Extended warranty: buy or not?

[watergirl73]

We Pm'd a tv last night at Sears and received a further 10% discount and were super super happy with the deal we got. Before we purchased we enquired about the extended warranty. Last year we were told that if you purchase the warranty and don't use it you will get it back in the form of a GC. Last night however the sales associate went a step further to explain that even though you get the money back on the gc you can only use if on a set amount
He says for example if you get the 2 year 399.00 extended warranty back on a gc after 2 years you may only be able to use it when you spend 800.00 in store then they will take off the gc. Just a warning to anyone. Make sure they explain it to you in full. He says this hasn't changed and the other associate did not disclose this to us.

We declined the 2 year 399.00 warranty on our tv last night but have 15 days to think about it.

When I asked him about his personal opinion about extended warrantys he explained the credit card scenario which comes in to play after the mfg warrany is up. He also says he would be more apt to buy the warranty on a laptop but not the tv. At least he was honest. Its personal preference I guess and what makes you feel comfortable at the end of the day.

I've purchased the warranty in the past on appliances and never had a problem with any of them. I think its a money grab as well.

Like others I get warranties for big ticket items that would kill me if I had to repurchase 1 year down the road. We bought a washer and dryer three months ago and bought the warranty on both of them because $1500 a year down the road would just not be feasible, plus Sears will give you the money back in a gift card at the end of the warranty if you don't use it, so to me it's a win win

[mrmichaelblack]

It really depends on the warranty included in the product, and how much the extended warranty is.
Imagine you bought a plasma tv about 3 years ago, for about $800-$1000, and purchased the extended warranty for about 360$? The comes with a one year warranty already from the manufacturer, which covers everything that the store warranty covers. Your first $120 of the warranty effectively goes down the drain.

Skip ahead to year 2 , your TV breaks now, and it is only covered by the store warranty. The same size, but newer model tv now costs about $450 to $600. So you are saving about $90 to $240 by getting the warranty, but you still get back your now outdated tv.

Year 3, your TV breaks, now the same size, but much newer model tv costs considerably close to what you had originally paid for the warranty. From this point forward it really wasn't worth paying for the warranty.

So to sum it up, their extended warranties are really only worth their while in the short time from when the manufacturer warranty is up, to when the price drops to that which you have paid for the warranty. In this hypothetical case, only one year for $360.

Just do your reading and research, find out how long the manufacturer warranty is, and look to see how much the price of similar products 3 years ago. Compare how much the prices have dropped and assume that it is going to continue to drop at a steady rate or faster.

[schwarzie]

Thanks everyone for your help. The guy who helped me convinced me to do it by saying if anything slightly major happens with my laptop, I will likely get a brand new up to date one because it isn't always worth their while to fix it.

As well, my last laptop overheated constantly. I had to keep an ice pack under it if I was using it for more than a few minutes. They tried to fix it a few times (was an older model but was $2500 when I purchased it new) under warranty and the problem never got solved. Decided to go the safe route this time.

In money terms, the warranty is less than a Starbucks once a month. I can live with that.

[LegobrandonCP]

I bought an HP laptop from Walmart last year without the extended warranty. It is the one that they advertised for back to school. I personally think this computer SUCKS. The fan runs when I am watching a YouTube video. Plus the fan is very noisy. So I don't think it is worth spending your money on a cheap laptop. I got fooled, should of have thought a little bit more about my choice, and spent a little more money to get a better laptop. Sometimes the price just attracts you more than the product itself. Anyways, my one year warranty with HP expired over the summer, and I think I will be okay without it. Though the keys on the keyboard are getting a little 'sticky' and I don't know how to clean them out. Any ideas? By the way, I am planning to get a much better, and faster desktop computer, which brand do you use or prefer? I will have to wait until boxing day to see if there are any good deals on desktops.

[schwarzie]

EEK! I bought an HP. Though I have to say the the fan rarely comes on (and with my old Toshiba even with an extra fan it would overheat). I was looking at a cheap one originally but ended up getting a more expensive one than I was originally looking at (best you can afford idea). Since my old one literally crapped out, and Xmas is coming I was in at about the $800 range.

After all the talk about HP, I am now very glad I went for the extended warranty!!

[LegobrandonCP]

EEK! I bought an HP. Though I have to say the the fan rarely comes on (and with my old Toshiba even with an extra fan it would overheat). I was looking at a cheap one originally but ended up getting a more expensive one than I was originally looking at (best you can afford idea). Since my old one literally crapped out, and Xmas is coming I was in at about the $800 range.

After all the talk about HP, I am now very glad I went for the extended warranty!!

Just to let you know, not all HP laptops/desktops are bad, it is just that the cheap one I got just sucked.

[schwarzie]

Just to let you know, not all HP laptops/desktops are bad, it is just that the cheap one I got just sucked.

LOL, fair enough! But with all I have heard lately, I think the $5 a month might have been a good investment! If it was a waste of money, again for peace of mind at $5 a month, I can do it!

Thanks to all for their input.

[DavidY]

If you get your laptop or computer from Costco, it typically has a two year warranty....their warranty, not the manufacturer (I think that the manufacturer typically covers the first year...Costco for the 2nd).

Dave

[schwarzie]

If you get your laptop or computer from Costco, it typically has a two year warranty....their warranty, not the manufacturer (I think that the manufacturer typically covers the first year...Costco for the 2nd).

Dave

Yes, I did look at Costco too. The one I ended up buying was about the same price except the Costco one had a bit more memory. The one I ended up with had enough for me anyway, and I also had $80 in GC's for LD that reduced the price that much further.

I always look at Costco because of their excellent warranty and return policy.

[yowooky]

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[tennyis]

I don't buy the extended warranties. My credit card automatically doubles the warranty of any item I purchase and charge to the card. No charge for that card feature.

There are a lot of perks to credit cards......the card's car rental insurance coverage is also a sweet perk.

Ever tried to use it? I did.. I had to pay for a diagnostic at 3 different places to get 3 quotes, then they fixed it at the cheapest place.... The cost of the diagnostics was more then the lowest estimate turned out to be.

[tennyis]

It really depends on the warranty included in the product, and how much the extended warranty is.
Imagine you bought a plasma tv about 3 years ago, for about $800-$1000, and purchased the extended warranty for about 360$? The comes with a one year warranty already from the manufacturer, which covers everything that the store warranty covers. Your first $120 of the warranty effectively goes down the drain.

Skip ahead to year 2 , your TV breaks now, and it is only covered by the store warranty. The same size, but newer model tv now costs about $450 to $600. So you are saving about $90 to $240 by getting the warranty, but you still get back your now outdated tv.

Year 3, your TV breaks, now the same size, but much newer model tv costs considerably close to what you had originally paid for the warranty. From this point forward it really wasn't worth paying for the warranty.

So to sum it up, their extended warranties are really only worth their while in the short time from when the manufacturer warranty is up, to when the price drops to that which you have paid for the warranty. In this hypothetical case, only one year for $360.

Just do your reading and research, find out how long the manufacturer warranty is, and look to see how much the price of similar products 3 years ago. Compare how much the prices have dropped and assume that it is going to continue to drop at a steady rate or faster.

Hmmm

1. Where can you buy a $360 Plasma TV right now? Leons had them on for $499 a couple weeks ago.

2. In your example, without the extended warranty you would have had to buy 2 new TV's. So let's say in year 2 you paid $550 and then in year 3 you found one somewhere for $360, which I doubt you would. You have a total payout of $900 + tax... how is this a better deal then paying $360 + tax for the warranty? And this is assuming that a TV is going to go from $1000 down to $360 in a little over 2 years... which I have never seen happen.

In addition MFR warranty does NOT cover any external sources causing problems. The majority of extended warranties do. So let's say you went out yesterday and bought that brand new Plasma TV for $360 (lol) and then when watching tv this morning there was a power surge that damages the TV. You have absolutely no coverage, and your going out to buy another TV for $360 bucks (more like $499 in each example...). If you had of bought a more expensive TV then you might be able to pay your home owners insurance deductible and get it fixed that way, but it would hardly be worth it on that cheap of a TV.

Anyways... for me it all depends on what I am buying. But I almost always buy the extended warranties.

[Tbites]

Being in QC, I would never buy an extended warranty... we are automatically entitled to a "legal warranty" by our consumer protection laws... even though I've heard the process of getting your money back can still be long and tedious.

I too think it's a mere money maker.

[frugal50]

I never buy extended warranties, it's just a money making scheme.

[BaGGedMilk]

Being in QC, I would never buy an extended warranty... we are automatically entitled to a "legal warranty" by our consumer protection laws... even though I've heard the process of getting your money back can still be long and tedious.

I too think it's a mere money maker.

I was going to say the same thing! Extended warranty does not even pay for your peace of mind because some of you bought one and yet y'all still got fu*k in the end.

The legal warranty says that the item you buy from a merchant should last you for a reasonable amount of time. If you buy a laptop and it is no longer fonctional 3 months after the date of purchase, you are entitled to a reimbursement or remplacement from the merchant. If the merchant does not want to cooperate, you can file for "Courte des petites creances"

Here's an interesting article. I could only find it in french though, sorry
http://www.protegez-vous.ca/affaires...non-merci.html

Also, sorry for the wall of text