Opinions please..........extended warranties, are they worth the expense?

[admin_exported]

Hi,

Been looking around at the deals on the internet for either a 37" plasma or 40" lcd (when i finally decide), and i am wondering if these expensive extended warranties are really worth the money. You find what appears to be a bargain and then.......bang another 150-250 for the extended warranty, which makes it much less of a bargain!!!

I've never taken out any extended warranties with anything ive ever purchased, including my current Toshiba CRT. If i was not to take the warranty out would this be a mistake? As all products have the 1 year manufacturer on them anyway, then as i'm unlikely to accidentally damage a set, surely any defect issues will become apparent during this time. Are lcd more reliable than plasma or vice versa, or is there nothing between them.

It just seems to be that there is no reason for warranties to be so expensive, apart from adding to the profits of greedy retaillers, who's staff often have even less knowledge of their products than i do (which is not huge amount)

 

[Alec]

have you had big expenses in the past that you've regretted because you didnt buy a warranty? If not, i wouldnt bother, as im an old curmudgeon who believes - what cheek! - that you ought to sell me something that, er, works, and for a few years. ive never bothered with them. your finances are none of my concern but id respectfully suggest that you just make sure you can afford a new one in a few years time. therell be many contrary opinions tho.

 

[Andrew Everard]

No.

Find out how much the warranty is going to cost you each month or as a one-off payment, and sling that into a savings account of some kind.

Then, if anything goes wrong outside the standard manufacturer's warranty period, you'll have some dosh for the repair.

If nothing goes wrong, you'll have a nice bit of wonga to put towards something new when you want to buy it.

 

[Clare Newsome]

I've never bought an extended warranty, either. I have, however, bought some high-ticket items from John Lewis and other retailers who've offered an extended warranty as standard - in the last instance, JL price-matched as well, so I got the benefit of the longer warranty without paying a premium (and they delivered plus took away all the packaging, too.)

 

[Alec]

they price matched with an extended warranty? impressive. usually the warranty is exactly why you pay them a premium. glad you've both agreed tho

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the views.

No JL near me so might struggle to pricematch.

I'd been thinking that if i was going to spend £1500-2000 on a tv set then i'd be more inclined to go with the warranty, but am probably only going to spend about 800 quid so the warranty seems much more expensive on that basis.

And, i'm someone who will probably want something new in 2-3 years time anyway. I'd like to think that with the product testing that should go on nowadays, ie, claims of plasmas with 100,000 hours panel life, then kit should be relatively reliable. I've never really had any issues with other things such as laptops, Sky boxes, surround sound equipment so think ill risk it!!

Just a quick question on lcd tvs. If i get one with dead pixels in it, what is the usual rule of thumb with manufacturers, are there a set number of pixels which have to be affected before the screen will be replaced?

 

[Anonymous]

Ok, so the price match at JL is out of the question.......

However, you can still buy your TV from them and get the standard 5 year warranty. It's well worth it; Currys will charge you about £300-£400 for the same level and timescale of cover. JL are the bees knees mate, check them out. Also, Empire Direct are usually really sharp on price and they offer 3 years as standard I think. Good luck

 

[Anonymous]

I would never pay for an extended warranty but would definitely get one with a 'free' warranty either through JL or special promos.

I couldn't trust myself not to dip into money in a savings account!

 

[Anonymous]

Ask yourself this question....If J Lewis or anyone else for that matter is prepared to give a 5 year guarantee , then they are betting that the majority of the telly's they sell , WON'T GO WRONG in the first 5 years. They know that the first year is carried by the manufacturer, so it is really a 4 year guarantee. However, they know if it hasn't gone wrong in the first year, it is very unlikely to pack up in the next 4 years.

Of course you could be unlucky, but if you bought 10 Tvs, I reckon you might be unlucky 1 or 2 times out of 10. Do you feely lucky?

 

[Alec]

but these "free" ones, er, arent, are they? When you buy one arent you just doing the same thing as buying a separate warranty?

 

[Anonymous]

Agree that it is a gamble but ,personally speaking, I would like the peace of mind which a 5 (or four) year warranty gives.

 

[Anonymous]

[quote user="al7478"]but these "free" ones, er, arent, are they? When you buy one arent you just doing the same thing as buying a separate warranty?[/quote]

Not when a TV with a warranty is the same price as one without elsewhere. I got a pricematch at JL with 5 year warranty and free delivery against Empire Direct (which were about the cheapest I could find).. The warranty was indeed FREE in this case, absolute bargain!

 

[Anonymous]

[quote user="TurtleT"]
Thanks for the views.

No JL near me so might struggle to pricematch.

[/quote]

Why are you under the impression that you need to live near JL? Just phone a branch and ask for a pricermatch against another retailer.

 

[Alec]

[quote user="Eddiewood"][quote user="al7478"]but these "free" ones, er, arent, are they? When you buy one arent you just doing the same thing as buying a separate warranty?[/quote]

Not when a TV with a warranty is the same price as one without elsewhere. I got a pricematch at JL with 5 year warranty and free delivery against Empire Direct (which were about the cheapest I could find).. The warranty was indeed FREE in this case, absolute bargain![/quote]

understood, clare mentioned that too.