Jae

POST 4

WHEN YOU CALL: YOU INTERVIEW THE COMPANY

1) Get a call back number. Extension. Department. Name. Time Zone.

2) How many contractors do you have to serve me that are local in my area? ….Our company is located in the Sedona area. Here in the Verde Valley we do not have a lot of contractors signed up to provide service to home warranty companies. If your house is flooding will they have to bring in a plumber from another city? You are responsible for secondary damage. Is there only one roofer signed up with them for your area? Number of contractors can greatly increase your odds of timely service.

3) If they can not provide service how quickly does their CASH OUT program work?

4) If you happen to place a claim that is not covered by your plan of coverage will someone inform you? Or will the claim be faxed to a contractor and you have to wait until they come…collect your service fee for showing up to diagnose (as stated in your contract) and leave without you being serviced? You have your own list of frustrations from warranty companies. Keep questions factual and to the point.

5) When you call be in a state of mind and presence to have the patience and time to listen closely. What is explained to you should prompt you to have more questions.

6) Understand UPGRADE items Insurance companies only repair or replace items that are broke. If the contractor replaces old parts that are not broke because they will not reinstall the old parts this is called an upgrade. These are direct charges to you at the time of service. Why would a contractor not use the good ole parts? For instance…Hard water eats copper. If old copper parts are re used this is a set up for leaks where the copper has been pitted inside where you can not see. Yep, its Job security for the contractor if you do not agree to pay for the new part and the old is installed.

7) Understand NON COVERED items: Hot Water Heater and toilet disposal is considered a non covered item by some. Is your plumbing backed up? Do you have a clean out? No? You’re not covered by most. Access is provided at your cost. If you left your hose hooked up to your frost free hose bib, it froze, busted a pipe in the wall and your house is flooding…do you know the wall inside your house has to be cut to repair this pipe? Well, on one side of the wall we have rare Turkish marble gym shower. On the other side of the wall in the great room we have a beautiful petrified wood and native brick fireplace….hmmm which one are you going to tear out at your cost to have this replaced. I’m not trying to be crass. This is a very emotionally painful experience. You would not believe some of the things we’ve seen here in Arizona with freezing pipes…DISCONNECT THOSE HOSES BETWEEN USE IN THE WINTER!

8) Home Warranty contractors will become YOUR roofer, YOUR plumber, YOUR electrician, YOUR appliance tech…so ask for contractor names to place a reference call. Call and introduce yourself. Your talking to a person you will be asking to come into your home. Ask if they will visit with you about home warranties. Which ones do they work for? Which company contracts’ flow for them the easiest? Get their side of the story. (When they get to your house…An offer to fill up the to-go cup… out in the truck with some ice water would be awesome!) - Wed Jul 2 2008, 14:40

Post 3

MAKE THE FIRST CALL SOON: Home warranty companies are constantly changing at an internal level. One of the warranty companies we work for has purchased a complete new computer processing system. It will take another 6 – 8 months for the programming change over to begin to work somewhat smoothly. New programming in any company does result in vast human experience.

Be prepared to Call customer service back once or several times WITHIN YOUR CANCEL PERIOD to check out the calling tree, wait time and service. Tell them this is what you are doing. Don’t “should of” on yourself by finding out 4 months later you are experiencing something you can not live with.

OBSERVATION: YOUR CONTRACT: Every warranty contract, basic and upgraded is full of small print on a piece of paper that you fold and put in a drawer or somewhere else you can’t remember. “You’ll hunt for it later if there is a problem”. This style of organization is one example in the long list of Human Experience. Ask for a copy in Large Print. Put it in a zip loc bag and tape it to the inside of the cabinet door closest to the phone.

DECISION MAKING: There are only several handfuls of people on the warranty end of any claim call compared to the 1000’s of contractors depended on to repair or replace millions of product variations. Talk about room for Human Experience! Be clear up front. Document your calls. Test the system within your time limit. Decide if this is the policy want to spend your money on. Is this the company and you want to have a business relationship with.

You get the idea. Jae - Wed Jul 2 2008, 14:26

POST 2

INVENTORY YOUR HOUSE: APPLIANCES: Dishwasher, Refrigerator, Stove, Reverse Osmosis, Water Softener, Hot Water Heater. SOLAR - ROOF – SEPTIC – SPA – WELL – AIR CONDITIONER – HEAT PUMP - FAUCETS on and on. 1) What do you want fixed if it breaks due to normal wear and tear? 2) What part of the repair or replacement will it NOT cover? 3) Are you paying extra duplicate coverage for an appliance that is already covered by the manufacturer or retail service plan?

WHAT POLICY UPGRADE DO YOU NEED: Basic Coverage for most companies DO NOT cover faucet replacement. In hard water country…it’s not IF, it’s when will you need new cartridges or whole faucet replacement. The home warranty’s cost for this replacement plus your service fee... will pay you back for a whole year of your warranty coverage! Most will cover the supply lines and angle stops under the sink. HOT WATER HEATERS: Solar? One Element Hot Water Heater… some cover, some do not. WATER SOFTNERS…some cover some do not. REVERSE OSMOSIS…most do not cover.

We dropped 7 warranties. We know that all frustration is not because of you.
American Home Shield's problems have been very public. Many of the home warranty's are increasing their coverage and policies. I have been told it is due to the out come of AHS's litigation.

Jae

Cont on Post 3 - Wed Jul 2 2008, 14:24

POST 1
I am a contractor who has been employed by up to 10 home warranty companies here in Arizona over the past 15 years. The following suggestions come from our experience and Observations. I hope the list is complete enough to be of some help.

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: With the advent of blogs, copying content without permission etc…add a changing economy that might mean we may all be looking for ways to add to our income…I hope you will understand…All rights are reserved. I can be contacted at jae@dtoma.net.

Most contractors are small business people who are expensively licensed, bonded and insured. We have cell phones, fax lines, equipment to replace, truck maintenance, fuel cost and pay liability insurance each year to carry each home warranty company. We also must pay our monthly supply bills to maintain our supply credit privilege that can run from $4000 to $6000 before we are paid by the home warranty. We began dropping them one by one. We are now down to the 3 that we will keep. The others were dropped due to the lack of customer resolution. As plumbers say...sh...Must roll down hill! Everyone who feels anger, frustration or stuck…feels they are at the bottom of the hill.

Every home warranty company will have internet post regarding the pros and con's. They are easy to search. You have to remember that you are reading only one side of each person's unique situation. Every claim you call in may or may not meet the Requirements of your contract. Most people do not have a clue what bumper to bumper coverage really means on a vehicle.

You have high expectations when you buy this insurance and these high expectations can be a trap you are setting for yourself because YOU did not do your due diligence. Back your expectations up with the facts.

BEFORE YOU CALL - to BUY, RENEW or CHANGE COMPANIES: Begin to make how you understand the fine print and hard to read coverage simpler… BE PREPARED to know what YOU need to buy.

Jae

Cont on Post 2 - Wed Jul 2 2008, 14:20