Extended Warranty

[kjtogo]

We searched the forum for information about extended warranties and did not find anything. We will be sitting down with a dealer soon and would like to know if the extended warranty is worth it or not. Any other last minute advice before negotiations would also be helpful and appreciated. Thanks.

[BillyRay]

you will get mixed answers on this one. I personally don't believe in them. Many items in the camper each have their own warrenty that goes beyond the dealers warrenty like the roof should be 12 years....etc.

To me the extended warrenty is just their way of making additional money. I took the money and set it aside for repairs just incase....still haven't needed it for repairs! I do have to admit, it is gone, but not on repairs....I bought a few extras LOL.

[gkbutler]

We have an extended warranty on our Monty, wouldn't be without it. More than once has an extended warranty paid off for us; the latest was having to have the hard drive replaced in our computer. We bought a three year extended warranty when we purchased our computer at Best Buy. The hard drive crashed about three weeks ago, we took it in and paid a $20 cleaning fee. Well worth the cost.

[stiles watson]

I am not too keen on extended warranties on things like computers, washers and dryers, televisions, etc. However, the Monty is a big dollar investment with a complex assemblage of manufactured items like slides, landing gears, hydrolic systems, A/C, axles, etc. At labor costs of $75+ plus parts, it doesn't take long to more than reimburse your premium. I have had to use mine when the landing leg motor when sour.

However, I wouldn't want to pay double for warranty coverage. Any Ex-W I bought would have to start at the end of the one-year warranty provided by Keystone. You don't have to purchase an Ex-W at the point of sale. There are other options. I would shop. I would shop service, not necessarily price. I would contact service managers of RV shops, other than my dealer, to determine which carrier actually paid promptly and where cooperative with the shop. Will the shop take assignment of benefits or is it up to you to get reimbursed (good luck)?

[Glenn and Lorraine]

Before making any commitment to that dealer I would look into the Good Sam Continued Service Plan (CSP). A dealer has a vested interest in selling you his plan and his vested interest may override your best interest.
We spoke to the Good Sam people at the RV show and have found many differences in their plan and our plan on our current Monty. One big difference was cost. We haven't totally decided on whether we want an extended service plan on the new Monty but if we do it will in all likely hood be with Good Sam.

[rak]

We have extended warranty on our Montana. As said above the Montana is a high dollar item with all kinds of parts. We went with Warranty Experts bcause I felt it gave me the biggest bang for the dollar. It was 700 dollars cheaper than the one from the dealer and covered more. I hope I never need it but it is there if I do.
Have a great day.
Dick

[ggranch]

We went with the CSRP from Good Sam. It covers not only our rig, but all of the appliances as well. Most Ex-W's only cover the box everyting else is in. Cost wise we felt the CSRP was way better than the Ex-W. Do your research and do what feels right at the time. Good luck!

On edit: I forgot to mention that if you wait until the warranty on your rig is about to expire, the CSRP for a "used" trailer is less than if bought when the rig is new. Don't know why but it is.

[richfaa]

We have a 7 year extended Warranty through Warranty Experts. Warranty Experts is just the agency that sells the policy sort of like your local Insurance agent..The policy is backed by "RV shield". They also back "the Choice" which many of us have.You need to do your homework and find out who really backs the warranty,You also need to read the extended Warranty carefully and understand exactly what is covered.Both "the choice" and "extended Warranty" will send you a copy of the contract before you buy...So will Good Sam and it is also a good policy but IMO pricey for the same coverage. The best thing to do is to set aside 5k or so in a interest bearing account to be used for Rv repair only.if you have 5K you will not need for 7 years or so. Also if we do not use the warranty for the term of the policy we get 100% of our premium back.Some folks see no need for the E.W.We see it as a good investment. Had we had our "isolated incident" outside the Keystone Warranty period the repair would have been on us and we saw the bill.. It is still a crap shoot...

[Cat320]

Like many, I am not much in favor of extended warranties...never get them on a vehicle. However, we did get one on the Montana.

The day we signed on the dotted line and wrote the check, if somebody had said, "all systems and all appliances in this thing will work perfectly for seven years," we'd have laughed at him.

We got a seven year extended warranty.

[Roamingusa]

We had the extended warranty on our old RV and we do on the Monty.
Here is a list of the things we used it for on our old RoadRanger
AC replacement
Hot water heater replacement
Broken axel
slide adjustments
microwave replaced
refrigerator repair x 4
window adjustments
We live in our unit fulltime,we would not be without it!

[adelmoll]

Oue dealer gave us a 5 year extended warranty with a $100 deductable. We didn't turn it down.

Helen

[Montana Sky]

I have "The Choice" extended warranty on my coach. It is a 7 year plan and covers everything from the kingpin to the rear ladder. I bought mine almost 11 months after I bought my coach, the dealership offered me the same price for it as long as I was under the 1 year Keystone warranty. I look at it as I got 1 year free from Keystone and an additional 7 years from The Choice. Total warranty of 8 years, I thought it was a pretty good deal.

[exav8tr]

OK Guys, Here's the deal. I have "The Plan" EW. It is the Supreme coverage that covers just about everything I can imagine, including refer and AC. Today, I received requests from Dometic to sign up for their service contract for both the AC and Refer. $130.00 AC and 189.00 for Refer. I honestly can't think of a valid reason to pay for these since I have coverage with my EW provider. My question is (probably pretty lame), does anyone else see the need for "double coverage" for these items? My deductible for EW is $200.00. Any suggestions appreciated...

Thanks

Phil the Newbie

[Connorsmom]

Gosh Phil, I can't really see any reason for you to have EW coverage with those items separately when you have the Supreme coverage. Thats redundant, and won't get you anything but light in the pocket. If you tried to make a claim with both, they could get you for double dipping, so thats not really an option either.

I don't usually go with EW, but I did it on the truck and monty this time because I planned on keeping them both for a very long time. (Of course, now I'm not so sure about the truck with all this pin weight business). I went with the Interstate Star RV Platinum + coverage. It's supposed to cover absolutely everything for 7 years. Of course, it's not really 7 years since the first year runs concurrent with the 1 year warranty that kicks in upon signing the papers.

Personally, I think you have the right idea to hang onto that money!

Jan

[Montana Sky]

Phil,
I agree with Jan, I cant see a reason to purchase the extended warranty through Dometic if your other plan already covers it. I would double check to make sure your plan does cover these components. If so, I would toss the Dometic offer.

[Cat320]

Like the others, we got the EW, saw no need paying again for the same coverage.

[richfaa]

We also have The same EW policy..why pay twice for the coverage.

[exav8tr]

That was my inclination also, just wanted to hear it from you guys. I never know if there is some kind of caveat about these things that would preclude one paying and the other not or vice versa or whatever. No Dometic warranty for me.

Thanks for the input....

Phil P.

[stiles watson]

Let me see, that is $189 for $200 deductible coverage. That gives you $11 coverage. I don't even have to be an actuary on this one.

[Montana Sky]

Here is a copy of something I got this afternoon on extended warranties...

"Someone e-mailed me recently and wanted to know what my thoughts were on extended service plans for RV's. I replied that I thought extended service plans offered great protection as long as you understand a little about them and how they work. When you are doing the finance paperwork on your RV most RV dealers will offer you some type of extended service plan that you can purchase. Before you agree to purchase a plan make sure you understand all of your options. You should not be pressured into buying an extended service contract.

If you buy a new RV and purchase an extended service plan that covers both the coach and the chassis, the plan would take over the day after all of the original factory warranties expire. For example, if you purchase a seven year extended service plan and the motorhome has a one year warranty on the coach and a three year warranty on the chassis the service plan would be in affect for six years after the coach warranty expires and for four additional years after the chassis warranty expires. The advantage of purchasing the plan when the RV is new is that it will be less expensive for a new unit as opposed to a used unit. Most plans can be purchased anytime up until the factory warranties expire if you don't purchase the plan when you initially buy the RV. Some extended service plans will offer coverage on used units that meet the plans criteria if you purchase the plan when you buy the used unit. Coverage on a used unit will cost more. It is usually based on the age of the unit and the mileage if it's a motorized RV.

I mentioned if you buy coverage for the coach and the chassis. That's because most of these service plans offer different levels of coverage. You may only want additional coverage on the coach portion or on the chassis portion. In addition to different levels of coverage, plans are available for different terms.

Make sure you read and understand the extent and time period of coverage before signing any agreements. If you don't understand something, ask to have it explained to you. You will also want to make sure that the company offering the plan is reputable and will be acknowledged by other RV dealers and RV repair centers. It should offer coverage in all of the USA and/or Canada. If you plan to travel outside your country of origin make sure the coverage is still available. You will also want to check on how a claim is paid. I have seen cases where you pay for the repairs up front and then get reimbursed when you send in a copy of the service order or repair bill. If the repair facility agrees to file the claim most plans only require that you call for approval before any repairs are made. A good plan should be transferable if you sell your RV, it should be renewable so you can extend the coverage and it should offer a pro rated refund if coverage is terminated during the term of the contract.

Pricing for these plans will be based on several factors. I have already mentioned some; the length of the plan, the extent of coverage, if the RV is new or used, the age and mileage, and the deductible. The deductible can range from $0 to over $200. This is not bad considering a $500 or $1,000 average repair bill if an appliance fails. Some items on the RV, like slide outs and entertainment systems may not be covered unless you pay an additional surcharge. Make sure you understand what these items are and if you want them to be covered by the plan.

Do not be pressured into purchasing a plan. Ask your RV dealer to give you a price on the plan they have to offer and then you can shop around and compare pricing for extended service plans. Just make sure the plans you are comparing offer similar coverage. Research and know in advance what you plan to do about an extended service plan before you go in to sign the finance paperwork.

Happy Camping!"