Community Forums

MrMark_M · 07-31-2022, 05:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ann n Gene

One has paid off on my last three coaches, no problems and no hassles. I buy a great exclusionary policy from NIRVC and if you use them for the repair they waive the $100 deductible.

Thank you very much for the kind words Gene! The NIRVC approach is very simple: Change the RV experience for the owner. That includes storage, service, sales and yes; warranty contracts! There are warranty contracts and then there’s the one that we offer, and we are certainly glad that the contract was advantageous to you, and we are certainly happy that you are part of the NIRVC family.

DP3B58 · 08-09-2022, 03:20 PM

As most have said it's really how much pain (and risk) you want to accept. I'm pretty mechanically inclined and do most repairs on my coach. But I have purchased two extended warranties. The first through the dealer, which I later found out I could shop for better deals on the open market. That warranty paid for itself with various big ticket items and a new main AC unit. The second one is for my new rig and haven't had to use it yet. But these rigs get beaten up from the crappy highways and stuff just breaks, comes loose, or just stops working. But I do agree that on those the pricier coaches those warranties can give you sticker shock.

wolfe10 · 08-09-2022, 03:26 PM

Actually a large part of the equation on whether you should get a service policy (they are NOT extended warranties) depends on whether you do zero work yourself (definitely buy one) or are somewhat self sufficient mechanically.

Said another way pay $$$ up front and work with the service policy company (indeed some much better than others) or DO IT YOURSELF.

damcrv · 08-09-2022, 04:02 PM

I went with the Wholesalewarranties group. It was pretty awful. Really needed their help on about $10K worth of covered repairs. All claims denied for thin technicalities and some outright outrageous statements.

Best RV advice I received was to not do it if a big repair bill came at me and it would ruin my experience. I was able to get my money back on the policy and spend some of my own and leave repaired.

Buying a warrantee like this is a lot like the old tales of asking wishes from a genie. No matter how careful smart diligent or prepared you are, the genie gets the best of you.

150man · 08-09-2022, 06:56 PM

If you do the work yourself good luck getting any warranty company to pay just for parts
I would rather do it myself than wait all summer for dealer appointment

Fireairdrop · 08-09-2022, 07:35 PM

All I can say is read the fine print. I had Portfolio Extended Service and had nothing but problems with them. Wouldn’t cover major failures even though mech called because he couldn’t give exact amount to fix. Mech said worst service he ever talked to. When they did pay waited 8 months and 5 months for checks. I canceled their service. Maybe another service is better.

drpaul78 · 08-09-2022, 10:35 PM

The sales people may have a tear in there eyes when you say you don’t want it it’s all profit for them and a waste of your good money!!!

NCC-1701A · 08-10-2022, 10:15 AM

IMO, it's all a personal decision based on individual risk tolerance. I can't answer that for anyone but myself.

Personally, I don't buy them. I put money away for repairs. I do most work myself. I have a SIL that was the shop manager for an OTR trucking company and is a mechanic that can do most any work on diesels and air systems, if I need him, as well as the contacts to get wholesale pricing on parts. So my exposure is mostly a catastrophic failure on the road far from home. Decades of not putting out money on service contracts has me in a good position to take that risk.

For others, it makes a lot of sense for peace of mind if not financial reasons. Was camped next to two wonderful older ladies traveling in a decked out 45' Entegra. They don't do any work themselves and their coach has many things that can break. They told me they were way ahead on repair costs vs what their contract cost them. It was the right decision for them.

JoeRu · 08-10-2022, 12:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ScottnJulie

Just got my 2017 Ventana with 27500 miles Looking for extended warranty options as previously I thought them a sub par value. After RVing for a year, I am second guessing that position.
What do you think?

This is like any other insurance where the majority of folks get out less than they pay in. (otherwise the companies would not be in business). However, for the minority of customers, they get back much more than paid in. I have the full, premium coverage along with towing via CoachNet for 6 years. My peace of mind is worth the money.
Ask yourself, if you bought a life insurance policy for your family's income replacement if you passed away, would you complain if you never collected?

jepoland5 · 08-10-2022, 10:42 PM

I spent the last 25 years as an attorney in the disability income insurance industry. The threshold question in these matters is simple: what's your plan if something unexpected happens and you're looking at major repair bills (and each person gets to define what "major" means)? If your plan is to pay out-of-pocket, liquidate or borrow against other assets, or hit up your brother for the cash, and you're comfortable with that, then forgo the extended warranty and enjoy your coach. But if repair bills of thousands of dollars would negatively impact your finances, or if worrying about the possibility of them occurring would prevent you from enjoying your rig, consider off-loading that risk on to an insurance company. Either way, the important thing is that you make a plan one way or the other so your are prepared for the inevitable repairs.

If you go with an extended warranty, do your homework to ensure they are a reputable outfit. Know what it is you are buying, what is covered, and what is not. Not all insurers are evil, but not all are reputable either. Like every other for-profit business, they are in business to make money first and foremost. That's capitalism, and I rather like it. The reputable ones charge a price that allows them to cover all legitimate claims and turn a profit. And let's face it, we want them to be profitable so that they stay in business to pay all those legitimate claims. Whether the premium charged is fair or reasonable is, again, a personal matter.

We bought our 2019 DS from NIRVC in 2020. It had about 17,000 miles on it. Given our experience with our previous coach, where we did not have an extended warranty and paid out-of-pocket for some significant engine repairs (~$7k), we purchased the extended warranty offered by NIRVC. We had confidence in NIRVC re the sale, and felt that we could trust them to offer a quality warranty product as well. Since we intended to have them perform most of our future maintenance and repairs, we also felt they would be a trusted ally should we need to file any claims. And that has certainly been the case. In the two years we've owned the coach the extended warranty has paid somewhere north of $6K that would have otherwise come out of my pocket and we have several years of coverage left. NIRVC has made the process easy which means it's one less thing I have to worry about.

Lastly, as with any insurance product, it's all about shifting the risk to someone else, i.e. the insurance carrier. It's not about guaranteeing you will recover 100% of your premium costs in paid claims. In fact, with most insurance products, you hope you will never have to use them. That doesn't mean that the purchase was a waste of money or that nothing was provided in exchange for your premium. I protected my family for decades while I was working by purchasing term life insurance. As you can surmise, the carriers never paid a claim on those policies but they stood ready to do so if something happened to me. As far as I know, my family is happy about that.