Who do you recommend?
Searching for a good home warranty.
- Thread starter daves66nova
- Start date
None.
I had American Home Shield when I bought my home and was no living there yet. When we sold our NY house and moved to our DE home we cancelled the policy.
I am typically not a fan of service contracts in general.
We have one from the company that installed our two Trane heat pumps as it provides 2x year service & cleaning and no cost labor. The Trane itself has a 10 yr parts warranty. Also I am told that it's a good idea to have a service contract for HVAC equipment as when it breaks and it's 100F out that the HVAC company will arrive quickly.
We may get a service contract for the GE washer & dryer we bought in Dec 2022 as GE is offering one at a good price.
But let me give you an example of a concern about AHS. Our old GE was covered under the AHS warranty. It would bang loudly with certain loads in the washer during the spin cycle. We could not get them to cover the cost of rebuilding the drum suspension. They replaced the seal for the drum. One tech said that's the way GE washers ran when it was manufactured.
The new GE washer we have had no issues with unbalanced loads during spin. I assume it's a combination of it being a new washer with new suspension components and better technology.
I am typically not a fan of service contracts in general.
We have one from the company that installed our two Trane heat pumps as it provides 2x year service & cleaning and no cost labor. The Trane itself has a 10 yr parts warranty. Also I am told that it's a good idea to have a service contract for HVAC equipment as when it breaks and it's 100F out that the HVAC company will arrive quickly.
We may get a service contract for the GE washer & dryer we bought in Dec 2022 as GE is offering one at a good price.
But let me give you an example of a concern about AHS. Our old GE was covered under the AHS warranty. It would bang loudly with certain loads in the washer during the spin cycle. We could not get them to cover the cost of rebuilding the drum suspension. They replaced the seal for the drum. One tech said that's the way GE washers ran when it was manufactured.
The new GE washer we have had no issues with unbalanced loads during spin. I assume it's a combination of it being a new washer with new suspension components and better technology.
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I can tell you to avoid them like the plague and put your money in a "rainy day" savings account. My son had a policy with the largest company (American Home Shield) and when his HVAC failed due to slow evaporator leakage, all they did was send a poorly trained technician to recharge it every 3-4 months until the system completely failed after 2 years. At that point, AHS only installed a replacement unit of the lowest economy builder quality unit based upon the local contractor with the lowest bid.
My son offered to pay the difference and use a different highly rated contractor to upgrade to a better quality HVAC unit, but they absolutely refused since that would breach their "agreement" with their low rated contractor. This situation would be similar to having to use the "preferred" body shop recommended by your insurance agency instead of a shop of your choosing.
AHS = American Horror Story
My son offered to pay the difference and use a different highly rated contractor to upgrade to a better quality HVAC unit, but they absolutely refused since that would breach their "agreement" with their low rated contractor. This situation would be similar to having to use the "preferred" body shop recommended by your insurance agency instead of a shop of your choosing.
AHS = American Horror Story
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agree,
I got a year warranty with them when I bought my house. The reimbursed me $100 towards the purchase of a new dishwasher when the unit failed two months after I moved in. Fair enough. When the HVAC crapped out in the first summer they waltzed me around and sent a nice guy who was an experienced HVAC tech but even older than me to fix the unit. Felt really, really bad he had to go up in the attic to figure out what the issue was. August in Carolina, no a/c had to be 120+ up there. Thought I might have to call 911 before he got my a/c to work. He did get the system to work after recharging it but it needed more than that. He called about ten days later to ask me to contact American Home Shield to ask them to pay him for his work. They had welshed on him because his NC hvac license had lapsed a few days earlier. Told him if they didn't pay him promptly, I would.
After that, AHS kept badgering me to renew the policy. Gave them the best 'middle finger salute' they ever got.
We had much the same experience. We purchased a new home and chose the "full coverage" warranty. Unfortunately, our request was denied due to it being an unknown pre existing condition.
DON'T DO IT.
DON'T DO IT.
We had a home warranty when we first moved in. The guys they sent out were either incompetent or limited by company policy. They kept refilling the AC and insisting they couldn't find any leaks. Eventually on the 3rd or 4th try I convinced the guy to search a little harder and he found and repaired the leak. Then there was another failure related to the fan. I don't recall what the part was called but that took about 3 visits to get right also. Furnace was slightly less of a debacle but they did make it right with the repair then ran into my neighbor's fence, promised me they would do the right thing and go knock on the door and let them know, and left without doing so. I laughed when they called me to ask to renew.
As a hvac contractor I refuse to deal with these companies. Every time I have dealt with them they are looking for a reason to get out of paying the customers claim. They will talk to us on the phone and try to get us to say something that makes the problem a result of something the homeowner did so they don't have to pay the warranty claim. Not to mention you always get someone on the phone that understands nothing about hvac so its like talking to a wall.
I have a older sister with dementia and wife and I have 2 homes. when we got the home for my sister it came with an HSA warranty. I really paid off for us. The home had sat vacant and when everything was turned on it had many failures. First was the water heater electric one had to be replaced and it didn't have a line to the outside hooked up to the pop off valve. Plumber added that for no additional charge. Then the double door fridge quit and that was $1250 then the Hunter remote control ceiling fan needed repair and then the AC blower and compressor quit. THe initial cost to us for each failure was $75. Everything got fixed or replaced within a couple days. That made me happy and each year since I have renewed the contract. It has been a no brainer for me. I just don't have time to do repairs for her and me. Recently she has had an outdoor faucet replaced that wouldn't shut off and a garage door opener that wouldn't work. It has been worth it for us.
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What do you think you're going to get out of some $200/year home warranty?
A $12,500 HVAC replacement? A $1900 refrigerator? A $2100 water heater replacement?
A $12,500 HVAC replacement? A $1900 refrigerator? A $2100 water heater replacement?
There is no such thing as a good home warranty, except they're good for the insurer.
As a plumbing contractor I worked with them just a couple of times. They were a pain in the butt and did not want to pay for everything. I thereafter refused to work with them. When a customer called me and informed me that this was going to be paid for by their homeowners policy I would say great! but I expect to be paid by you upon job completion. Send a copy of the paid bill to the insurance company for reimbursement. Often times people were paid a paltry sum for the work that was done. The insurance company holds all the cards.
I never bought one but I was a real estate agent.
Like any insurance, chances are you will never need it. With that said, dont be distracted by comments that you dont need one if it is something that makes you feel better.
Sometimes they work out for people. Ignore comments like "the person that they sent to my house was incompetent" that could go for ANY contractor anyone finds on their own too! The contractors are local people, not employees of the warranty company.
I have had a number of clients do well with these warranties, true most wont need them but when you do it is pretty cool.
My own brother moved south, his agent had the homeowner pay for the warranty, it actually worked out well for my brother on a few things. One of their toilets cracked, he was very happy with the installers that installed a new one from Lowes.
Here is the key though. Make sure you read what is covered, all the plans have basic protection to complete system protection.
AHS is a national leader but there are other good ones. Do an internet search but here are some names.
https://www.consumeraffairs.com/homeowners/aaa_warranties.html
Do what works out for you and what you feel good about, we all buy things for that purpose, if you think it's cool to have your home covered do it.
Like any insurance, chances are you will never need it. With that said, dont be distracted by comments that you dont need one if it is something that makes you feel better.
Sometimes they work out for people. Ignore comments like "the person that they sent to my house was incompetent" that could go for ANY contractor anyone finds on their own too! The contractors are local people, not employees of the warranty company.
I have had a number of clients do well with these warranties, true most wont need them but when you do it is pretty cool.
My own brother moved south, his agent had the homeowner pay for the warranty, it actually worked out well for my brother on a few things. One of their toilets cracked, he was very happy with the installers that installed a new one from Lowes.
Here is the key though. Make sure you read what is covered, all the plans have basic protection to complete system protection.
AHS is a national leader but there are other good ones. Do an internet search but here are some names.
https://www.consumeraffairs.com/homeowners/aaa_warranties.html
Do what works out for you and what you feel good about, we all buy things for that purpose, if you think it's cool to have your home covered do it.
Also be aware that the ConsumerAffairs review article is sponsored financially by their "authorized partners" of which American Home Shield is one. This is actually disclosed on the ConsumerAffairs webpage if you look closely.
I think these customer reviews may be more objective:
Trustpilot - AHS Reviews
I think these customer reviews may be more objective:
Trustpilot - AHS Reviews
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- Jun 26, 2022
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I generally do not recommend them to people unless the appliances are just so-so and any repleacent or repair might not be easily afforded by the homeowner.
If that is the case, American Home Shield is far superior to the rest. They sometimes will 'cash' you out of a repair, meaning they will refund the cost of the policy instead of reapiring it but thats only on say like a 20 yr old a/c unit that is not repirable.
I have good friends and clients that I sold beach side condo to years ago who are now on their 3rd set of A/C systems in their condo and they could not be happier.
You can contact AHS direct, no need to pay a middle man. Look them up on the internet, answer questions and down the road you go.
If that is the case, American Home Shield is far superior to the rest. They sometimes will 'cash' you out of a repair, meaning they will refund the cost of the policy instead of reapiring it but thats only on say like a 20 yr old a/c unit that is not repirable.
I have good friends and clients that I sold beach side condo to years ago who are now on their 3rd set of A/C systems in their condo and they could not be happier.
You can contact AHS direct, no need to pay a middle man. Look them up on the internet, answer questions and down the road you go.
YOU are your best home warranty. Insurance, on the other hand...
Not really, most comments on websites are people who complain, voluntarily going to a website, may be helpful in learning for things to look for, but it’s nowhere near scientific in any way, shape or form
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This is beyond what I would even imagine…wow
Sounds like shopping for a reverse mortgage on Father’s Day would be far more enjoyable than dealing with AHS
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