|
|
|
#1
|
|||
|
|||
Advise on home warranty companies; no where else to turn....
In light of my recent A/C issue, I'm considering purchasing a home warranty to cover needed repairs. I believe the house came with America Home Shield back in 2005. The tech they sent appeared to be incompetent so I did not renew the home warranty with them. Has anyone had a home warranty they were pleased with? If so, I'd like to hear about your experience......
|
#2
|
||||
|
||||
1 word: AVOID.
As you saw with AHS, they will send out the cheapest bidder they can get their hands on (which usually means you'll get a half-assed job). If you are buying a house, get a home warranty for a year or so, but beyond that, maintain your appliances yourself, or budget for replacements as they wear out. You get what you pay for.
__________________
Current stable: 1995 E320 149K (Nancy) 1983 500SL 120K (SLoL) Black Sheep: 1985 524TD 167K (TotalDumpster™) Gone but not forgotten: 1986 300SDL (RIP) 1991 350SD 1991 560SEL 1990 560SEL 1986 500SEL Euro (Rusted to nothing at 47K!) |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
This afternoon I did a lot of research on the major players in the home warranty field. Granted yelp.com reviews are not verified; that said, EVERY SINGLE COMPANY CAME UP L-O-S-E-R-S.
What is the old saying? What is the best way to double your money? Answer: fold it and put it in your pocket. |
#4
|
||||
|
||||
It depends upon the state you are in, each is different.
__________________
1981 240D Four on the floor, Orient Red over Parchment, bought with 154,000 but it's a daily driver and up to 180,000 miles, mostly original paint and all original interior. |
#5
|
||||
|
||||
They are in business to make money. They will keep throwing parts at worn out junk just to keep it going and not have to replace. I used to do contract work on water heaters for one of them, they did not like to replace them but basically if I told them it was too far gone to get it working they would agree to replace it with the cheapest one available. I must have replaced too many because they did not renew my contract.
__________________
Brian 87 300Dturbo 180K #14 head still running R-12 SOLD 12/2017 02 F350 Powerstroke 180K 05 Chevy Express 1 ton w/Royal Utility box 120K 08 Infiniti FX-35 40K 15 Golf Sportwagen TDI 35K 10 Sprinter 3500 chassis with a Class A Winnebago on it. 56K |
#6
|
|||
|
|||
Quote:
Coming from wrenching on a Mercedes though, you'll find appliances are fantastically simple machines to work on. Whether it's your central A/C, dishwasher, wash machine, oven, whatever. And there are a number of good parts web sites that have exploded diagrams and every repair part imaginable. You'll also discover that the manufacturers frequently release updated or revised parts that solve known issues (kind of like a car, hmmm) so when that pesky defrost coil for the freezer's evaporator burns out, you might find that GE makes an upgraded dual-element coil. Anyhow, I'm rambling now, but you get the idea. Home warranty repair folks are like the minimum wage Jiffie Lube teenager changing your oil - they're barely qualified for the job, and they have no pride in their work.
__________________
1998 E300 turbodiesel America's Rights and Freedoms Are Not The Enemy! |
#7
|
|||
|
|||
It's true; with a little motivation and will power, it isn't too hard to figure out most machinery. Awhile back I was listening to a show on the radio. The discussion was about ancient Rome. Heads of Roman households had grown fat and lazy and hadn't bothered learning how to fix or repair anything because their slaves did all the grunt work. One day, the slaves had had it and decided to revolt. This slave revolt left the Roman masters holding the proverbial bag; they didn't know how to fix or repair ANYTHING.
|
#8
|
||||
|
||||
I had AHS a year after I got my house. They replaced a furnace that had crapped out. The replacement was adequate...nothing fancy but it works. The installers were actually great. They did excellent work adapting the old ductwork to the new sizing and cleaned up the electrical going to it as well. I've heard a lot of horror stories, but my experience with the installers was great (the warranty only covered the replacement PART, not the install labor which may have made a difference). Biggest pain in the was was waiting on hold for 6 hours to put my claim in. They don't make it easy, but we got our money's worth. That said, take the amount you would put into a warranty and stick it in a rainy day account.
__________________
TC Current stable: - 2004 Mazda RALLYWANKEL - 2007 Saturn sky redline - 2004 Explorer...under surgery. Past: 135i, GTI, 300E, 300SD, 300SD, Stealth |
#9
|
|||
|
|||
Sure thing.
Consider the top three home warranty companies, you may have to use the process of elimination to determine which are the top three. Average their monthly fees and start a savings account with a sum equal to the average of those fees.
If your cost for repairs/replacement of your home's systems then charge the difference between your savings and those cost to a credit card. Just make payments with future savings until it's paid back to normal. The probability is high that you'll come out even or better the longer you continue to save instead of pay.
__________________
84 300SD 85 380SE 83 528e 95 318ic |
#10
|
|||
|
|||
I had experience with one of them for 3 jobs and every job was not done.
1 was an electric oulet issue - the GFCI would indicate red and lock out, meaning wiring fault, the guy they sent couldnt identify the fault and took money from my mother, I later on drove to their local office and got my money back and asked them abt this job. Their electric repair only covers changing wall sockets and plates (anyone can do that) the next was an AC problem. the guy stuck gauges on a dirty condenser coil and adjusted the r22 charge, - cue next day, no worky. comes back - says there is a leak in the evap and condenser, instead of supplying a whole new matched unit (which would have made sense) - they supplied an old stock r22 evap slab coil furnace and an R407 condenser unit. if they can find its 5 cents cheaper to do it the wrong way - then the wrong way it will be done.
__________________
2012 BMW X5 (Beef + Granite suspension model) 1995 E300D - The original humming machine (consumed by Flood 2017) 2000 E320 - The evolution (consumed by flood 2017) |
#11
|
|||
|
|||
Seems these warranty companies are run by whack-job nut cases. Logic seems to have gone out the door when it comes to their procedures and protocals. Perhaps they should run for political office, they would fit right in.
|
#12
|
||||
|
||||
Quote:
In our case, our 1981 house had its original water heater. Yes it made knocking sounds every time it was running. Called and $60 later, we have a brand new unit. Not bad, the guy did an amazing install. So far so good, it's been 4 years now.
__________________
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7271/7...144c3fc1dc.jpg |
#13
|
|||
|
|||
As a general rule, only insure for things which would be a catastrophy. I don't put home appliances in that set. Better to invest the money you would spend on the insurance payments.
I recall that America Home Shield was the company which the seller paid for the warranty when we bought our current house in 2001. Our realtor pushed us to include that in the offer. I am guessing he got a finder's fee. The electric water heater failed within a year. AHS sent a plumbing company out to inspect, then claimed, "wasn't grounded per code, they wouldn't pay". I knew that was bogus (couldn't cause a failure), and it was wired per code when the house was built in 1972. I researched and found the plumbing company was actually owned by AHS, so expect all they did was write up bogus finds. I had to pursue a lawsuit before I got AHS to pay. Don't waste your money and sanity dealing with any of those warranty crooks. Their warranties are worth less than a degree from Trump U.
__________________
1984 & 1985 CA 300D's 1964 & 65 Mopar's - Valiant, Dart, Newport 1996 & 2002 Chrysler minivans |
#14
|
|||
|
|||
Thank you for the advice Bill, it is well taken. It is unfortunate that home warranty companies are run by what some may call crooks. Having to go to court to sue a business to perform on a contract is never fun.
They figure that the majority of people will never sue or complain to the BBB or FTC. That is how they get away with it; their business becomes a cash cow based on the oldest insurance scam ever; deny claims. Pay only those claims they are forced to pay. It's a sick way to run a business. |
#15
|
||||
|
||||
I am an HVAC contractor... I own my company, and I get a LOT of customers from home warranty rip off sequences...
See... hwc's pay the techs diddly... a job I would charge 3000 for, they allocate 600... so, the techs are motivated to "find" problems that aren't covered so they can make money. My advice with someone that has the warranty... get the quote, then call your own tech to verify and quote repairs... get a check from the hwc, and use it like a coupon towards a real repair... Certain things the hwc do well... water heaters (those are EXPENSIVE to replace nowadays!) but if you have an older ac... nope...
__________________
John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread "as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do! My drivers: 1987 190D 2.5Turbo 1987 190D 2.5Turbo 1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!! 1987 300TD 1987 300TD 1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere! |
Bookmarks |
|
|