how to take advantage of home warrantee in first year

Baby G (USDA:10a, Sunset:21&23 SoCal-NE. Mt Washington, Lo-Chill: 200-400 Hrs, So

11 years ago

Does anyone have any advice about how to best use the home warranty we got when we purchased our house this year?
We moved in and found out:
* that the garage door doesn't work -- to a greater extent than the inspection said
* that there is more asbestos in the place than was originally detected by the inspector (we had the first bout removed)
*that there is a big leak under the kitchen sink
*that the newly-installed bathroom granite is unsealed and possibly incorrectly installed
*that the "resurfaced" kitchen sink and tile was actually just PAINTED and is now chipping away, probably at danger of ingestion.
* that the pipe water that the seller said was NOT brown actually is brown.

Is it best to contact the warranty company directly or do we get a third party involved? Like from the show, Holmes Inspection? What would that person called? Maybe... a "Forensic Contractor" or "Warranty Home Ispector?"

We are in the Los Angeles area, if anyone has anyone to recommend.

Is it relevant if the seller misled us or if the inspector(s) missed anything? ...Or is it all covered anyway?

I would appreciate any advice or experience you are willing to share. Thanks!

This post was edited by babyg on Wed, Dec 12, 12 at 17:25

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Comments (5)

mike_kaiser_gw
11 years ago
You might want to talk to your attorney about any misrepresentation on the part of the seller. Typically the liability for "errors" on the part of the home inspector is limited to the fee he/she charged (read your contract).

I don't know much about home warranties but from what I do know they don't seem like they're likely to be writing you a big check. Typically there is deducible for each problem and are likely to cover things that are actually "broken." They're not likely to cover things like incorrect installations or peeling paint.

If you want, you can describe each of your problems in greater detail and if possible include pictures. Members here can help you fix them.
User
11 years ago
Home warranties aren't for fixing already identified pre-existing issues. Those are yours to pay for. Everything that you listed that the inspector identified, that's on your nickel. Home warranties are to maybe fix a water heater or an AC condenser that breaks unexpectedly---but only after you pay the deductible. Most aren't worth the paper they are printed on.

You need to develop some DIY skills and to also find a trusted contractor so that you can hack at that list a little at a time.
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They are a waste of money and it's usually easier and cheaper to pay for repairs on your own. Many of the warranty companies will do everything in their power to deny legitimate claims. They also use delay tactics to get you to hire your own contractor and then refuse to reimburse you. Most of the ones I've used have forced me to use incompetent contractors that show up hours late or never even arrive. Case in point: Our bathroom tub stopped draining in our old house a couple years ago. The day the problem arose, I called our warranty company, First American. The next day, they sent out a plumber. He took one look at the problem and told me he was not authorized to fix it because he was only allowed to fix "stoppages" with his contract with First American. I paid him a $75 service fee for nothing. He told me to call First American the next day and they would put me in touch with another plumber. On Friday, I called the plumber assigned by First American who was not available until Monday. On Monday, the next plumber showed up over two hours late. I had taken the day off work to meet him. He took one look at the tub and said he would have to contact the company to get "authorization" to fix it. He said that I would have to contact the company. I called First American and they claimed they hadn't received the plumbers report yet. They tell me to call back. Another day passes. Finally, I call First American and demand that they send the plumber back to fix the problem. They transfer me over to a supervisor who is totally unhelpful. She informs me that my claim has now been denied. She claims that the plumber's report references a "missing part" in the faucet causing the stoppage, which triggers an exclusion in my policy. After nearly 30 minutes of back and forth and her being unable to identify the missing part, I insist that she send out another plumber to re-assess. At this point, we haven't been able to use the tub for a week. We can't give our kids a bath; I was bathing my infant in our kitchen sink. The next day (a week after I initially reported the claim), Plumber Number Three shows up. He told me that there was no "missing part." He wouldn't fix it though, saying he had to get authorization from First American. After about a half hour, he tried to leave, saying he would be back "in a few days" after he gets the requisite approval. I told him I wanted to contact First American while he was here. He waits while I call. It takes First American nearly two hours to route me to the right person so I can get the proper "approval". Finally....after over a week, nearly 10 phone calls, over 2 hours on the phone, after the company improperly denied our claim, we got authorization to fix the drain. It takes about 15-20 minutes to fix the problem. That's just one experience we had. We recently had a similar situation when our hot water heater pooped out. When I called the warranty company, they assigned a company that had across the board 1 stars on yelp. The appointment came and went and no one ever showed up. The plumbing company was based over 2 hours from our home and the warranty company refused to assign one that was closer. We couldn't take showers in the meantime. We ended up just hiring a plumber on our own to fix it. It wasn't worth the headache or the delay.
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NatalieWitt
11 years ago
It is best if you consult an attorney for legal advice.
scrappy25
11 years ago
Assuming these were not found at inspection and developed after you took possession, home warranties usually only cover systems not surfaces. So plumbing leaks (but not the drywall after the plumber tears it up), possibly the garage door. Not the sink, granite, or tile. No idea about the pipe water.
User
11 years ago
None of the things you mention are covered by a home warranty unless the damage is due to sudden catastrophic failure.

Yes, if you have a sudden windstorm that damages the garage door, that would be covered. No it's an ongoing issue that was mentioned as a problem in the inspection report.

No to asbestos removal at all under most warranties. It's excluded.

If the leak under the sink was sudden and overnight, then possibly it might cover getting a plumber out to repair it, but after the $500 deductible, but the plumber's fee is probably less than that. If the leak has done enough damage, and it was sudden, then your homeowner's insurance would probably cover that. But, neither the warranty nor your homeowners will cover damage from a leak that's been ongoing. That's neglect to not have addressed it.

The granite issue won't be covered by anyone, including the company that did the work because the home ownership has changed hands. The usual one year warranty on workmanship is only to the original owner. And sealing granite is a simple DIY job.

The tile and sink issue just means it's time to plan a kitchen redo. It's NOT a risk of ingestion. Or, it shouldn't be, because you shouldn't prepare food on counters or in your sink. You should always use a cutting board or colander.

Brown water in pipes just means you probably have rusted galvanized pipes and it's probably time to replace them. No warranty or insurance will cover that either.

Part of owning a home is maintaining that home. It sounds as though this home has some age to it and was poorly maintained. It also sounds as though you are a first time homeowner with little DIY ability. The only way that you can remain having little DIY ability is to pay for contractors to come and fix the problems. That quickly gets expensive for all kinds of minor issues. You've got several issues though that should only be handled by professionals, and you should begin to budget to handle those issues immediately or several of them could become disastrously worse!

how to take advantage of home warrantee in first year

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