Home Improvement → Service contract on washer

Sears called this morning and said that the service contract that I bought on my HE front load washer is expiring. I was talked into the service contract by the sales lady.

Should I renew it.

How old is it, how much does it cost and how long would it be good for?

Lots of luck if you actually have to get them to fix anything. I had a dishwasher out of service for months while they ordered parts, tried them out and then left things worse then they were before, leaving me and the machine completely inoperable. Then they would come back and give another whack at it. AT one point they replaced the entire tub, trying to stop a leak they couldn't figure out why it was happening. They also destroyed my kitchen floor. I'll always buy from Sears because they eventually gave me my money back on a 4+ year old dishwasher, but I will think twice before ever purchasing a service contract from them. They use a firm here called something like A&A and I would stand at my front door with a shotgun to keep them away from my house. You might want to look into a whole home warranty that covers appliances. They aren't that expensive ($400-500). My daughter just got a free 3 ton outdoor AC unit.

IMHO, service contract = insurance = major revenue stream for the seller = bad bet for you.
I admit this may not be too easy, but how about putting some $ aside every month in a fund for major purchases.
Appliance goes bad ? costs a lot to fix ? buy a new one with the money you set aside. You will come out ahead in the long run.

Depends on the product.
If you wish to replace the washer every 5-8 years, save up for a new one. If you wish to keep it for more than 5 years the contract may work out for you.

It's probably different in Canada because I'm pretty sure Sears Canada has little in common with the US variant.
I just renewed mine, but mostly because the main bearing is definitely going, and I *know* I'll get my money back on the service contract when they have to fix that.
And in our second renewal term, we had to have the main logic board replaced, which was a $500 part (not including labor).
But yeah, it's basically an insurance policy. If you had some way to bank/save the money you'd spend on these things, you'd probably find that you've saved up however much you need for the repair when the time comes.

Brad.

I wouldn't renew. I would get a home warranty. May parents have it through American home shield. They use it quite a bit. They have an old kenmore washer and the last time they had it fixed it cost them $90 for the service call. He put like $500 is parts in. The guy said keep fixing it. They don't make them like that anymore. It's from 2001.

You've suggested getting a home warranty program while giving the exact reason I'd advise against it. You can't pick the contractors that they use to perform the service. What's worse is that you usually have to pay for the privilege of having someone come out to tell you the excuse as to why they won't fix whatever it is that's broken.

Your daughter got lucky!

Bingo. I have a home warranty and even though it got me a new water heater, I doubt I will renew it. Last time I called something in, I had to pay the service fee to hear a bunch of garabage about how the problem I was having wasn't a covered repair.

Can't comment on the US policy, but the service program in Canada is amazing...

If they can't fix it within a certain timeframe, or if they repair the unit 3 times for the same (or similar) defect; they replace the unit with the current equivalent model.

LG called me after ten months about my new steam washer/dryer front loader.I said no. They wanted something like $170 for two years.

I maintain an emergency fund and self insure all of my appliances and electronics or what ever I would buy that offers service contract or warranty. Spent around $250 from it in the past 20 years. A bad microwave capacitor and heating elements in my freezer.

The newer appliances tend to have main circuit boards that tend to be expensive to repair. They do not fix but replace them. I had one go on a washer turned out to be just a blown fuse soldered in I replaced myself. that after taking the main board case apart and checking everything myself. They would have just replaced the board. So it was less than a buck for me they would have wanted a couple hundred plus labor to replace the board. That is also a cheap board compared to most.

I always look at the price I paid on when a service contract would be worth it.

For instance, on my washer it was $1100 with the service contract. Knowing that the washer needed to last as least 4-5 years at bare minimum I bought into one. I was in luck 3 years out when the washer needed a new main bearing and tub that was $800+ not out of my pocket! I still have as least 2 more years on the warranty.

As long as you plan on keeping the washer for a few years, renew it. I had to have a sensor on my washer replaced, and the repair cost would have been higher than the cost of my contract, so I came out ahead.

Of course she got lucky. The house always has the edge. They were originally going to replace only the compressor and after about a ten day wait for the warranty company to order and get delivered the compressor, the wrong part arrived. Then the warranty company relented and replaced the entire 19 year old outside unit. I couldn't believe they didn't replace the A-coil inside. Whatever, that warranty that cost about $400 paid for itself 10x over. Better yet, the seller paid for the warranty. By the way the contractors here were excellent and I would pay them to do work for me. They were constrained by the warranty company. If the AC unit had been 20 years old, it would have been replaced no questions asked. That's just their policy.

Home warranties differ by who the warranty company is. Some are worse then others. In most cases they don't pay off or they wouldn't be in business. I wouldn't buy a used house without one though and that was exactly the position my daughter was in. She hadn't had possession for a month when the AC broke. Not being able to pick the contractor is a non-issue in this discussion. You have no ability to pick the contractor when you buy an extended warranty from Sears. For some a home warranty is a guarantee against a gargantuan expense they cannot absorb. I don't blame anyone for that purchase. My daughter took every dollar she had and then some to put the downpayment down. That warranty saved her from having no AC this summer.

An extended contract for almost any appliance is a good piece of the cost of a home warranty. I don't think extended contracts are particularly good deals especially when it comes to Sears. Home warranties are just a lessor evil. I don't have one and probably wouldn't consider one.

If you pick the right home warranty company you can pick your contractors. While I'd rather save money and handle stuff myself I also recognize a home warranty makes sense to some people.

»www.aphw.org/

A cheaper option would be a home warranty. You can get one that covers all the appliances only for like $25/month. No idea how much it costs for just the washer since you didn't post that info. I'd guess more than $2-3 a month though.

Statistically speaking, odds are in the service company's favor that they will make money off of you. If they didn't, they wouldn't be in business. It's that way with any type of extended warranty, and even more so with service plans as they often come with many exclusions that a true warranty doesn't have.

I personally never buy an extended warranty UNLESS it comes at no additional cost. I've purchased several televisions that were "open box" from Best Buy and Sam's Club. In each of the cases, I convinced the store to include a extended service plan. With the Sam's club TV, a month before the warranty expired I initiated a service call as the ATSC tuner didn't work (it never had which was why it was an open box item). A service company tried 3 times to replace the main board each time not resolving the problem. The ESP company ended up refunding my $800 as well as returning the TV for my disposal. I've kept it since I've only ever used the HDMI input which has always worked fine.

Well played sir