Posing as a potential customer we investigated the
attitudes of service providers and retailers to crime and phone theft. Unsurprisingly the only anti-crime offering from service providers and retailers concerns the theft of the phone itself. Shop assistants seemed to avoid the topic - if you have your phone insured then having it stolen is not an issue - it can simply be replaced.

All companies offer phone insurance, all be it in varying forms of sophistication. With insurance lost phones are quickly replaced. I indeed it would seem that a significant volumes of reported mobile phone theft is due to fraudulent claims made by people wanting to upgrade their phone. Recent stories have alleged that retailing staff were advising customers to make fraudulent claims as the easiest route to upgrade. Subsequently some police stations no longer accept claims for stolen phones over the phone - instead you must report the crime in person.

In addition to insurance Carphone Warehouse and now Orange offer a number storage service that will backup the numbers in your SIM in case of loss. For the people we spoke to loosing your numbers was the worst part of loosing a phone, this would seem to be a useful service that addresses this issues.

At the time of writing the cross industry Immobilise initiative is highly publicised in stores, though most shop assistants don't believe it to be effective. Several argued that SIM cards can be unlocked and that thieves will find a way around Immobilise anyway.

Field Observation 14.03.03

The way mobile phones and service plans are sold makes it difficult to understand where the hardware stops and software starts. The buyer is baffled with by the wide range options available beyond the simple voice call.

O2
O2 offer their own insurance cover, a well developed proposition that differs between pay-as-you-go and pay monthly service plans. 'Gold' cover costs £59.00 and there is also a cheaper 'Silver' options. In case of loss or theft O2 will supply a replacement phone the next working day or in 24 - 48 hours if abroad

Carphone Warehouse
As a retailer Carphone Warehouse offers its own insurance cover. The service to backup the numbers on your SIM can be purchased separately.

Vodafone
Vodaphone display the Immobilise signage in their shop window. Their general insurance doesn't cover theft and damage or unauthorised calls. Their insurance literature claims "We can protect you..if you are unlucky enough to have your phone stolen" Without this extra cover a phone which costs £9.99 to buy can cost £200.00 to replace. Like all service providers the physical phone and contract are treated as separate things. You are going to want your phone replaced as soon as possible - as you are still paying.

Orange
Orange insurance is available 24 hrs a day. It will provide you with a new phone in the morning at an Orange shop. In general the offer is similar to others though the impression is that the quality of the service is better.

T-Mobile
T-mobile insurance is provided by Lloyds of london and presented as a particularly unsophisticated leaflet which appears to be a second thought.

Immobilise Phone Crime initiative

To tackle the increase in mobile phone theft, and it's accompanying negative press the industry set up the Immobilise initiative. A national mobile phone database, that will block stolen and lost mobile phones from working on any UK network. The idea being to make a stolen phone worthless and therefore stealing it pointless.
Stolen or lost phones, including pre-pay handsets can be blocked by calling your network or 08701 123 123.

The organisations that make up the Immobilise initiative.

How Immobilise works:

1. You call your network, service provider or 08701 123 123 and explain what's happened to your phone. The network will immediately deactivate your SIM card to prevent un-authorized calls being made.
2. Your network will also identify a recent phone call made by you on your phone to determine the unique IMEI number of the mobile phone. (The IMEI is located on a strip normally located behind the battery of the handset. You can also find it on most handsets by pressing the keys *#06# when it will be displayed in the handset window.)
3. This unique IMEI number is then entered onto the networks' central database, deactivating your lost or stolen mobile on the network.
4. Each day deactivated IMEI numbers are shared across every network through the central database so they are rendered inoperable across every network. So, even if your SIM card has been changed, your lost or stolen handset will no longer work.
   

The Campaign:

A massive campaign supported the launch of the new service across Britain, display material was distributed to retailers, press and police stations and accompanied by a billboard campaign. The tone of the campaign helps remove any feeling of risk in buying an expensive and desirable phone.

In store publicity for their Immobilise campaign

Corporate social responsibility

Mobile phone advertising and imagery would suggest that the brands are trying to get closer to 'real' people and communities. This maybe an acknowledgement that for the most part phones are used for very mundane things as reported by MobileUK. At a time when there is increased sense of corporate social responsibility there would seem to be an opportunity for these companies to provide (crime reducing) community services.

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