Over here, you generally pay nothing for your phone if you are going onto a contract, and pay an optional (minimal) fee per month so that if your phone goes wrong, its fixed or replaced for free (well not really free as you are paying insurance, but you know what I mean).
they have free phones you can get with contracts, but they're always garbage. figure, if our best phones are the phones you guys had two years ago, the free ones we can get are the ones you had 5 years ago.
and there is insurance you can get, but like doog said, its a scam -- you typically still have to pay to get the replacement or the shipping or whatever, and its always a refurbished or garbage deal. one giant trap.
See thats the big difference, new customers will generally get a free phone that is the latest model (depending on the tariff etc), ditto for upgrades (although the top line phones which retail for £500+, you usually have to pay something like £200).
As for insurance. Unless its obvious abuse, they will usually either tell you to bring it back to the store, or if you are an online customer, give you a freepost envelope to send it back.
You dont get a temp phone while they replace or repair it, but they do it all for free, and wont send you a refurbished phone either (unless its your phone they have fixed of course).
Oh, they aint perfect, but they sound miles better than the people you guys have to deal with.
