Halloween is a time for costumes, trick-or-treating and scary hijinks, not for losing or damaging your phone. Each Halloween, tech care company Asurion sees a huge spike in ‘ghoulish’ phone mishaps, making this one of the most dangerous holidays for your device.
From forgetting that you put your phone on the roof of your car, to dropping it on the sidewalk when you pull it out to use it as a flashlight, Halloween is the second-most ‘haunting’ holiday for your phone, right behind the Fourth of July. People report big spikes in phone damage and loss on October 31 compared to a typical day, including:
- Cracked screens skyrocket 42%
- Lost and stolen phones jump more than 40%
- Water damage climbs 36%
- Other damage increases more than 30%
“Smartphones are what keep us connected and how we get things done. And this Halloween, whether you’re celebrating with your kids or you’re enjoying the festivities with friends, we know you need your phone to be fully functioning,” said Bettie Colombo, Asurion Senior Director of Corporate Communications. “We want to help you keep your phone working and protected with just a few simple tips for the holiday and beyond.”
Asurion Experts suggest the following tips to help keep your phone safe from the ghosts and goblins:
- Phone as Flashlight. You’re trick-or-treating with the kids and it gets dark, so you pull out your phone to use its flashlight function. Then whoops! It goes crashing onto the sidewalk or someone’s driveway, cracking the screen or damaging the side of the phone. This is the #1 Halloween mishap.
- Tip: A few new batteries in an old-fashioned flashlight can minimize the number of times you are pulling your phone out. However, if you do plan on using your phone to light the way, make sure you have a sturdy phone case. While not always 100% effective, it can help minimize the risk.
- Lost in the Night. Every year we hear tales of phones that fell out of back pockets while trick-or-treating with the kids at night. Because it’s dark, people couldn’t find their fallen phones or didn’t even notice that they lost them. Phones that were found were either damaged or stopped working due to exposure to the elements.
- Tip: Make sure you enable the phone-finding feature on your phone — such as “Find My” on iOS for iPhones, “Find My Device” on Google PixelTM or “Find My Mobile” on Samsung© — to help locate where you dropped your phone. You can log into your account on another device to activate a sound on your phone and locate it on a map.
- Car Roof Mishap. Setting your phone on top of your car and driving off happens frequently on Halloween. We get it. Your hands are full, and maybe you are herding a troop of princesses, super heroes and vampires into your car.
- Low-Tech Tip: Avoid this potential phone disaster by placing a sticky note on your steering wheel as a reminder to check that you have your phone.
- Make Your Phone Returnable. If you lock your phone for security purposes — which most of us do — add an alternate contact number on your phone’s lock screen. Asurion research shows that this simple move will increase your chances three-fold of getting your phone returned if you lose or misplace it.