I was asked once about a "5 year roof warranty’ and I think I got the answer. I told all Realtors at a meeting that every single person who has a five year roof warranty, you can call me up after 4 years and I will inspect their roof.
If I find zero leaks, they owe me nothing. If I find leaks then they pay me my fee and they can use their warranty. I hope those people giving get them out are thinking long term. I know in my area, roofs constantly leak.
I then told the Realtors that their reputation is on the line as well, if they are mentioning these items.
Risking your business reputation on another persons promise is just stupid.
I think you’re doing a great service, and I see nothing wrong with it. Heck, I did the same thing in the 11th month of the builder’s one-year-warranty, or any other time shortly before any warranty expires, such as with my automobiles where I have an independent third-party garage (ITPG) go over the vehicle with a fine-tooth comb. He gets business, I use my car warranty at the dealership, and then the ITPG gets the rest of my business as long as I own my car.
Isn’t a warranty the same as insurance? I don’t consider those to be “promises” because, unless the promise is written down on paper and signed by both parties, it’s just a he said/she said promise. Warranties and insurance pretty much are regulated by law in all 50 states and DC, so I have no problem using them or helping other people use them.
Since I once worked in the insurance industry (life insurance, probably the worst insurance of all!), I often told my Clients:
"Insurance companies are in business to make money, so when you file a claim, it will be denied. Don’t take it personally. That’s how they make money, by denying claims. Instead, file your claim a second time. You have a 50/50 chance of being denied again or having the insurance company send a representative to check on the situation.
"If you get denied a second time without a representative coming out, file your claim a third time. Make a copy of your claim and send it to the state insurance commissioner. Let your insurance company know that a copy of this third claim has been sent to the state insurance commissioner.
"Just make sure you have copies and records of all your claims, denial letters, and any other communications, and don’t be afraid to send those along each time with your claim and to the state insurance commissioner. Those records will prove to everyone that you are serious and not a pushover.
“If you do all that, 99% of the time a check will arrive in your mailbox in short order.”
I had many clients over the years call to thank me for my advice.
Read the small print in the latest coolest roof leak warranty. IMO, it’s pretty much useless. You might also want to read the small print on the mold warranty while you’re at it. Use your discerning eye when you read it.
Not all insurance companies are ‘for profit’ Mutuals are owned by the policy holders. They are supposed to adjust their fees to the actual costs of being an insurance company or reimburse the excess to policy holders, Auto club insurance, which where I am, also insures houses, are also a non profit.
The warranty programs that are sold to consumers as a ‘value added’ item on a sale, make their money by not insuring anything that is likely to break, so you have to read the fine print and decide whether or not it is worth it, usually it ain’t. They will also drag their feet ‘repairing’ long enough to make the consumer go away, as opposed to replacing an item.
Having said that, a builders warranty included with the home at no extra cost is good stuff, because the builder pays the premiums. Ignore that premiums are included in the mark up, what happens is, if the builder gets too many claims the insurance company is going to raise the builders premiums or maybe even cancel their coverage, so the result is builders that pay more attention to quality control and is maybe more willing to satisfy a complaint than have a claim on their record and higher premiums, which could make them less competitive, just like HI E&O insurance can for HIs, especially if it is required.
An insurance agent with a very well known insurance company sold himself a policy on a commercial building that was hit by a very destructive hail storm in May of this year. The adjuster that the insurance company sent out to inspect the building determined that the cost to repair the damage amounted to $1,126.42 and, after applying his $1K deductible, wrote him a check for $126.42.
The agent argued his case to everyone in his company that would listen to him to no avail. He contracted with me to represent him with his claim in July. After 30 days of additional negotiations (with a new adjuster assigned to the claim), the carrier agreed to settle for $115,100.00.
Earlier this year, the current owner of a former cathedral with a very large slate roof hired me to represent his denied insurance claim that (after five months of negotiations) resulted in a settlement for $130,000.00.
In between these two claims were dozens of similar instances where home owners were grossly underpaid by their insurance company. In a few, I was able to assist the insurance company in identifying third parties from whom they could subrogate and be reimbursed for the money that they paid to my clients from “warranties” on poor workmanship.
A few years ago, a freckled, red headed crook tried to sell certain types of home “warranties” in Missouri that (under Missouri law) fell under the Department of Insurance for regulation and required him to be properly vetted and licensed. I sent a copy of his “warranty” to the state and they received written assurance from him that he would no longer attempt to sell them in Missouri. I haven’t run across any, so I am assuming that he is in compliance.
What home inspectors need to know about these “warranty” gimmicks is this … when the interior of the home is damaged from water intrusion and the insurance carrier pays the homeowner for damage to that interior, the insurance company will turn the case over to their attorneys to find someone to collect from. Be sure you are not that guy.
