a "premium" that's 25% of the value of the aircraft. That's pretty steep. And many repairs don't cost more than $100.

If it was the only drone I had, I'd definitely do it. But it isn't my only drone. It's not even my only Mini-2.

If I was just getting started in droning, and had no concept of my actual personal risk level, I'd definitely do it. That's why I did it originally, and it paid off.

But now? I haven't used a Care Refresh claim in almost a year. I'm very comfortable with the Mini-2 now, and very familiar with the flying conditions in my canyon. Neither of those were true when I first bought the Care Refresh.

I never really had any doubt that I'd renew it when it came due, but now that it has, I'm not so sure. Now, I don't think the cost is worth the risk mitigation that it provides with me in my now-vastly-greater-experience condition.

Thoughts? Renew, don't renew?

I have to decide in the next few days.

Thx!

Set the money aside toward a Mini 3 Pro. By the second year, the drone is seasoned and ready for a potential upgrade. A catastrophic crash, should one occur, is as good an excuse as any!

 

[Deleted member 154956]

Go with an outside insurance provider like State Farm’s Personal Articles Policy. I pay $7/month for $15K of drone insurance. That covers all of my DJI Drones and all their accessories. $0 deductible if I do need to make a claim & it’s full replacement value, not depreciated value. Now that’s piece of mind!! Some credit card companies might offer electronics replacement/theft value as well.

 

[Dale D]

It's been almost a year since I started flying DJI drones, and DJI just sent me a reminder that my Care Refresh on my "first slot" Mini-2 is coming up for renewal. My question is: Is it worth doing?

It will cost me 50 bucks to renew, and another 50 bucks the first time I use it. So if I use it once in a year, that's a "premium" that's 25% of the value of the aircraft. That's pretty steep. And many repairs don't cost more than $100.

If it was the only drone I had, I'd definitely do it. But it isn't my only drone. It's not even my only Mini-2.

If I was just getting started in droning, and had no concept of my actual personal risk level, I'd definitely do it. That's why I did it originally, and it paid off.

But now? I haven't used a Care Refresh claim in almost a year. I'm very comfortable with the Mini-2 now, and very familiar with the flying conditions in my canyon. Neither of those were true when I first bought the Care Refresh.

I never really had any doubt that I'd renew it when it came due, but now that it has, I'm not so sure. Now, I don't think the cost is worth the risk mitigation that it provides with me in my now-vastly-greater-experience condition.

Thoughts? Renew, don't renew?

I have to decide in the next few days.

Thx!

It's like any kind of insurance! Most of the time, we never use it. But when we have a big loss, we are thankful. Think it over before canceling.

Dale

 

[Chaosrider]

@Chaosrider its the whole how long is a piece of string conundrum
if you dont do it you will wish you had when the next mishap happens
if you do ,do it and never use it , you will think what a waste of time that was
its really a bit like insurance ,thats not compulsory ,but gives you peace of mind
i totally agree with you that the more experienced you become at flying ,then ultimately your chances of crashing or loosing your drone does diminish
and its also a fact, that its very easy to become overfamiliar with the tech and your own abilities ,
and thats when it all goes south ,do whats best for you and move on

Good points.

I'm leaning toward not doing it, mostly because of the fact that I have so many drones. Buying a Mini-2 aircraft replacement would cost $225. The first use of the Care Refresh, when you include the "premium" cost, is $100.

Even though you have more than one drone, don't overlook a few key factors:
- The return process is simple. Fill out online form. Pay the $50. Pack up the drone and return using the prepaid shipping label.
- The turnaround time is relatively quick. About 7-10 days from the time you ship it out until you get a replacement.
- The replacement is either brand new or perfectly reconditioned and comes in a new, shrink wrapped box.
- The price is the same regardless of the amount of damage.
- Added benefit of flyaway coverage.

I am speaking from experience and mine was a good one. I have my 107 cert and the quick return was important as I had a real estate shoot coming up on my calendar. A replacement was shipped out the day it was received in Texas.

Just one man's perspective...

Yup, this very nicely lays out the case for doing it. I bought it when the drone was new, and used it. The entire process was almost indescribably convenient and painless. The cycle time was much longer than this for me, more like a month, but since I now have numerous other drones, that's not critical.

The flyaway coverage is a Big Deal for me. The fact that Care Refresh for the FPV didn't include Fly Away is the primary reason that I didn't get it. Most of my flying is on the other side of the canyon, and if it goes down over there, it's bye-bye drone.

So now I'm leaning in favor of doing it...

Thx!

 

[66427cobra]

You have been flying for a while and have more than one drone. I would only insure new drones that would carry some emotional weight if they crashed. If you wrecked your mini 2, would you prefer to invest that $100 into a mini 3 or get another mini 2? If it is a fly away, you are on the hook for $275. If you do crash it, the repairs from DJI might not cost much more than the combined refresh and replacement costs. I would say for new flyers, care refresh is a good idea to inspire confidence. It is hard to recommend unless the replacement of a drone would carry serious hardship financially.

Bottom line, carrying the insurance beyond one year is probably a waste if you are actively into the hobby. If you wreck it after a year, look at it as an opportunity to upgrade to the latest tech.

On the other hand, if you had care refresh you would get back a new/like new drone that you could sell for more than $100 and put that money towards a new drone.

Like with any insurance, there are pluses and minuses...

 

[Chaosrider]

You have been flying for a while and have more than one drone. I would only insure new drones that would carry some emotional weight if they crashed. If you wrecked your mini 2, would you prefer to invest that $100 into a mini 3 or get another mini 2? If it is a fly away, you are on the hook for $275. If you do crash it, the repairs from DJI might not cost much more than the combined refresh and replacement costs. I would say for new flyers, care refresh is a good idea to inspire confidence. It is hard to recommend unless the replacement of a drone would carry serious hardship financially.

Bottom line, carrying the insurance beyond one year is probably a waste if you are actively into the hobby. If you wreck it after a year, look at it as an opportunity to upgrade to the latest tech.

I just got a reminder of another wrinkle in this...I actually have *3* Mini-2 Care Refresh renewals coming up. DJI just reminded me of the second one. I'll be getting the third notice in a week or two.

So...$150 for insurance I'll probably never use?

I'm quite content to just send them in for repairs on my own dime if I ding them up, which I haven't done for quite a while. The only real payoff to me from the coverage would the Fly Away, since there are very few recoverable crash sites where I fly.

And I've never had to use the Fly Away. I've never (permanently) lost a drone to a fly away.

Leaning back toward letting it lapse. Or at least, letting the *first* one lapse.

Thanks to your indulgence for talking about this!

 

[peterc4]

do it, you will regret it

 

[Chaosrider]

do it, you will regret it

As I was waiting for my drone student Saturday morning, I knew I had to renew it.

But the clincher was, it was only $39! I didn't realize that the renewal was cheaper. 10 bucks is noise in the context of how much I've spent on drones, but psychologically, it tipped me over the edge.

 

[LoudThunder]

It will cost me 50 bucks to renew

My Care Refresh Policy will need to be renewed in February and I checked and DJI wants $39 to renew mine. I have used the care refresh replacement once. I do not understand your $50 cost...