It happens with almost every home purchase – you buy a home warranty to cover the expenses of repairs to expensive equipment and appliances in your home. Many times, this is included by default with your purchase. Other times, a buyer might purchase this on their own. There are tons of companies out there with mixed reviews, and even the most informed consumer can get ripped off. It happened to me.

Let me start off by saying, I'm a very cautious consumer. I will get 10 quotes for a job, read every review I can find, and talk to anyone I know who has used a company or service before making a purchase. Purchasing my home warranty was no different. It took me nearly two weeks to conclude my search. I started with the listacle websites (most often paid for by warranty companies themselves, but it was a start), I looked at consumer reports, I talked to my lender, and talked to friends who had recently made a purchase. I got a quote from American Home Shield, First American Home Warranty, Home Warranty of America, and Total Home Protection. Some of these had local agents, some were call center based.

I got immediate, basic quotes from most of these. With First American Home Warranty, I was referred to a local agent who I went back and forth with over the course of several days trying to get a quote – but she was slow and honestly seemed disinterested in my business. When I input my information for Total Home Protection, I got a call almost immediately from a salesman. He was enthusiastic and very helpful. By this time, I had already gotten basic quotes from the other two companies, and I was struggling to get any kind of quote from my first choice, First American Home Warranty. So it was actually nice to get a person on the phone who was trying to win my business and find a policy that worked for me.

My original intent was to get a warranty for a year or maybe two. I was mostly concerned over appliances in the kitchen and an above ground spa. Kitchen appliances are super expensive, and the spa was 10-12 years old. The pool equipment had just been replaced so that wasn't much of a concern. The salesman informed me that pool/spa coverage was an additional fee, so I told him we definitely needed that coverage. He then asked me if the pool and spa used shared equipment or separate equipment, I informed him that it was separate and that my spa was above ground, made by Sundance Spas. He then informed me that normally the pool/spa coverage would only cover one or the other since equipment was separate but we could negotiate both into the policy if I was willing to go for a longer term. Ultimately, we landed on a three year policy, that included an additional six months for free, with coverage of my pool and spa – a total of $1,250. But this deal was only if I paid right then, on the spot, over the phone. It was a longer plan than I needed, and more than I wanted to spend – but I couldn't dispute the value of the offer, so I took it.

Upon paying for the plan with my card over the phone, I was emailed the policy a bit later and they mailed a hard copy as well. Obviously, having just discussed my home in length with the salesman, and the fact that I needed coverage for both my pool and spa, I felt secure that the policy was what I had discussed. The policy did list the "additional" coverage for "pool/spa" on the paperwork, which satisfied me.

Cut to 15 months later, and I tried to use the spa for the first time of this season. It didn't work. It wouldn't heat up, no matter how long it ran. Luckily, I had a warranty to depend on! So, I made my very first claim to Total Home Protection. Their agents called to confirm my spa equipment, I gave them the brand name and said that was really all I knew about it. They assigned the claim to Wet Feet Pools, a company from far outside my area whose website doesn't actually even indicate they service this location. That was a red flag. The second red flag was when I looked this company up, and found one of the worst reviewed companies I've ever seen on Yelp and Google. But, I noticed that most of these reviews had to do with claims being denied rather than their actual work. I chalked this up to people having bad policies or not understanding what was covered... It's certainly not the fault of a contractor that the warranty company won't honor a claim. So, I continued on with my claim assured by the fact that I KNEW my policy covered my pool and spa, and I wouldn't be one of these disgruntled people.

The contracted repair man came – he was quite late. I even called Total Home Protection wondering where he was, as there was no answer from the company on their line. I also found it odd that he entered my backyard without knocking at my door, went through the dog run, and just began working on the spa without having given any notice. I only discovered this as I saw him on one of my cameras in the dog run. This was irritating, but I shrugged it off. This was late in the day, I was glad he was there, and ready to get this repair done.

He and I fooled around with the breaker to get the spa to run for his diagnostic. He determined that not only did the heating element need to be replaced, he also felt the 4 HP jet pump needed to be replaced. As he was leaving, he mentioned that they would submit it for the repair and be back the following week to get the spa back in working order.

I then heard nothing until the next week, when I got a cryptic email from April asking me to call her at Total Home Warranty regarding my claim. I tried calling, but I got her voicemail. I then logged into my account with Total Home Protection to see if there were any notes on my claim. To my surprise, the claim was closed, but no notes were made as to why. I called Wet Feet Pools, and they informed me that the claim was denied because my pump was not a covered item – but no mention of the heating element which was the real issue to begin with! I couldn't get much more information out of the contracted company, so I waited to speak with Total Home Protection the following day.

Calling in the next day, I was preparing for a battle. This what is what all the others online warned me about – these home warranty companies look for any excuse to wiggle out of their responsibility. Denying claims, arbitrarily excluding items... this is how they make money: by not paying out on claims. I spoke with April, who informed me that my policy specifically excluded above ground spas. But how is that possible? This was specifically what I mentioned I needed covered! She then informed me this was their standard policy, they never cover above ground pools. Also, their policy only covers one or the other: pool or spa. I again mentioned that I paid for/negotiated coverage for BOTH, as we had a long conversation about the fact that they didn't share the same equipment. Her hands were tied, there was nothing she could do. It's not her fault, she's just a paper pusher following the terms of the cookie-cutter policy that she informed me I agreed to...

But how did I agree to this? Our policy was outlined verbally and I paid over the phone. That was how this deal was done. It wasn't until after I paid and entered into the contract that I was given a written document outlining these terms. So how can I be bound to terms that somehow changed after I made a payment? I cannot.

April then transferred me to Kevin, a resolution manager with Total Home Warranty. He again affirmed that this was their standard policy. I went around and around with him, citing that the terms of the contract were negotiated verbally and that it wasn't until after I paid and entered into the policy that they actually provided a written document that somehow completely contradicted everything we discussed. To his credit, Kevin was eager to offer a resolution and look into this further. He noted that there are many cases where a salesman will augment their standard policy to include things like an above ground spa, and this could be one of those cases but mysteriously there were never any notes entered on my account policy by the salesman (this does not, however, change the fact that my policy terms should be honored as I entered into a verbal agreement and made payment over the phone based upon those terms). His immediate offer: sending me $200 while continuing to exclude my above ground spa. I informed him that I doubted that would come close to covering the repair, and that my policy absolutely does include my spa. He then suggested they might be able to call up audio from our call to confirm what was said, but since this was over a year ago that may not be possible. Kevin then asked for a day or two in order to dig into this further and "see what they can do" for me.

So that is where we're at today. I'm waiting to find out if this company will honor their policy terms or if their bait and switch sales will win the day. Will this become a lawsuit? Possibly. Will this cost them my future business? Probably. At a minimum, their additional policy sold to me is useless considering that I negotiated for coverage of a pool and spa – and they do not want to cover said spa. The lesson here is to not trust salespeople on the terms of policies like this. Make certain you have the terms of the policy in writing before you offer up your payment details. They cannot be trusted.

I will post a follow up to this story to let everyone know how this case turns out and if Total Home Protection actually honors their policy.