What do you think? Is buying an extended warranty on an RV a good idea, or just a way to blow some extra money?
In our recent stories on this, RVers were split. Some said the warranties saved them from huge repair bills. Others reported the warranty proved worthless when it wasn’t honored by the company that issued it.
One thing we know is that RV dealers push extended warranties because they make good money doing so.Â
What do you think? After you vote, you’ll see the current tally of votes. Please leave a comment, especially if you’ve had a good result with an extended warranty or a bad one.
Well if you get a unit from camping world, don’t expect they will fix a DAM THING for you. We have been trying to get initial problems the travel trailer had fixed since we bought it 3 years ago! Amazingly when we have called any camping world between Savannah and Hershey, we always get told they can’t see us for 2 to 3 weeks. Without knowing yet what day I am asking about. And don’t believe the hype they help full timers first. Cuz we full time and have told them so. They took our money and have never honored our extended service and don’t lift a finger to help. They even charged us for a new camper and foisted off a used one from the Lincoln movie set. {bleeped} was broke from the get go on it, but we were newbies at the time and they saw us coming a mile away, those jerks.
Fortunately we found a smart and savvy mobile RV tech here in Florida that can file a claim with the warranty company. Camping World may sell it, but it’s actually farmed out to other warranty companies once they get your money. Which is another reason they won’t schedule you for warranty stuff. They are too busy polishing turds for the sales floor to actually fix things for service customers. And they know you’ll give up trying with them especially if you full time – that you will break down, and call a mobile tech. So they upcharge you for the warranty policy, pay someone cheaper, and leave the real work to other places, because it’s not profitable for them. They make more spiffing up and cleaning used units for sale then they do fixing the crap they sell, and they have no intention of fixing anything under your warranty.
So just be aware of that up front and buy elsewhere.
It would be great if other camping world folks who got screwed the same way could band together for a class action suit on this issue…cuz clearly, after all the folks we have heard the same story from on the road, clearly this is a camping world corporate policy and not a franchise location only problem.
Many companies that issue extended RV warranties have carefully crafted and written policies that aren’t worth as much as the paper they are printed on. They have so many exclusions that you may wind up paying for a policy that will not cover anything. It’s the same for extended warranties on almost any product. You pay and pay, and then you file a claim, and guess what claim denied. I even tracked down the “home office” of one company and it turned out to be a 3 person office in a store front. That did it, from then on I took the money I would have been paying on a premium, and put it aside in a maintenance/repair account. Nuff said…
Like other warranties in my experience but all seem to have deductibles and few are beneficial
I have had two experiences with warranties with two different companies. Both times the companies did not pay for the repairs. After making monthly payments and being denied payments for wiring & fan then for an ice maker, I believe I’ll come out better setting aside money for repairs.
Just like new cars and trucks of today, RV’s are becoming very digital so computer boards and relays etc can be costly to repair. Just like buying anything you have to do your research and google around to see if the company offering the warranty stands behind it.
Hi there. Bought a 2017 jayco flite octane bp th, it came out to 1900 extra for 7 years thru camping world. I’d say peace of mind for a newer rig ESP how cheaply made most are these days. 50 bucks is my deductible at annnnny time. Roof failures, covered. Ac covered. Annnnything. Covered. 7 years is a great deal of time for a failure. Here’s the side note. They kinda ala carte this coverage and don’t tell you what your covered with and this or that like towing etc. so use a little caution. I about walked out of final financing office bc of this said event. I said you all need to discuss this and disclose this in the sales office. It’s kinda dirty to say “well this and that is covered but no towing for the basic package”. So be alert at final financing. Thanks
Good luck with….pls post back here when you put your first claim in or try to schedule an appointment… we never have been able get anything fixed with CW
That is why you have full coverage on the RV. I do and it is thru Progressive. They told me if anything happens they write me a check on an agreed price to replace it and done. Otherwise EW are a waste of money.
You are getting your insurance coverage confused with extended warranties. Your insurance only fixes damages caused by an impact/accident.
If something on the RV breaks, stops working, goes out (think engine, transmission, all appliances, etc. ) your insurance will not cover it.
Our insurance covered just under $20K worth of repairs caused by the factory not properly sealing around the windows, but our extended coverage paid $0 for it. Our insurance also paid for a new inverter and its installation when a line to the toilet failed and the water ruined the inverter.
they would be worth buying if they covered more than the radio knobs. Same with car extend warranty. Or if they had to return a customers money when they go out of business and don’t tell any one, until they file a claim.
We purchased an EW when buying our new FW tag axle motorhome in 2012. I had researched and spoke with a great number of owners of all types of rigs and decided upon overwhelming substandard quality control by ALL manufacturers of A, B, and C class RV’s, we held our nose, emptied our wallet and bought. In summary, five years and multiple small and one large issue, (pin hole in 100 gallon water tank from vendor) big job, high labor cost, we came out slightly ahead. I will purchase one again from “one” particular company that has excellent testimonials…but the cost is very prohibitive. So I’m still in the procastination mode and will buy the first of 2018?? For me, just me, the Warranty from this company would offer peace of mind for our aging motorhome.
I would have bought one but after researching those available I found that NONE covered the coach structure or roof & leaks.
If you are considering one…it is important to know what is NOT covered. They scare you by telling you that driving an RV is like having your house go through a hurricane an earthquake at the same time… but they don’t tell you they won’t cover the house..only what is in it!
We bought a 2000 Sea View in 2003. We bought an extended warranty through Good Sam. I was paying $850+ a year with a $200 deductible. I had it more for if anything went wrong with the engine, transmission, etc. I would have help paying for it. The only claim we ever had for that was a jack that needed to be replaced.
Every claim I filed, by the time $200 was subtracted they only had to pay less than $100 or nothing. I dropped it 3 years ago. Things that have gone wrong when I add the $850 plus $200 deductible, on the repairs I needed I came out ahead or didn’t cost much more. The last covered part was the inverter which they paid $20 Two years ago it was the hot water tank which was a lot less than paying the warranty and last year was the cooling unit for the frig. That did run over the $1000 but when I add the $2400+ I saved in premiums by not having the warranty, I came out ahead over the last three years.
So I think if your rig is less than 10 years old it is worth it.
As one who has purchased two extended warranties from two different companies, I can say for the most part, it is a waste of money! They all excel in finding reasons to deny a claim. They will normally pay low dollar claims, but try to find some reason to not pay the larger claims. I have been told several times that they will not pay a claim for a covered item and when I ask why, they say they do not haVe to give a reason and then hang up on me. As mentioned before, they are the business only to make profits.
Well worth $4,500 my 2014 Sunseeker, major slide repair, replace Heat pump, replace microwave, replace water pump, fix auto leveler with new parts. $0.00 deductable, no problems getting work done.
What company is that with, I have only spoken to two companies and they both had deductables.
What company were/are you using?
I bought an extended warranty for my used 2008 Tiffin Phaeton. I have broken even on the cost of the warranty and the cost of repairs, so it seems that starting a repair fund may have been just as good of an idea. And I never had any problems with getting the warranty honored. In fact, every time I used it, the repair people were surprised that the warranty covered that much and was easy to deal with.
We bought an extended warranty from Corner Stone United and have had to fight to get them to honor some of the claims. Some they denied for no good reason and it just wasn’t worth the fight. They did cover claims for more than the cost of the warranty so it was worth it for us.
Its insurance, where you only win by losing. If the average purchaser got THEIR money out of the warranty, then they wouldn’t be selling them because they wouldn’t make the dealer money. Right there, you can tell it’s a bad bet.
If you like to read further, you’ll see why — almost everything that is likely to go wrong is an exception, while insuring absurd things (why would my travel trailer have drivetrain coverage? Because it sounds good to people who don’t know what a drivetrain is.).
Ultimately, I can fix everything small it covers, and they don’t cover the big things.
There are so many exclusions written into the warranty that as often as not what is causing the problem is not covered by the warranty.
On most products I don’t buy warranties, but on my 2012 Eclipse Evolution trailer I did. 4 1/2 yrs. into the 5 year warranty my air conditioner went out and my refrigerator was marginal on temperature. The extended warranty covered the $2500 repair. The warranty was worth it in this instance.
When you purchase a new RV you can purchase extended warranties from the appliance manufacturers for the appliances in your RV for a fraction of the cost of the dealer offered extended warranty. These even include the toilet, AC ,stove,frig, micro wave, water heater,Furance. Extended warranties do not cover items like bent axles or delamination of sides. This comment applies to 5 wheel and travel trailer extended warranties. Motor home warranties may have a more complete coverage.
Gary Reed
For most purchasers an extended warranty is very profitable – for the seller. There is a reason that dealers offer (and usually recommend) their product. They make a lot of money from them. And the insurance company backing the product makes even more. Yes, they can pay off big time when something major happens but you are truly betting against the odds. Take the money you would spend on the warranty and put it in a separate account. Use it for unexpected repairs. Most of the time you’ll have money left over for an extra treat or an extra option on your next RV. If we ever get back to decent interest rates, you might even find you make money on the deal.