Extended Warranties

 

This posting is more a rant than anything.  Since there is a lull in our traveling adventures I thought it a good time to discuss this issue.

I have never been a big fan of extended warranties and rarely have ever purchased them.  For our fifth wheel I had a different thought process and went ahead with the purchase.  I have experience with RV’s and was concerned how an RV would hold up using it on a full time basis for a number of years.  Because of this we decided to purchase the extended warranty that Jayco was offering.  We purchased the “platinum” package which included the following:

Mechanical warranty - includes all the working items in the rig.

Paint and fabric protection – a coating was applied to the exterior of the rig and stain protection was applied to the carpet and furniture inside the rig.  With that application we get protection from stains and such for the warranty.

Tire and wheel protection – this gives us coverage on the trailer tires and wheels from road hazards and covers the truck as well.

Roadside assistance – provides for towing to a repair facility, fuel, lockout, etc.

The dealer did explain the package to us but we now learn was a little vague in that explanation and did not tell us some things.  We did receive a booklet that fully explains the coverage which brings up some of the issues that we are having.

First, let me start with the roadside assistance.  Prior to buying the fifth wheel we had AAA roadside assistance for 25 years.  I had not been aware that the AAA coverage we had did not cover the RV and that you had to add that coverage which was very costly as we had a family membership.  Instead I purchased coverage from Good Sam that covered both the RV and our vehicles.  When we purchased the fifth wheel I learned that Jayco gave us membership in Coach-Net (similar to Good Sam) and that our extended warranty had roadside assistance included.  I can remember telling the sales person that this feature would save me money as I would cancel my Good Sam roadside assistance and he agreed.  Well, not so fast!  About six months into our adventure, before our Coach-Net membership expired, I read in the extended warranty handbook that the roadside assistance applied to the RV at any time but only to the truck when it was towing the rig.  This meant that if I needed assistance while driving around town I would not be covered.  I called the carrier to clarify this and was told that the rig must be connected to the truck for the truck to be covered.  So I now had to make sure we had proper coverage when our Coach-Net membership expired and chose to go back to Good Sam at $100 per year.

Next issue is the tire and wheel protection.  You may remember my post regarding a tire on our rig shredding while we were driving in Florida.  I filed a claim with our extended warranty and told them I did not know what caused the tire to blow out.  I did not remember anything on the road.  WRONG ANSWER! CLAIM DENIED!   Per the policy I had to prove a road hazard (such as pot hole, debris, etc.).  I was furious as this is one of the reasons why I am against extended warranties, they make it so difficult to file a claim.  I contacted the dealership who sold us the policy to vent my frustration and was told the sales person would check on the matter.  He requested all my documentation so he could follow up with the carrier.  He told me that in the future I should contact him first before filing a claim so he could “help me” with my story to the carrier.  He was able to get us reimbursement but only as a “customer goodwill” gesture and not an actual approval of the claim.

Last issue, paint protection.  I noticed that the front fiberglass cap our rig was showing signs of oxidization.  I looked in our coverage booklet and it states that front and end caps are not covered.  I contacted the carrier to verify this and was told to file a claim, which I did.  Of course it was denied.  This one I did not repair it but rather have been working the issue with cleaners and wax and have improved the situation a little.  While I was talking to our Jayco dealer on the tire issue I mentioned the front cap issue and he was surprised to hear that it was not covered.  Sure, now you know!  He contacted the carrier who covers this issue and was told that they plan to include this in their coverage and to make it retroactive, however he could not provide me with anything, in writing, to confirm this.  We will see.  Also, while talking to him about this paint protection I mentioned that I like how the trailer stays clean and shiny because of the coating applied and that our graphics are covered under the policy as this is a big issue with RV’s as they get older.  He immediately says, “You do know the graphics are not covered, just the fiberglass walls?”.  I told him he had to be kidding me as I specifically remember telling him that the coverage for the graphics was a big reason why I decided to go forward with this option.  We had a “discussion” for a few minutes but I know, at this point, nothing was going to come of it and we still have coverage on many other things as part of the policy, but again I was misled.

I have not filed a mechanical claim yet as the original warranty just expired.  He assured me that those types of claims are easy, especially if you go to a Jayco dealer as they will the claim for us.  We will see!