Warning: The 6 month mark on my home warranty was a trap

Last January I bought a home warranty for $600 thinking it would cover my furnace if it broke. By July when the blower motor died, I found out the fine print had a 6 month waiting period for HVAC repairs. They told me it was in the contract I signed but I never saw that part. I ended up paying $450 out of pocket anyway because the warranty only covered $300 of the $750 repair. Check your contract dates before you assume you're covered. Has anyone else gotten burned by the waiting period on these things?

3 comments

3 Comments

terryf6219d ago

Spot on, it's just another fine print trap like phone contracts or gym memberships.

julia_carter7018d ago

@jordang32 is right about reading the fine print, but the problem is most people don't even know what they're looking at until something breaks. It took me two months and three calls just to find out my plan had a 90 day waiting period on the water heater, which wasn't anywhere on the front page of the contract. They bank on you forgetting or giving up, same as gyms do with their cancellation policies.

jordang3219d agoMost Upvoted

Hold on a sec, you're mixing up what a home warranty actually does. It's not insurance that covers the full cost of a repair, it pays a flat rate per covered item with a service fee on top. So that $300 they gave you is the max they pay for that blower motor, you still owe the rest to the contractor. The waiting period thing is real though, most companies make you wait 30 to 90 days for HVAC and sometimes 6 months for stuff like water heaters. You gotta read the whole contract before you sign, not just the first page.