Home Warranty Coverage: How does it Work?

Click to see Coverage Visualization

Home warranty coverage is one of the most important aspects homeowners are interested in when they decide to buy a warranty for their house. Whether you are one of those homeowners who looks for basic 1 year home warranty coverage or who prefers to insure as many home systems and appliances as possible, you still need to learn about home warranty coverage before you sign a contract in order to avoid unpleasant surprises later.

Read through this guide carefully and educate yourself before committing into a home warranty contract. The difference between two different home warranty plans could be night and day.  To put things in perspective, one home warranty plan could be covering less than 5 home systems and appliances, with $500 coverage limits, while the other plan would cover dozens of systems and appliances with coverage limits of $5,000 per item. There is a lot more to factor into your decision like the costs and the reliability of companies, but the coverage is a great place to start in.

Best Home Warranty Companies by Coverage for 2019

Select Home Warranty

98.5

Rating

 Almost-Nationwide Service

 Majority of Client Reviews Online Are Positive

 Clearest Terms and Conditions

 Highest Contractor Professionalism

Best Gold Plan ("Platinum Care") Select Home Warranty Review

Clients from:  

 Virginia, Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, Wyoming, District of Columbia, California + 13 More States

Visit Website

Call (800) 306-4730

Choice Home Warranty

89.5

Rating

More Than 10 Years on the Market

Most Comprehensive Coverage Available

Free Reservice Period for Parts

Emergency Service Available

Cheapest and Best Basic Plan ($34/m)

Choice Home Warranty Review

Clients from:  

 Virginia, Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, District of Columbia + 13 More States

Visit Website

Call (800) 246-7176

Total Home Protection

87.6

Rating

 Customer Service Available 24/7

 Least BBB Complaints

Great Reviews on Google Places

Reservice for Failed Parts

1 Free Month Upon Annual Sign-Up

Total Home Protection Review

Clients from:  

 Virginia, Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, West Virginia, Florida, Minnesota, Utah, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, South Dakota, Wyoming, District of Columbia + 12 More States

Visit Website

Call (800) 969-0753

Know What Is Included in Your Home Warranty Coverage Quality

One of the most common mistakes that many homeowners make when they purchase a home warranty is that they do not thoroughly go over the list of covered items. For example, they assume that when they buy one of the best home appliance coverage plans it will include every appliance in their house. Home warranty buyers should remember that a higher-priced cost of home warranty coverage does not guarantee a better coverage plan.

The truth is that every company not only has its own list of covered and non-covered items, but for each one, there is a list of covered and non-covered parts. In addition to that, for many home systems and appliances, there is a coverage limit that may vary between companies. The coverage limit, or cap, is the maximum amount per year that the home warranty company will pay for the repair or replacement of a certain item.  This is why it is very important to be meticulous about what your home warranty coverage is.

Types of Home Warranty Coverage 

Home warranty companies that provide the best home warranty coverage meets the needs of their customers by offering them different types of coverage. Typical home warranty coverage includes all essential home appliances and some crucial home systems, such as plumbing and air conditioning. It is very popular among clients who are interested in a seller’s coverage home warranty. Many experienced realtors recommend that sellers purchase a home warranty as it will protect the house while it is on the market, and will raise the value of the property in the eyes of potential home buyers.

For more demanding customers, premium home warranty coverage usually includes all major home systems, such as electric, plumbing, heating, and air conditioning, as well as all kitchen and laundry appliances. Most companies offer home warranty insurance coverage for additional items not included in the basic or premium plans. These items include swimming pool and spa, central vacuum, extra refrigerators or freezers, roofing, and such. For those customers who prefer to cover home appliances only, companies like Select Home Warranty and American Home Guard offer home appliance coverage plans.

Alternatively, these companies can provide basic home warranty coverage for home systems only. Combined plans for customers who want the best home warranty coverage including systems and appliances as well as optional add-ons are also available from these companies.

Types of Homes Eligible for a Home Warranty Coverage: From Single-Family to Mobile Homes

Once the home warranty industry emerged in the second half of the last century, most companies covered single-family houses only. As the home warranty market started developing and became more and more saturated, the companies began to offer home warranty coverage for different types of housing. First, the townhouses were included, then the condominiums, and eventually, the mobile home warranty plans became available.

A mobile home warranty is not offered by every company. However, if you own a mobile home, you may always ask the company representative if they have such an option. Mobile home warranty companies usually offer similar coverage options to other companies that don’t offer mobile home insurance. A home warranty for mobile homes provided by industry leaders like Total Home Protection or Choice Home Warranty covers air conditioning and heating, plumbing, and electrical systems, and a full range of home appliances, including a whirlpool bath.

Compare Home Warranty Coverage in Six Companies

Here we selected six prominent home warranty companies: American Home Shield, Choice Home Warranty, Landmark Home Warranty, Select Home Warranty, Total Home Protection, and American Home Guard to compare their coverage. We collected the information on home warranty insurance coverage by the company separately for each plan. In parentheses, we added the coverage limit. For those items that do not have a coverage limit listed, information was not readily available. However, it does not mean that their coverage does not have any limit at all.

Table 1. Home Warranty Coverage in Six Companies

Conclusions

• As you can see, American Home Shield coverage plans include the most items and provide the highest coverage for a refrigerator, up to $3000. However, the coverage limit for most items on their list is unknown.
• Among the companies that we compared, Select Home Warranty and American Home Guard have the highest limits for air conditioning and heating systems, up to $2000.
• Ductwork has the best coverage under Select Home Warranty, up to $2000, while American Home Shield coverage has a limit of $1500, and other companies cover it up to $500.
• Landmark Home Warranty has the most generous home appliance insurance under the Total Protection Plan. For example, washer and dryer are covered up to $2000 each, and a built-in microwave has a coverage limit of $1000.
• Choice Home Warranty offers one the best basic home warranty coverage plans. This plan covers heating and electrical systems, plumbing, ductwork, and a wide range of home appliances, including exhaust fans, and a whirlpool bathtub.

Best Coverage by ReviewHomeWarranties.com

We appreciate the fact you are researching home warranty coverage, but we have already inspected dozens of various home warranty plans for you and have created a designated page consisting of the best coverage per type of plan:

Best Home Warranty Plans

Final Notes About Home Warranty Coverage

It is not an easy task finding the best home warranty coverage. While typical home coverage includes major home systems and appliances, many companies offer similar plans that may have some crucial differences.

Customers should keep in mind that not only the cost of home warranty coverage should be taken into consideration, but also the coverage limits that the companies set for each item. For example, American Home Shield coverage plans have a limit of $1000 for plumbing repairs, while Total Home Protection has the same system covered up to $500.

Some home warranty companies provide different plans for home sellers and buyers. Usually, the seller’s coverage home warranty is limited by one or two home systems and only the most essential home appliances, such as refrigerator, oven, and dishwasher. The home buyers warranty coverage is always more comprehensive and includes a wide range of items.  

New homeowners who have no experience with a home warranty usually prefer basic home warranty coverage, while more seasoned customers prefer to preserve their peace of mind by including as many items as possible in their home warranty insurance coverage.

How do you select the best home warranty coverage for your dwelling? Our recommendation is to look around your house and think about the age of your home systems and appliances and how many times per year you usually have to fix them, and how much money you spend on repairs.

For those homeowners who are looking for the best home warranty with pool coverage, we conducted research on the cost and effectiveness of pool warranties.It will help you select the home warranty coverage that would work best for you based on the type of your pool.

In order to help you decide whether or not you need a home warranty, we created a Home Maintenance Calculator. By entering the age of your house and the number of repairs per year, you will get a comparison of the house maintenance cost versus the cost of a home warranty.

In many cases, it would make sense to purchase a home warranty insurance if your house is older than 10 years and you expect approximately five repairs per year. For houses that were built recently and do not require many repairs, a home warranty may cost more than out-of-pocket maintenance expenses.