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We are a couple months into living in our "new to us" house which is about 12 years old. The purchase came with a 1-year home warranty through American Home Shield.
The AHS policy shows there's a $100 service call per service, and it sounds like AHS selects the service providers. So if we needed a plumber for one thing and an electrician for another, we'd be looking at $200 minimum, and who knows who they'll send out.
We have a few small things that should be covered under the policy, and possibly a larger one brewing (I suspect a drain pipe leak from an upstairs bathroom). We also have the option of adding an aerobic septic pump-out to our policy, which we might want to add depending on cost.
I'm looking for advice and/or experiences anyone has had using a home warranty. I want to approach getting things done that are covered by the warranty in the best possible way. Anyone? Thanks!
Those types of warranties have one purpose- make a quicker sale of a home!
Without a long dissertation-
They’re basically not worth the paper they’re written on!
While it's true they can assist in selling houses, we've had several clients make them well worth having, at least for the first year in a new home with aging mechanicals. I don't know a LOT of people who keep them beyond that first year, but $100 deductible is a good deal on plumbing or electrical, either of which would typically have a $200 minimum charge just to show up.
While it's true they can assist in selling houses, we've had several clients make them well worth having, at least for the first year in a new home with aging mechanicals. I don't know a LOT of people who keep them beyond that first year, but $100 deductible is a good deal on plumbing or electrical, either of which would typically have a $200 minimum charge just to show up.
This makes a lot of sense. If this were me (granted, I've never had experience with a home warranty) I'd probably pick the most timely issue the warranty covers that might cost the most to address and use the policy benefit to deal with it (carefully checking into the service providers you are required to use of course). Then let the warranty lapse and address lower priority issues as they come up myself. Whether you have a warranty or not, every house will have something that needs fixing most of the time! Just goes long with home ownership...
This makes a lot of sense. If this were me (granted, I've never had experience with a home warranty) I'd probably pick the most timely issue the warranty covers that might cost the most to address and use the policy benefit to deal with it (carefully checking into the service providers you are required to use of course). Then let the warranty lapse and address lower priority issues as they come up myself. Whether you have a warranty or not, every house will have something that needs fixing most of the time! Just goes long with home ownership...
You can check into the service providers you're required to use, but if they're poorly rated, you're SOL. That's one reason I've never used home warranty services. I like to choose the best service providers for the job, not the ones I'm mandated to use by a policy, and who, typically will band-aid a problem before fixing it.
From my experiences with a few of the home warranty companies, you better off getting estimates and recommendations and references on several local companies before just going ahead with the ones used by the home warranty company.
I’ve had several friends who were in the same situation as you and after all was said and done, they were not happy with the process and dealing with the contractor who had the lock-in with the warranty company. I hope it works out well for you!
If you have minor problem,do you really want to call several companies and schedule for them to come to your house?
and if it is a serious problem,spending $100 for someone to come ASAP is well worth the money.
Yeah, the warranty was more or less "thrown in" with the deal. Our realtor suggested it, but we didn't really care one way or another. I rather suspect using the warranty is probably more trouble than it's worth. We are usually the types to shop around for service providers and choose based on whatever research/vetting process we can do before the need becomes an emergency. Thanks, everyone!
To offer insight into how they work, here’s my experience.
Liked a house, had older HVAC, tested “ok for its age”, agent said “no worries, I’ll buy you a home warranty to be extra safe!”
I had peace of mind, bought the house. Obviously this wasn’t the only factor, but it was 1 less negative.
AC worked for the few weeks I used it after moving in, then winter came.
Fast forward to recently, the first time I put the AC back on, it didn’t cool. Refrigerant was found to be empty. There’s some ethical issues regarding that, as it suggests the previous homeowner “charged” the AC up with refrigerant just before the sale, to make it seem OK. An AC wouldn’t typically leak the entire contents over just 4 months, but I digress.
Facts regarding the claim that followed:
1) AHS sent out a technician to verify the problem.
2) Technician already gave a heads up that it will cost a lot to repair, in spite of the warranty.
3) AHS cover the cost of replacement refrigerant at a rate of $10 per lb
4) HVAC contractors charge close to $200 per lb for refrigerant
5) My unit would have required approximately 10 lbs so I would be out of pocket approximately $2000 to repair a failing HVAC system
6) I pointed that out to the contractor, and they nodded knowingly and said essentially “that’s their trick… they’ll pay me $200 to plug the leak and fill the refrigerant, and leave you to pay the remaining $2000”
7) I didn’t see the sense in spending that much money on a system that was obviously at its end of life so I opted to replace it
8) AHS sent me a check for what they would have paid if I chose to simply repair it - $225
Better than nothing, but only because I didn’t buy the warranty. I paid the $100 call out fee, got $225 returned to me, so I’m ahead $125.
For what it’s worth, I replaced the entire system for a few reasons, and it cost me $9000
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