No! The Inside Story On Appliance Warranties!
Mar 10 '01
The Bottom Line Save your money! The odds are in your favor big time.
Some years ago, I owned a Sears catalog and appliance store. Let me tell you the inside scoop on why you should NOT buy an extended warranty. They make a lot of money for the company, and most likely you will never use it or need it.
Maintenance Agreements as they were so gently referred to, were something that was really pushed by the company. No doubt with the closure of the small stores, like mine, the emphasis is still the same. We were given a monthly quota of “MA’s” to sell, and believe me they were not inexpensive. A good example would be a three year extended warranty on a washer or dryer ran about $75 each. That tacks $150 on to the price of your new machines, and most likely, you will never use them. No doubt the price has increased over the years.
First of all they come with a one year warranty to start with, so you are really only buying a two year extended warranty. Just think, if you put that money in an envelope for a repair during the two years that are actually covered, you would no doubt have most, if not all of your money left. If you buy an extended warranty, that is just what you have in your envelope, nothing!
Secondly, most appliances you purchase today will last quite a long time with little if any repair. We have had three sets of Kenmore washer/dryers and we had to replace a water pump on one, for about $75. If we had purchased the extended warranty we would have spent about $450 on the three sets. Amazingly, we sold the previous two and they were working just fine.
Thirdly, considering the average life of a refrigerator which is about 15-18 years, ask yourself how many times have you had a maintenance call, probably none, and then it just quit working. It was time for a new one. If you had purchased an MA at about $100 for three years, and renewed it every year after the initial expiration, you would have had more than enough money to purchase the new one.
Extended warranties do on occasion have merit. However, it is similar to the person that won’t wear a seat belt, because they know someone that survived because they didn’t have it on. The odds are indeed in your favor, and remember that when someone wants to tack a few hundred dollars to the sale of your new appliances.
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