Is DJI Care Refresh Worth It 2023? DJI Mini Series Review

Is DJI Care Refresh worth it? DJI Care Refresh is definitely worth considering. It offers premium features and support for all your photography needs. So, if you’re looking for the best drone for photography, DJI Care Refresh is definitely worth checking out!

While shopping for a brand new DJI drone, you might come across DJI Care Refresh, insurance coverage the manufacturer provides as an option.

If you wonder if it is really worth investing in it, this post will give you a detailed answer.

Usually, many people go for insurance coverage only when it is mandatory on some grounds. Most insurance purchases go with the idea that you will never have to use them.

However, there may be hard times when the insurance coverage might rescue you from a severe liability. 

Now specifically talking of DJI Care Refresh, this insurance plan is worth it when it accompanies some expensive models of DJI drones like Phantom 4 Pro, Mavic 2, and Inspire 2.

I would rather not support investing in DJI Care Refresh if you wish to buy lower-end models like Mavic Air 2 or Mini 2. 

“Is DJI Care Refresh worth it?” is a question that must be approached from different angles including the cost of the drone model you want to buy, the cost of the replacement parts, if you have any insurance plans already and whether you buy the drone for recreation or to make money. We will get into this topic by analyzing each of the questions in detail.

Is DJI Care Refresh Worth It

About DJI Care Refresh

DJI Care Refresh can be explained as a physical damage insurance policy provided by DJI for a select range of DJI products.

The plan provides 12 months of coverage when you can avail of two replacement units. DJI says the replacement units will also be new or will assure the performance expected from a brand new unit.

DJI Care Refresh can be purchased as an optional add-on with your drone while shopping your drone from a seller authorized by DJI. Alternatively, you can also buy it separately within 48 hours of purchasing the product. 

DJI Care Refresh Plus

From the time of purchase, DJI Care Refresh will be effective for a period of 12 months. If you have not availed of any replacements within this 12 months period, you can purchase DJI Care Refresh Plus, which will extend your insurance cover for one more 12 months term.

The costs of the first or second replacement units are the same under both these insurance plans. The bottom line here is DJI Care Refresh Plus is meant to extend your plan for another 12 months

Do you need DJI Care Refresh

Since the names of a few of DJI insurance products sound similar, they can be a bit confusing. DJI Care is also an insurance plan from DJI, but it is a different service product.

Though DJI Care covers physical damage to the product insured, it is priced a bit higher for the purpose of ensuring your drone for repair services at the market price during the policy’s term.

See also  How To Become Professional Drone Pilot?

The drone workers get an unlimited number of repairs and there will not be any deductibles for the repair services. If you have sufficient coverage remaining, you will also be able to get a new replacement unit if the drone is damaged beyond the scope of repair.

drone insurance vs dji care refresh

To avail of this benefit, you must not have availed of any repairs prior to making such a claim.

Cost of DJI Care Refresh

The cost of DJI Care Refresh depends on the price of the product you are buying. As found in the case of most other insurance products, the cost of coverage depends on the value of the items purchased.

While the cost of DJI Care Refresh is lower in the case of low price models, it is high when it comes to expensive models. 

Even after buying DJI Care Refresh, you will have to pay a fee if your damaged drone will need a replacement. We can say this works something like a copay.

The cost of the first replacement is a bit less when compared to the cost of the second replacement if you will need one. 

Cost of DJI Care Refresh for different DJI models

DJI Drone ModelCost of DJI Care Refresh1st Replacement cost2nd Replacement costCost of a New DroneCost of Care compared to market value
Mini 2$49$49$59$44935%
Mavic Mini$39$40$49$39932%
Mavic 2 (Pro)$149$69$99$1,59920%
Mavic 2 (Zoom)$149$69$99$1,34923%
Mavic Air 2$79$69$99$79931%
Mavic Air (discontinued)$69$69$99$69934%
Spark (discontinued)$59$49$69$39944%
Mavic Pro (discontinued)$99$79$129$82937%
Phantom 4 Advanced$139$99$139$1,29929%
Phantom 4 Pro Series$159$99$149$1,59925%
Phantom 3 SE (discontinued)$59$69$79$72928%
Inspire 2$339$209$329$3,29927%

The chart gives the price of DJI Care Refresh for different DJI drone models so that it will be easier to estimate the cost of the plan as a percentage of market value.

There are also the costs of the first and second replacements divided by the cost of a new drone. 

The chart also lists the prices of DJI Care Refresh for some discontinued DJI drone models. Though DJI is not producing these models anymore, they are still available for purchase on some shopping sites. Therefore, it is possible to buy DJI Care Refresh insurance cover for these models.

It is a prudent decision to buy DJI Care Refresh for the discontinued models also since if you have to make a claim under the insurance cover and a replacement is approved in your case, there are chances that you will get an upgraded model.

However, this is not guaranteed officially. Nevertheless, it is not wise to intentionally damage your product with the hope of getting a replacement unit.

If the company finds out that you have damaged your drone intentionally, you will never be eligible for any kind of replacement.   

See also  Guide To Levels Of Drone Autonomy

It matters a lot to go for DJI Care Refresh cover for expensive DJI drone models. This is because the expensive models get you a better cost analysis on the whole. Let us understand this with an example.

Say you bought Mavic 2 Pro paying $149, crash it and get your first replacement at a cost of $69, and crash it once again and get the second replacement paying $99, you would have a good working Mavic 2 Pro with you while you have only paid 20% of the original price of the product. Therefore, this can be a winning situation for you.

is it worth getting dji care refresh

How To Make Claims Under DJI Care Refresh

Here are the steps to make claims under DJI Care Refresh

  • Understand your service plan and submit a repair request online.
  • You will be asked to send your drone to a nearby DJI drone repair center (DJI will cover the shipping charges).
  • If the DJI repair center confirms that the damage suffered by the drone is a covered event, you will be provided with a new drone.
  • If the type of damage suffered by your drone is not a covered one, you will be given the option to get it repaired or the drone will be returned to you in the same condition.  

DJI Care: What It Covers And What It Does Not

To make the right use of the DJI Care Refresh insurance cover, it is important to understand what it covers and what it does not. 

What it covers

The damages that are covered include a crash caused by signal loss or any interference, collisions, dropping the drone, damage due to water, operator error leading to damage, accidents, and flyaway. 

DJI Care Refresh covers flyaway only in the case of Mini 2 and Mavic Air 2 provided certain conditions are met. In the first place, the drone must have been bound by DJI service plan.

Secondly, the remote controller must have been paired with the drone. The controller must be able to give a flyaway report as proof of the drone flying away to the end that it was not mislaid or stolen.  

For flyaway situations, there is a replacement fee applicable. In case of Mini 2, the flyaway replacement fee charged is $225. In case of Mavic Air 2, the flyaway replacement fee is $399. 

What it does not cover

Does not cover flyaway, except in cases of Mini 2 and the Mavic Air 2

Does not compensate for lost drones including water loss

Abandoned, stolen and forgotten drones do not come under the coverage

The remote controller is not covered and any loss or damage was done deliberately and issues or damage due to DIY repair attempts will not be covered by the policy.

do you need dji care refresh

Damages That Do Not Impact The Drone’s Working

Two other things that DJI Care Refresh does not cover make the drone owners wonder if it is really worth investing in this insurance plan.

See also  Here's My Honest DJI Master Wheels Review After Using It For 2 Weeks - Pricing included

Flyaway is a difficult situation to make any claims. Unless the drone is physically taken to the repair center, DJI will have difficulties in ascertaining the cause of the problem reported during a claim.

Therefore, it is often very difficult to make claims in case of a flyaway. If a drone had any flyaway event, not due to the fault of the pilot, you will naturally expect it to be covered by the insurance plan.

DJI Care Refresh coverage for some DJI drone models requires you to pay a hefty amount to avail of a replacement due to fly away.  

The second difficult situation to make a claim is a drone lost in the water. Even in this case, you will not have the drone return it physically to the repair center.

Though damage due to water is covered, the claim will be rejected if the drone was flown in unfavorable conditions. The coverage will be denied altogether if the drone drops into the water from the sky and sinks. 

Should you get DJI Care Refresh?

The tenure of DJI Care Refresh coverage is just one year, which makes us ask if it is really worth going for it. If any major crash happens after a year of purchase, the policy will not help you.

Since you have to spend on one another suitable insurance plan to cover physical damage, it is a sensible idea to go for a different monthly insurance plan that will last for a long time during the life of your drone.  

One another downside to the DJI Care Refresh is the timeline of the replacement or return service. In some cases, the process can take around six weeks while in some cases, it might take up to two months.

This long waiting period without your drone will make you feel handicapped. Most other insurance policies purchased independently from other sources will give you a check for the amount covered so that you can buy a replacement unit without much delay.  

If you would like to go for an independent insurance policy for your drone, you can consider the physical damage cover offered by most drone insurance providers.

This kind of coverage is available as an add-on along with liability coverage. You will not need liability insurance if you are not flying a lot as a hobbyist or a professional drone pilot.   

If you are a licensed and professional drone pilot, liability insurance will make more sense. While going for liability insurance, you can get physical damage cover to your plan as an add-on.

Hobbyists not looking forward to buying drone liability insurance have limited chances to find an independent physical damage cover. In such cases, DJI Care Refresh can be a good option.   

Also Read:

/* */
Drones-Pro
Logo