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Caveat Emptor


Home Warranty Companies or Extended warranties For a Variety of Objects and machines.

How to select:

  1. Get a copy of their mission statement, contract or statement of operation.
  2. Determine if their customer service is local (speaking your native language)
  3. Request in your native language if you need it.
  4. Do not believe the statements of coverage and the cadre of contractors across your area or the country.
  5. Better Business inquiries usually do not yield much useable information. Even if the company has good or bad rating.
  6. In their advertising they tout how many contractors they have, 24-hour service.

The reality: The service quality depends on the company’s relationship with the contractors.

1.Your basic fee may be less that the contractor fee.

2.Replacement or repair price is negotiated with the contractor to get the cheapest price for the job.

Relative to their location: contractors have a basic fee (which the customer pays) to make the visit and evaluate the problem. When the evaluation is complete the contractor provides that information to the company and the company approves the evaluation after some negotiation (the company always goes for the cheapest way not necessarily best way e.g. If you have a high-quality product and the repair would exceed the price of replacement, the company will offer the customer a” token” amount for replacement maybe with installation according to the product).

Summary:

Read the contract

Talk only to customer service people who speak your language

Get specific details on Contractor fees (even if you have a contracted fee with the company All of these companies express their ability to service but have the basic objective of getting as many signed up as possible but can and will fail the customer at some point usually in the negotiation with the contractor. Remember contractors are being hosed as well as the customer and for that reason the better contractors do not remain in the service of these companies. The hype of what you save in time and money from these companies varies from state