Appliance extended warranty

[DektolMan]

We're in the middle of building our retirement home and of course getting new appliances.

Getting a builder discount and package discount saving some money but
we have never bought extended warranties but with appliances made cheaper and all the
new circuit boards we are considering it.

The warranties are for 5 years, parts and labor, and after 5 years if you don't use it
they refund 50% of the warranty cost.

We are getting Bosch kitchen appliances and Speed Queen for our laundry which do not need
extended warranties.

Any opinions would be helpful!

 

[COcheesehead]

I always look at cost vs value. What is the cost of insurance vs what are the odds I cash in? Insure what you can’t or don’t want to pay for.
I’ve had Bosch and never had an issue.

 

[jimbee]

I consider extended warranties a form of insurance. I generally don't buy insurance for anything I can afford to self-insure. This includes home appliances.

 

[latexman]

On items < 1% NW (i.e. negligible), I self-insure.

 

[GrayHare]

Note that certain appliances require you to connect them online to fully function or perhaps for warranty. There is some info at I won't connect my dishwasher to your stupid cloud

 

[skipro33]

Insurance of that type is a sucker's bet. When you try to file a claim, that's when you realize that either parts are not available, the service man will be out in 3 weeks. (Can you live without for that long on a water heater, air conditioner, etc.?) Better to put the premium into a separate pot of money for appliance replacement and let it grow accordingly.

 

[easysurfer]

When I moved into my place many years ago, I bought extended warranty on all my major household appliances. Was only used for one thing (for an odd reason the dishwasher didn't turn on). All the rest eventually time expired on the warranty.

 

[jazz4cash]

As a DIY’r I have avoided extended warranties but I am coming around a bit. The mfr warranties are probably the best but value-wise a whole home warranty is probably much better. I have had 3 whole house warranties and overall good experiences but I am reluctant to recommend. It’s a bit of a crapshoot. I had one that was fantastic until it was bought out by a hedge fund rollup outfit.

 

[fosterscik]

Buy from Costco. They extend appliance warranties by 1 year at no cost. Or some credit cards give extended protection (AmEx).

 

[Midpack]

Insurance of that type is a sucker's bet. When you try to file a claim, that's when you realize that either parts are not available, the service man will be out in 3 weeks. (Can you live without for that long on a water heater, air conditioner, etc.?) Better to put the premium into a separate pot of money for appliance replacement and let it grow accordingly.

+1. Extended warranties are always far more profitable for the issuer than the buyer in the aggregate - obviously they wouldn't sell them at a loss... The odds of you coming out ahead are very low.

• profit margins of as much as 50% or more according to Bloomberg Businessweek
• Very few purchasers of follow-on service coverage benefit in the long term. According to the Federal Trade Commission, only 20% to 30% of consumers who buy them use them. And even where a claim is submitted, the cost of the repair is often less than the price of the service contract.
• Some policies come with exclusion periods and deductibles that lower the value of the contract. Many consumers have also found out too late that they cannot choose their preferred repair facility and may have to produce extensive documentation including original purchase receipts and maintenance records.
• If you might have difficulty covering a repair out of pocket, a far better option would be to establish a side account and pay yourself rather than the warranty company each month to build up the cash for an unexpected fix.

Extended Warranties don’t pay, so why do we buy them? | Apogee Wealth Partners

Extended warranties in the US comprise a $40 billion industry issuing 250 million policies per year according to the Service Contract Industry Council (yes ...

apogeewp.com

 

[rk911]

When we remodeled our kitchen we bought all new appliances and a 7-yr extended warranty. As a % of the overall cost it was pennies.

 

[Jerry1]

When people try to sell me an extended warranty (except for cars, but that’s a different conversation), I just can’t help but ask them why they don’t believe what they’re selling me will last. In this case, they don’t expect the appliances to go 5 years? Sad, even if true in today’s world. You don’t think Bosch and Speed Queen will last 5 years? I just bought a Bosch dishwasher and while I agree it’s not up to the same standards I’ve seen in the past, I do fully expect it to last 5 years.

 

[freedomatlast]

Don't waste your money on extended warranties. Buy quality items to begin with.

 

[Koolau]

Yeah, no extended warranties for us on appliances. It seems to be a racket though YMMV.

 

[Sue J]

When we renovated our kitchen and bought new appliances I bought the extended warranty on the refrigerator only. It covered 50% reimbursement on the water filters and also the extra freezer shelves that I added. Filters are $40-$50 twice a year and the warranty reimbursed for up to $500 so before the warranty ended I stocked up on the filters. Since we didn't have any repair claims when the warranty ended we were reimbursed 30% of the warranty cost.

So overall, this one worked out. But I normally don't buy the warranty. Years ago I had a washer that needed an expensive repair within months of the warranty ending and felt burned on that one. It sounded like a jet engine when spinning and it needed new bearings. It was the labor charge that made it more sense to replace it.

For most appliances we can afford to repair or replace if needed. It's really awful how appliances have changed!