Saturday, February 4th
2023 Home Warranty Company Reviews
Select Home Warranty
- In business for 10+ years
- 3 warranty plans to choose from
- Discounts when you pay annually instead of monthly
- Undisclosed trade service call fees
Based in New Jersey and in business since 2012, Select Home Warranty offers coverage for appliances, home systems, or a combination of the two.
Choose from 3 plans
Select Home Warranty has three plans:
- Bronze Care: covers the clothes washer and dryer, refrigerator, built-in microwave, cooktop, stove/oven, and garbage disposal - basically just your appliances.
- Gold Care: covers your HVAC, water heater, ductwork, electrical and plumbing.
- Platinum Care: includes all features in the Gold and Bronze plans, and adds protection for your garage door opener, ceiling fans, and plumbing stoppage.
When you select one of SHW's plans, you'll see a la carte coverage at the bottom. For example, you could include coverage of your lawn sprinkler system for $5.83/month, your sump pump for $3.33/month, and so on.
Look for promotions
At the time of this review, Select Home Warranty was offering a promo that included $150 off any plan, free roof coverage, and two extra months free on plans paid yearly. So, in our area, our options were Bronze or Gold Care for $44.42/month, or Platinum Care for $47.75/month. Annually, these plans were priced at $479.99 and $524.99, respectively.
Service fees not shown
We don't love that Select Home Warranty doesn't make it clear that customers will be charged a trade service call fee for every claim - or maybe even more than one fee, if different trades are required to make a repair (electrical and plumbing for a short in the kitchen sink area). We got through the entire sign-up process without having that disclosed. Throughout the site, it references a "small fee" , and even their terms and conditions just say "a $ fee" without giving a number. Not very transparent, is it? Finally, digging through years-old blog posts, we found a reference to a fee that "ranges from $75 to $100, depending on the length of your contract" - but again, that wasn't shown anywhere during the quote and payment process.
Expect repair delays
The Better Business Bureau gives Select Home Warranty a "B" rating. That stems from over 4800 complaints filed with the BBB in the three years leading up to this evaluation - which is, sadly, not unusual among home warranty companies. The "B" rating indicates that despite having a large number of complaints, SHW is doing a satisfactory job of responding to and resolving them. The biggest source of problems here seems to be repairs scheduling: it can take weeks before a broken AC unit, pipe, or appliance gets serviced and fixed by a technician. Of course, this may vary based on where you live, and on the availability of parts and repair specialists.
Five-star reviews... so far
In contrast, we found lots of love for Select Home Warranty plans too: over 1600 five-star reviews from people who describe getting prompt service on claims and affordable pricing. We did note that some of those five-star reviews were strictly based on the sign-up experience (friendly sales rep, affordable plans) - and we wonder if those glowing reviews might drop in the future after they've had to make a claim.
On the right track but still lacking
We give Select Home Warranty props for cleaning things up since our last review: they've actually done more to show their coverage and pricing now than in the past, and we didn't find the broken links and spelling errors from our previous evaluation. But, that's not quite enough to earn a boost in our rating. SHW needs to be much more transparent with their call fees, and we'd like to see more attention to on-time repairs as well. Try a better-ranked home warranty company first.
More Home Warranty Company Reviews
Where Can You Get the Best Home Warranty Protection?
Maybe you're a landlord trying to mitigate your operating expenses. Or you're trying to sell your home in a tough market and want to set prospective buyers' minds at ease. Then again, you could be like the average homeowner who wants some protection against those unexpected expenses like a failing air conditioner or a leaky bathtub.
In all of these situations, a good home warranty is a wise choice that can make the difference between a quick, inexpensive fix and a huge repair bill. How do home warranty plans work? Most providers give you several plans to choose from, ranging from basic coverage of appliances or systems, to premium packages that cover just about every component of your home. There are usually add-on services for an extra fee, like coverage of your electronics, sump pumps, septic systems, pools/spas, and so on.
Home Warranty Company FAQ
Continued from above...
All home warranties have limits, exclusions, and caps on the amount your policy will pay over the life of the contract: this is one of those times where it's essential to read the fine print and understand what's covered and what's not.
You should also expect a 30-day waiting period before your coverage takes effect. In other words, don't think you can hurriedly throw a warranty plan on your broken fridge and expect it to get fixed - unless you want to wait a whole month. Many home warranty companies use this time as a money-back guarantee period, in case you change your mind or discover something in your policy that you weren't aware of when you signed up. One such "surprise" is often the trade call service fee: what you'll pay per service call, similar to a copay you'd have on a medical insurance plan or a deductible with your car insurance. Be aware that you could have multiple fees for a single repair, if the fix requires different tradespeople to get it taken care of (both a plumber and an electrician).
You've got a lot of companies to consider for your home warranty, and it's easy to get overwhelmed. How can you tell which ones will deliver what they promise? Here are the most useful criteria to guide your decision:
- Reputation. First and foremost, what do homeowners say about their experience with the home warranty provider? Are claims handled quickly, with repair technicians dispatched in a timely manner? Does the company approve claims easily, or should you expect to fight to get them approved and paid for? How many complaints have been registered, in comparison with any positive feedback?
- Coverage. What will you get for what you pay? Can you select a tier of service that doesn't make you spend money on coverage you don't need? What's included and what's not?
- Value. What will you spend on your home warranty? How much will you pay for trade service call fees? Play with the numbers and see what your annual premium totals and fees might be, compared with what you'd spend out of pocket to take care of the repairs on your own.
To help protect your home (and your savings), TopConsumerReviews.com has evaluated and ranked today's most popular home warranty providers. We're sure this information will help you choose the right plan for your property!
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