Archived Copies of Warranty Week

December 2002 to Today

Homebuilding Warranty Report: Warranty expenses are rising but so are new home prices, keeping the average amount of money accrued industry-wide after each closing relatively steady, and allowing the accrual rate as a percentage of revenue to actually decline a bit. But many homebuilders continue to raise and reduce their warranty accruals rather impulsively, and sometimes skip them altogether.
June 28, 2018
Service Contract Pricing: Electronics: Though the overall average is 17%, there's a wide range of pricing variation based on the duration of coverage and the inclusion of accidental damage coverage. And then there are retailers and administrators that price high because they can. A simple shopping survey of product and protection plan prices reveals the difference.
December 8, 2016
Service Contract Pricing: SquareTrade: Next year, once Allstate completes its SquareTrade acquisition, we'll find out whether there's more value in its direct-to-consumers sales model or in its traditional retail relationships. But this year, though the company has a reputation for selling inexpensive product protection plans, we're finding that some of its retail partners are marking up prices significantly.
December 1, 2016
Service Contract Pricing: Printers: Despite the well-known risks of printers breaking down through normal wear and tear, some administrators and retailers are willing to sell service contracts for them that last four or even five years. Prices vary widely, and some even cover accidental damage.
November 3, 2016
Apple's Warranty & AppleCare Programs: It's not the kind of thing the consumer advocates like to report, but one of the world's leading electronics manufacturers and retailers is giving its customers a break, paying more warranty claims, keeping extended warranty prices steady, and giving customers a better value proposition on their product protection plans.
October 30, 2014
New Home Warranty Report: Sales are rising and home prices are increasing, but warranty costs are remaining the same. So the cost of new home warranties as both a percentage of sales and on a per-home basis are declining, in some cases to record low levels. Is this the beginning of a long-awaited recovery in the new home industry?
January 30, 2014
How to Buy Extended Warranties: Step One: Read the contract. Research the terms and conditions of the service contract while you compare the prices and features of the products themselves. Then use your common sense and Google to decide if the extended warranty offer is a deal worth adding, or if you should shop elsewhere.
August 25, 2011
Warranty Accruals per Vehicle: Multiple readers said something wasn't quite right with the warranty data in last week's newsletter. So this week we're diving into the deep end, probing to see if it's possible for both accruals and prices to fall as fast as the math says they are.
July 15, 2010
Extended Warranty Shopping: Everybody knows that prices vary from one retailer to the next, but the prices they charge for extended warranties vary even more. And while some retailers sell their products low and their service plans high, others discount both while a few overcharge for both. So while some bundles are rip-offs, others could be seen as compelling bargains.
November 28, 2007
Extended Warranty Pricing: Retailers charge a premium of anywhere from 1.2% to 36% for a Canon EOS 30D extended warranty, and anywhere from 5.6% to 43% for a Panasonic 42" plasma TV service plan. With Target now entering the market, service plan prices will be under increasing pressure.
October 24, 2006
Digital Media Warranties: Digital music players and digital cameras, despite prices that sometimes surpass several thousand dollars, are never warranted for more than a year. Some manufacturers will cover labor charges for only the first 90 days, which pushes these units right to the edge of disposability, given the cost of repairs.
August 15, 2006
Peripheral Warranties: With computer printers and monitors, older technologies frequently get longer warranties than new. And while one would think higher prices mean longer warranties, that doesn't seem to be the case.
August 8, 2006
Warranty vs. Earnings: While a few Wall Street analysts are beginning to treat warranty as a leading economic indicator, fluctuations in claims rates don't always translate into earnings shifts. Yet warranty news is already moving stock prices.
June 6, 2006
Extended Warranties in the UK: After concluding that British retailers charge some of the highest prices in the world for extended warranties, the UK's Competition Commission's final report advocates reforms of the salesperson-to-consumer relationship.
January 20, 2004