By Gail Marsh
Another evening of campfire discussion. After a bit of griping about the cold temperatures, someone brought up RV warranties, and suddenly “cold” wasn’t the hottest topic anymore. Grab a camp chair and listen in…
Joey and his wife plan to purchase an RV later this year at an RV show. They have already chosen the manufacturer and know they want a fifth-wheel RV. The problem? Joey thinks they should purchase an extended warranty but his wife doesn’t want the added expense.
What is an RV extended warranty, anyway?
At the outset of the discussion, someone wanted to know just what Joey intended to purchase. “Is an RV extended warranty the same as an extended warranty for a car?”
Most campers around the fire said, “Yes.” An RV extended warranty is essentially a company’s promise to make repairs (or pay for repairs) as detailed in the warranty’s contract. Minus a deductible, of course.
Tom argued, “It’s not really a warranty at all. An RV extended warranty is just a service contract. For it to be a warranty, the cost would need to be included in the RV’s purchase price.” Hmmm. That’s interesting, because service contracts and warranties often fall under a different set of state regulations, depending on where you purchase the RV warranty. It really pays to read the fine print to make sure you’re actually getting what you think you’re buying.
Two types of contracts
Joey had done his research. He explained that there are basically two kinds of warranties: exclusionary and inclusionary. An exclusionary contract will cover every item except for those listed (or excluded) in the contract. Inclusionary contracts list all of the components that are covered. If a part is not listed, it will not be covered in the warranty.
Joey admitted, “I know the exclusionary contracts cost more, but they cover more parts, too. I think it’s worth it. Do you know how much an RV repair shop charges per hour? It’s astronomical! And RVs can have lots of problems.”
Tom added, “My extended warranty saved me lots of money—on my slide-out repair alone. But even better, it gives me peace of mind. I don’t worry about unexpected or untimely bills.”
Third-party or dealership warranty?
Many RV dealerships will offer their own warranty protection option. The cost of the warranty is often added to the cost of the RV itself. If this is the case, you’ll pay interest on the warranty as well as on the rig.
Dealerships aren’t your only choice for RV warranties, however. America’s RV Warranty (ARW), Wholesale Warranties, Eagle Vision, and Good Sam Extended Service Plans are a few of the more popular RV plans available.
DIY instead
“If you’re halfway knowledgeable about the inner workings of your RV, you can save yourself the cost of a warranty and repair bills, just by doing the work yourself!” Mike declared. “You can find most ‘fixes’ on internet videos, or post your question/problem on an RV blog.”
Kevin added, “Unless you have some mechanical expertise, I’d say you shouldn’t buy an RV, period!” A few RVers offered that perhaps a warranty could make up for the lack of expertise. “Either that or a big bank account,” Kevin joked.
Are warranties worth the money?
“Probably not,” Mark stated. “Companies have done the math. If they weren’t making more than they were paying out, they’d stop offering warranties.” Everyone around the cooler agreed.
“But how do you put a dollar amount on peace of mind?” Jan asked. How, indeed!
What do you think? Do you have a service plan or extended warranty on your current RV? Explain why or why not in the comments below.
More on RV warranties
- RV Warranty Questions: Should I buy an extended warranty for my RV?
- I flooded my RV with poop! Will my warranty cover me?
- Why your local RV dealer won’t honor your warranty
##RVT1194
I agree with Jan (in the article) and we bought our “warranty” for peace of mind. However, we did try to be smart about it – we did NOT buy the ridiculously over-priced option from the dealer, we did buy an exclusionary one, and we did NOT finance it.
Wouldn’t travel 104,000 miles, 49 states, 6 trips to AK without it! Worth every penny for crazy repairs. Lower 48 roads are great but Canadian/AK can be an adventure.
Where are there “great roads” in the lower 48?
Bought a 5 yr warranty on a used 5yr old TT. Never regretted it. Covered heating, slide and plumbing problems that came up. Cost less than the total in bills from the repairs. $50 deductible.
The best warranty in the world is the one never used.
Spending $5K for an extended coverage and getting $10K in repairs is actually worse than spending $5K and never needing it.
If you buy a service contract with expectations of needing it, you’re buying a bad product.
If you buy a service contract with no expectations of needing it, you’re just inflating the purchase price.
If you buy a service contract because you’re like most folks and not sure if you can tell junk from gems, make the dealer pay for it since they’re selling you junk while telling you it’s a gem. If you never use it, they’ll get a repeat customer and if you do use it, accept it as their apology…..
When we bought our trailer new in 2012, there was no extended warranty offered. Wouldn’t have bought it anyway. All the problems we encountered were fixed by either the dealer, or later, the manufacturer. All at no charge.
Northwood stand behind their products…for the most part…they are my choice after years of using cheap cracker boxes. Gone are the days of Teton fifth wheels and Nu-Wa Hitchhiker quality.
For me, it depends on the type of RV. I have owned 5th wheels and motor homes. My first was a 5th wheel and , being new to RVing, I bought a extended warranty. After a couple of years I figured out I could fix most things my self. The next 2 5th wheels I did not buy a warranty. I then purchased a used class a pusher. I bought one a warranty because of the drive train and other devices that are expensive to repair. We now have a class c and again I bought warranty because of the drive train. I got a higher deduct because I can fix most things on the RV, but replacing a engine or transmission can be expensive.
In the RV industry never, ever purchase an extended warranty. They are basically useless. Good luck getting help from the dealership that sold you the RV. In many instances RV’s are purchased far from the owners home base. If you are full-time RV’ers, as we were during 2023 just after retirement, you will be able to find competent RV service while traveling with some extra effort. We were able to find good and fast service twice while on the road. It does, however, require a flexible itinerary.
The problem with these ESPs is they are managed by third-party companies that make money by creatively denying claims. I have RVComplete and we started the journey with a leak in a house drain pipe. This was covered under their exclusionary coverage, but their administrator decided to change the word pipe to hose and deny the claim based on hoses on the chassis are not covered. (We had a house plan, not a chassis.) When I called them about this they stated that I could pay $300-$500 to have this arbitrated. When they finally did pay on a separate claim they decide what parts and labor are worth. Your deductible is meaningless when they decide to just not pay enough for parts and labor.
In short, manufacturer warranties should be longer.
Those phony “Forever warranties” are nothing more than a huge rip off. I was dumb enough to fall sucker to one on a new Grand Design…they wouldn’t pay for squat when I needed it.
We are from Seattle and drive a Winnebago View, now a decade old. When it was 3-4 years old we smelled propane one morning, in the mountains in central Ariz. and called a dealer in the Phoenix area; He said to bring it in immediately and not use it other than to bring it in. Did so, and he took it in immediately (prompt “service”) and did a drop test to confirm it was leaking then found a “leak in the main valve on the propane tank.” Sounded reasonable, except I later learned from the tank manufacturer that they had never had that specific valve fail, EVER. Nonetheless, the repair facility, replaced the valve, as well as a few other parts damaged when they set the rig on fire. (cont.)
Once home, I discussed this with the dealer from whom I bought the RV, because I still needed to replace the wood paneling in the chimney and the melted electrical wires around the fire. He was appalled at the “service” and consequences, and reimbursed me, one of his customers, at his suggestion, for the cost of the poor service received in Phoenix. I have had other work done at this facility since, but not in the last 4-5 years (we moved) and they deserve recognition on RV Travel’s ‘good service/bad service” list- Poulsbo RV in Kent.
Will do, Jack. Thanks! BTW, I just found your comment, part 2, in our Spam folder. Darn overzealous filter! I’ve been looking for the continuation after your first part of the comment. Just finished moderating the rest of the comments from this morning and noticed there was a comment in Spam. I thought, “Ah ha! I bet that’s where the rest of Jack’s comment is!” Yep.🫤 Get much snow? We just got a couple of flakes. (Knock on wood.) Have a great day. 😀 -Diane
“Nope, we don’t do warranty work” has been a steady mantra when we’ve needed repairs on the road. RV tech’s already know warranty companies are a bunch of crooks. Put your money into tools and repair knowledge and do it yourself.
Thank you, Gail, for sharing the opinions! We bought an exclusionary 5-year extended service contract for RV #1. Turned out to be a great deal, including covering a repair cost that appeared as we turned off the engine the day we traded it. Almost bought an exclusionary 5-year extended service contract for RV #2, but concluded it was over-priced when the different 3 (chassis) or 5-year (engine) components were weighed against it. May still get one, but doubt it, given the likely RV mileage and anticipated contract cost. Have a great week and safe travels!