Does anyone have experience with a home warranty? Good or bad. We are considering getting one and wonder if they are worth the money or do the companies find ways to not pay when a claim does arise?
We have used American Home Shield for years and never had a problem. Make sure you read and understand well what it's cover and what is not.
Definetly worth the money. Our garbage disposal has gone out a couple of times, and I pay the $50.00 deductible (I think that's what they call it), and I get a new one installed.
They are definitely worth the money. You can pay some of them monthly, that way you don't have to pay the 300-400 right up front.
Just make sure it is worth it for you. We spent $60 every visit for our deductible with American Home Shield.
They only replace "like for like". In other words, we needed a new a/c unit. We only had a 10 SEER and wanted to go higher for energy efficiency reasons, they didn't cover that. So we just had to do it ourselves. I could have gone with their vendor and payed the difference-I think. But I didn't like the vendor they sent (I checked him out before I did anything that major to my house), and I got a better deal somewhere else.
They only fix what broke, not anything else related. My undermount sink fell, shattered my pipes and garbage disposal. They remounted the sink, but all of the plumbing and garbage disposal were my expense-even though my plan says plumbing and garbage disposal are covered, it's not when caused by something else. So I had my sink remounted, then went with my own person, because they guy they sent wanted to charge me almost double what others did.I replaced my own garbage disposal.
The other issue is you have no say on who does your repair work. You call and make a claim. They call their vendors (often someone trying to break into the business or looking to improve sales). And the vendor calls you. I had a pool issue and it took 3 different vendors before I found someone who knew what needed to be done.
Just make sure that you read all of the fine print about what is and isn't covered. It's sounds like a good idea, but my experience has not been the best. I dropped it this year because we replaced our both a/c and heater units last summer and our hot water heater the year before. I also have a new dishwasher. So I don't have any major appliances left that would be worth the yearly rate. I'm saving up for the stove and microwave I want. I don't want to replace them with "builder's grade" I want to pick out what I want. And I have the extended warranty on my fridge, washer and dryer, so not much left for them to cover.
Sorry, I know I sound like a whiny complaining witch. But I'm really not. I just come from a long line of handy men and am very picky about my major home appliances. :o)
I've always had great experiences with home warranty companies. Make sure you do your homework and get quotes on a few so that you have a good comparison. I think ours is around $300-400 a year - definitely worth it. Obviously, if you're in a new home, you shouldn't have too much go wrong. But, it's those little things that get you. And, conceivably, it would cost you the same for only one housecall w/o the warranty as it would for the annual fee. They do charge a service call (usu. $35-40). Just make sure you read the fine print and ask a lot of questions. Sorry for going on and on (I think the coffee has kicked in!) - bottom line: my experience is that they are worth it!
American Home Shield is the only one to go with... they all have their negatives, but it's the best one and the repair people that have come out, tell me AHS pays them the most, so they're more likely to except calls from AHS, whereas the ones that don't pay well are likely to get the desperate repair people.
I have fought with AHS over customer service, but I've always made out well and it's paid off to pay for the warranty.
