You are probably well aware that when you go and buy a new domestic appliance from any place whether it be a shop or internet site, you will be asked if you want to purchase an extended repair warranty. But what does this do and is it worth it?
Well first of all you need to consider what is being offered in the policy. Does it include parts and labour? Be careful with this one, although it might sound obvious, many people get taken in with the advertising sales pitch and don’t look at the policy closely enough and being eager to get their purchase made, they may not look into the policy in enough detail and make a quick hasty decision.
Some insurance policies or warranties, will cover the parts only. If an appliance goes wrong, it is not always the parts that is the expensive part, it is the cost of the labour in coming out to first analyse it and then fix it and this is the part that you suddenly become liable for which can be quite shock when you think you had your appliance covered.
You may also find that you are being sold a 2 or 3 year warranty but usually these warranties include the first year from purchase. You may or may not be aware but manufacturers usually offer the first year free included in your purchase price. So when you are looking at the cost and value for money, as to whether you should purchase this insurance policy, you will need to take off one year from the insurance price and split it between the remaining years being offered. Depending on this calculation and the cost of the machine in the first place will depend on whether you think the insurance policy is value for money and worthwhile taking out. So how do you know if its worthwhile.
Well there are several factors that you need to consider. Insurance policies are great as they give you peace of mind. You have just spent a significant amount of money (and for each person this is different depending on their own circumstances), and should anything go wrong, you know you have some cover. You will call the company holding your policy and they should organise for an engineer to visit and cover the cost for the parts or full repair depending on what sort of policy you purchased in the first place. Most of these policies offer an equivalent replacement if your appliance cannot be fixed. However, sometimes it is more cost effective for these companies to purchase you a new appliance than to spend money on the parts and labour to repair, especially if the appliance is quite old and the parts are harder to come by.
However, one question you need to ask yourself is that the money you are spending on your insurance policy, whether it be in one payment or monthly over a specific time period, would it be cheaper than a new appliance if and when you will need to replace it. There is a chance that the appliance may not go wrong in the time when you are covered by your insurance policy.
So what would happen if you didn’t have an insurance policy. Well you would either need to find your own engineer and often they charge a call out fee just to give you a quote. What happens if they come and can’t fix it? Well you will have to go and buy a new one, search for the best deal, but you will need to have money available to do this.
It is totally up to each individual whether they think the peace of mind of having an insurance policy to saving money is the best option. But remember, that your policy will only last for 2 or 3 years and then you will have to purchase a new policy for another number of set years to ensure that you have continued cover and peace of mind for its future years, and you may also need to do this again and again.
However it is your decision and only you can make this decision based upon your own circumstances and whether you want peace of mind to know that your appliance is covered.