HTC One M9 Smartphones Insured With 'Uh Oh Protection'HTC One M9 Smartphones Insured With 'Uh Oh Protection'

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Nothing stings quite like fumbling your smartphone, helplessly watching it sail through the air, and seeing it land on the sidewalk with that sickening "crunch." You reach down, pick it up, turn it over, and, yep, the screen is a shattered mess. Replacing broken smartphone screens is often an expensive proposition, but HTC has your back -- if you own the One M9.

On Wednesday, March 18, HTC today rolled out its "Uh Oh Protection" offering, an insurance plan of sorts that should help owners of the One M9 rest easy.

With Uh Oh Protection, M9 owners are entitled to one free replacement device within the first 12 months they own the phone. Accepted damage includes a cracked screen or a watery death (just please don't drop your phone in the toilet). HTC will also replace the M9 if customers choose to switch carriers.

HTC will also reward M9 owners who don't break their smartphone. Customers who don't take advantage of Uh Oh Protection during the first 12 months will be awarded $100 towards the purchase of a future HTC One handset.

HTC is promising quick turnaround for busted phones. Customers need only call HTC Care, where a team member will arrange to overnight a replacement device. HTC claims the process will be simple and free of hassles. In other words, HTC will take care of you with no questions asked.

Uh Oh Protection builds on the foundation set by last year's HTC Advantage program. With HTC Advantage, HTC promised to replace the screen of damaged One M8 handsets for free. Now it's simply going to replace the entire phone.

According to Google, Uh Oh Protection will save HTC customers some real green. The results of a Google Insights Survey conducted this month indicate 69% of people have damaged their phone in the last year. Almost half, or 47%, spent more than $100 repairing their device. Worse, 25% of respondents resigned themselves to continue using their cracked-up hardware. (Speaking from experience, I can tell you glass slivers are no joke.)

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"With the HTC One M9, we created an innovative new program that ensures the best phone on the market stays that way," Jason Mackenzie, president of HTC Americas, wrote in a statement. "We want our customers to have the confidence to use their new HTC One and the peace of mind that HTC has your back if something unfortunate happens to it. If something does happen, we're going to take care of you -- quickly."

Uh Oh Protection is limited to the US.

The HTC One M9 is expected to go on sale in HTC's home market of Taiwan on March 23, with other markets to follow in early April.

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