Archived Copies of Warranty Week

December 2002 to Today

Mid-Year HVAC & Appliance Warranty Report: Some industries saw sales plummet and warranty expense rates soar. Appliances and HVAC systems weren't among them. Some of the individual companies are posting big shifts in their warranty metrics, but they seem to have more to do with acquisitions and divestments than they do with the effects of the pandemic. This is definitely not the auto industry.
October 29, 2020
Louisville's Warranty Experts: Both GE Appliances and UPS Worldport are located there. Throw in nice weather, a good airport, and a central location, and you have all the ingredients needed to turn it into a major hub for warranty and service contract expertise.
November 14, 2019
Building Trades Warranty Report:  Unlike most other industries, in the new home construction business, the builders have lower warranty expense rates than many of their suppliers. But the makers of appliances and heating/cooling systems are now cutting their costs and narrowing the gap between their expense rates and those of the makers of fixtures, furniture, and building materials.
April 27, 2017
Service Contract Pricing: Appliances: While the typical appliance service contract costs roughly 14% to 16% of the price of the product it protects, there is an enormous amount of variation, depending on which administrator the retailer works with, how long the contract lasts, and whether the product is low end or top of the line.
February 9, 2017
Service Contract Pricing: Ranges: After looking at household appliances that clean clothes, wash dishes, and store food, we round out the major categories with a look at the classic range: a combination of a stove and an oven used to cook food. What do their service contracts cost? Does it vary by brand or product price?
January 26, 2017
Asian Manufacturers' Warranties: While most consumer electronics products have relatively low warranty expense rates, as a percentage of revenue, computers generate as much warranty cost as passenger cars and major appliances.
August 14, 2014
Aerospace & Appliance Warranties: From airplanes to air conditioners, each industry has a typical cost of warranty based on the product it makes and what kind of customer it attracts. Business-to-business products such as airplanes have lower expense rates than consumer-facing products such as home appliances.
February 6, 2014
Food Service Equipment Warranties: The commercial appliances used in restaurants cost more to buy but less to keep in good working order. Over the past 10 years, the average warranty expense rates for professional food service equipment has been less than half as much as for home kitchen appliances.
June 13, 2013
Power Generation Equipment Warranties: Harnessing multiple energy sources from coal to solar, the makers of electrical power generating equipment are a diverse bunch. While much of what they make also fits into other product categories such as automotive, appliances or semiconductors, this week we've brought them all together.
May 30, 2013
Average Warranty Costs per Industry: One can get a good idea of the industries where warranty is most important by looking at both the amount they pay and the percentage of sales that those payments represent. And the data suggests that automotive, computers and appliances are at the top of the list.
May 31, 2012
International Warranty Costs: What you make matters more than where you make it. As in the U.S., the makers of appliances, computers and telecom gear have significant warranty costs. But for most consumer electronics manufacturers, warranty is not such a significant burden.
July 14, 2011
Home Warranties for Appliances? Though home warranties are mainly for heating and cooling systems, and are closely tied to resales of existing homes, their ability to cover major appliances overlaps somewhat with store-bought extended warranties. Or does it?
January 27, 2011
Top Appliance Retailers: In an informal online shopping excursion, we found all but one retailer selling extended warranties, typically for between 10% and 20% of the price of the appliances they cover. Durations ranged from two to five years, though one regional retailer also offered a ten-year "major component only" plan.
January 20, 2011
Warranty Fraud Detection: SAS says send us your claims data and we'll show you the fraud. If upwards of 10% to 15% of claims are in some way suspect, such a system could pay for itself in just a few months. Does it sound too good to be true? GE Appliances was the first customer.
February 25, 2010
Home Inspection Warranties: It seems like a natural pairing. First the home inspector eyeballs the appliances, and then the home warranty company agrees to cover them. But it's not so simple in a business where honest advice is hard to find, and wariness about conflicts of interest is everywhere.
November 19, 2009
Appliance & Building Material Warranties: The economic downturn that started with the homebuilders is showing its effects on the makers of appliances, fixtures, tools, furniture and building materials. But some segments haven't seen very big recent declines in warranty expenses, and some companies have actually seen their warranty costs rise.
April 16, 2009
Green Warranties, Part Three: To help the environment, extended warranty administrators are stepping up to offer customers gift cards in return for their waste computers and cameras and more energy-efficient replacements for their unrepairable home appliances.
May 30, 2008
Extended Warranty Solution: ServiceBench aims new service contract solution at manufacturers, retailers, dealers and distributors of appliances, HVAC, fitness equipment, and other underserved markets. Goodman Manufacturing and Icon Health & Fitness are the first to sign up. Rainmaker Systems to help with telemarketing.
July 25, 2007
HVAC, Appliance & Building Material Warranties: Since so many manufacturers straddle the plumbing, appliance, and HVAC industries, we're profiling them together. But warranty occurs at very different rates for each product type. And some of the most expensive products from a warranty point of view seem to be small kitchen and personal grooming appliances.
May 22, 2007
Aerospace Warranties: The makers of airplanes and jet engines seem to spend much less on warranty than do the makers of automobiles, PCs, or appliances. Having airlines with their own mechanics as customers helps, but so does the emphasis on safety and schedules.
November 29, 2005
Service Dispatch: With home appliances, warranty work almost always involves a housecall. Claims administrator ServiceBench has turned the dispatch of service technicians into a strategic advantage.
November 3, 2004
Home Warranties:  Three decades ago, American Home Shield, now part of ServiceMaster, invented a new category of extended warranties, covering the major systems and appliances in a home but not the home itself.
October 13, 2004