Extended Service Warranties - Are They a Rip Off?
Having spent nearly ten years in the automotive industry I can tell you that extended warranties are a rip off and no they are not.
Doesn't make any sense does it?The reason I say that is I have seen some really bad ones to where all they do is take advantage of people looking to protect themselves from costly auto repairs and have no intention of paying for repairs.
But, I have also seen some really good ones as well.
If I had to put a percentage on warranties good to bad I'd say it's about 80% good 20% bad.
You really do have to read the fine print when purchasing them.
I'll explain...
The Bad The common theme I see with bad ones is they want nit pick everything apart.
They want all service records on your vehicle.
I've seen a couple instances where a person had went 500 miles over once on an oil change a year before her engine blew.
They WOULD NOT cover the damages.
I also have seen where the transmission went out on a vehicle and they pulled service records and saw that this person was at 60,000 miles and had not flushed her transmission yet.
They WOULD NOT cover the repairs.
I find that appalling and was not happy being the service manager that I had to tell the customer the bad news.
One common theme I found in the instances I had was that I had NEVER heard of the company that had the contract The Good The good thing about extended service warranties is they can save you a ton of money if you have a good one.
I would say 9 out of 10 instances the repairs were covered.
One common theme on these is they were companies I had heard of and dealt with on numerous occasions.
When looking at service contracts be sure to do your research on the company, read all the fine print at the bottom, and make sure you see it in writing exactly what they cover!I have also found that people who belonged to organizations typically carried the best warranties.
People that are part of a GROUP had the best experiences.
They paid the least, got the best coverage, and talking to them were also able to save money on all sorts of different things not even related to the automotive industry.
Don't let a couple bad reviews turn you off from extended service warranties.
They truly can save you thousands of dollars if you choose the right one.
Doesn't make any sense does it?The reason I say that is I have seen some really bad ones to where all they do is take advantage of people looking to protect themselves from costly auto repairs and have no intention of paying for repairs.
But, I have also seen some really good ones as well.
If I had to put a percentage on warranties good to bad I'd say it's about 80% good 20% bad.
You really do have to read the fine print when purchasing them.
I'll explain...
The Bad The common theme I see with bad ones is they want nit pick everything apart.
They want all service records on your vehicle.
I've seen a couple instances where a person had went 500 miles over once on an oil change a year before her engine blew.
They WOULD NOT cover the damages.
I also have seen where the transmission went out on a vehicle and they pulled service records and saw that this person was at 60,000 miles and had not flushed her transmission yet.
They WOULD NOT cover the repairs.
I find that appalling and was not happy being the service manager that I had to tell the customer the bad news.
One common theme I found in the instances I had was that I had NEVER heard of the company that had the contract The Good The good thing about extended service warranties is they can save you a ton of money if you have a good one.
I would say 9 out of 10 instances the repairs were covered.
One common theme on these is they were companies I had heard of and dealt with on numerous occasions.
When looking at service contracts be sure to do your research on the company, read all the fine print at the bottom, and make sure you see it in writing exactly what they cover!I have also found that people who belonged to organizations typically carried the best warranties.
People that are part of a GROUP had the best experiences.
They paid the least, got the best coverage, and talking to them were also able to save money on all sorts of different things not even related to the automotive industry.
Don't let a couple bad reviews turn you off from extended service warranties.
They truly can save you thousands of dollars if you choose the right one.