Home appliances are the home products that most folks depend on the most. When they break, the outage impacts your comfort and convenience, and in these days of COVID19, perhaps even your health.
Repair costs vary by region and by appliance and also by the complexity of the repair required and the necessary parts. The costs also depend on whether your appliance is covered by a manufacturer's warranty, an extended appliance warranty or a home warranty.
Appliance warranty repairs on home appliances like washers and dryers, refrigerators and freezers, cooking products like ovens, stoves, microwave ovens, kitchen exhaust fans, dishwashers, garbage disposals, room air conditioners or split minis, and even water heaters, can sometimes be completed by talented, brave homeowners. However, often appliance warranty repairs need to be completed by a repair professional.
According to Consumer Reports, there are common complaints related to appliance warranty repairs that consumer have reported since they started collecting data in 2008, including:
1. Refrigerators
Ice makers can be so problematic, that some experts will tell you at some point that each one will fail. And, they fail to such a large degree, that some appliance warranty companies won't cover ice makers or charge a premium to do so.
2. Ranges
3. Dishwashers
4. Microwaves
Some companies consider microwaves electronics and some appliances. And, there are differences in what and whom can repair a microwave depending on whether it's a counter top or built in unit. The key common issues are:
The biggest challenge with microwaves, especially counter top units is the decision to repair or replace. Often, the appliance warranty repair will cost more than a new replacement.
5. Washers
6. Dryers
The BIGGEST issue with dryers, is well, drying. Some components of the dryer, if they fail, like the heating elements or thermal fuses, will impact drying.
Appliance warranty coverage varies by type of warranty. The three warranties types generally cover:
Manufacturers or OEMs appliance warranties offer two kinds of warranty services, implied and expressed. Expressed appliance warranty products are explicitly offered to customers as part of the sales transaction, and include promises about a product or about a commitment to fix defects and malfunctions that might be experienced by consumers.
Manufacturer appliance warranty services protect a consumer from appliance failure during the coverage period, and require the manufacturer to estimate product failures, such that they can set aside a 'warranty reserve', to fund future residential warranty services.
Manufacturers can also offer other kinds of warranty products, including extended warranties or service contracts.
Extended warranties offer appliance warranty services that wrap around a manufacturer's warranty product. Extended warranties offer appliance warranty services such as repair for product failures that occur after the OEM warranty expires.
Service contracts are often synonymous with extended warranties. The terms are used interchangeably. However, service contracts can also be described as a contract or appliance warranty product which begins at the date of purchase, or DOP, of a product, whereas an extended appliance warranty begins upon the expiration of a manufacturer's warranty period.
Service contracts cover the same 'break fix' or residential appliance warranty service repairs which extended warranties cover, but also, in the case of a DOP contract include additional coverages for non-OEM covered features, such as food loss, power surge or no lemon cover which can kick in on the date of a product purchase. Additionally, service contracts can also extend outside the traditional boundaries of 'break fix' coverage, particularly when paired with products which support smart products.
Home warranties are slightly different than extended warranties and manufacturer warranties. Home warranties, like fixHomz, cover residential appliance warranty services including the cost of repair for covered products, AND home systems. They typically cover more product types than an extended warranty and do not have to be sold in conjunction with a new product (home) purchase. Home appliance warranties cover appliances and home systems, such as:
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So, to tie it all together, when you purchase a new consumer product, like an appliance or TV, the manufacturer offers some protection against repair costs for a specific period, like a year.
You can often purchase an extended appliance warranty on the same products from the retailer or etailer from whom you've purchased the product. Extended appliance warranties extend the repair cost protection for an additional period of 1-5 years, depending on the product. Extended warranties often offer additional benefits like food loss that manufacturers don't.
A home warranty covers more products than an extended warranty, including residential appliance warranty services on home systems and even utility lines, pool and spas, septic systems and well pumps. They can be purchased on new or existing homes.
The biggest difference between the two above is that the extended warranty protects electronics and computing equipment, whereas the home warranty doesn't.
So, as you craft your home protection strategy, extended warranties and home warranties are a great compliment to homeowners and automotive insurance policies, giving you and your family an end to end umbrella of coverage for those rainy days!
Appliance warranty repair costs vary by location and product. Typically, though, appliance warranty repairs range from $100-$300 for non major repairs. Most repair companies will charge a trip charge, or a flat fee ranging from $45-$95 to walk in your door to diagnose the issue. They'll deduct that amount from the labor part of the appliance warranty repair, and add on part costs for out of appliance warranty repairs.
If your appliance is still under the manufacturer's appliance warranty, which also vary in coverage by length for both parts and labor, the service company will bill the manufacturer. If your appliance is covered by an extended appliance warranty or a home warranty, then the service company will bill the plan administrator.
Out of warranty repairs will be on your dime. Most repair companies charge by the hour, though some offer a flat fee. This can be the most challenging scenario, as out of warranty repairs put the onus of finding a qualified service company, and making sure they're safe to bring into your home, on you, the homeowner. Consider using a contracted, credentialed service provider, as you will find from OnPoint Warranty Solutions.
We know what you may have heard about home warranty companies. But rest assured, we’re not like most home warranty companies.
You see, somewhere along the way, home warranty providers took a wrong turn. They started caring more about profits than customers. They stopped caring if people sat on hold, paid for coverage they didn’t need, or had to take cold showers in the middle of winter. Seriously, what kind of company does that!? Certainly not one focused on its customers’ experiences with their brand!
When we set out to build fixhomz, we knew we had to come up with a better way. HomeEase is dedicated to finding a more modern approach for helping you benefit from a home warranty that’s actually useful. To figure out exactly what was broken, we asked you about your biggest frustrations. Here’s what we discovered:
Of course, why wouldn’t you want those things? We want to give you all of that and more. At fixHomz, our goal is to make your life easier.
We go beyond the old “break-fix” warranty model by offering the perfect mix of prevention and ongoing care. Our on-demand service and extended protection for your home products and appliances mean, whether it’s a dishwasher repair, home theater installation, or tech troubleshooting, fixHomz has you covered.
If your appliances go on the blink, fixHomz is there for every appliance repair!
Check out our home warranties, extended electronics warranties and on demand services by clicking below!
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What is an appliance repair? |
All home appliances are mechanical by nature. If an appliance stops working, homeowners will have to perform or hire a professional to perform an appliance repair. |
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What does the appliance manufacturer warranty cover? |
Appliance manufacturer's cover the repair costs associated with mechanical breakdowns of a warrantied product. |
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Who pays for an appliance repair? |
The manufacturer will pay for covered repairs during its warranty. Outside the warranty, the homeowner pays for the repair unless their appliance is covered by a home warranty. |
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What does a Home Warranty cover? |
A home warranty covers systems like central air conditioning, heating, plumbing, electrical, and water heaters as well as appliances such as refrigerators, stoves, washers and dryers. They take over after the manufacturer's warranties expire. |
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What doesn’t a Home Warranty cover? |
Home warranties don’t cover the costs to bring out-of-code systems into compliance, structural modifications, modifications to existing equipment, secondary damage and cosmetic issues are examples of items that may not be covered. |
See how a fixHomz can make it easy to protect and repair all the products in your home.
