Would you risk life and limb to save your cellphone? For many people, the answer is yes, according to the results of a recent survey.
Impact protection manufacturer D30 recently commissioned a survey of consumers from the United States and the United Kingdom to understand how connected they are to their cellphones and find out what lengths they’d go to to retrieve or save the device.
Findings show that 20% of the respondents would climb onto subway tracks to retrieve their phone, while 54% would retrieve it from a portable toilet at a festival. Additionally:
- 59% would jump into a pool fully clothed at a wedding.
- 56% would climb into a dumpster.
- 51% would miss an international flight rather than leave a lost phone behind.
“Our research shows people will go to astonishing lengths to rescue their devices,” D30 CEO Stuart Sawyer said. “Your phone isn’t just technology. It’s your connection to friends, family, work, entertainment, memories and your whole life.”
To Julia Kite Laidlaw, senior program manager of the Road to Zero initiative at the National Safety Council, the survey results are cause for concern.
“We might laugh at some of the lengths people will go to for their phones, but putting yourself in danger by climbing onto subway tracks is no joke,” Kite-Laidlaw said. “You can always replace a phone. You can never replace your life. It’s worth it to spend a little bit of money on phone insurance or a data storage plan to have peace of mind. With the ability to upload your data and photos into the cloud, even if your physical phone disappears, you will still have your digital life. Have a backup plan that doesn’t involve risking your personal safety.”
