Save Money This Holiday Season By Nixing Extended Warrantees

(Saving money is always a top priority for the American consumer but so is safety.) While everyone looks for the best deal when shopping, especially during the holiday season, the need for an extended warranty becomes a much debated issue.

The warranty: to get or not to get; that is the question.

Consumer Reports have been lobbying for the American consumer to nix the extra expenses associated with extended warrantees and may be getting their attention this season. The article, “Full Page Ad: Rarely A Good Time To Buy Extended Warranties,” written by Broderick Perkins of Realty Times explains how Consumer Reports is letting the consumer know that extended warrantees are not necessary.

“A full page ad that ran Nov. 14 in USA Today says: ‘Dear Shopper, Despite what the salesperson says, you don't need an Extended Warranty. Yours, truly, Consumer Reports. Find out why extended warranties have become big business for retailers and a big waste of money for consumers.’”

The November issue of Consumer Reports is dedicated to the wasteful extended warrantee. The issue cites only two exceptions or reasons as to why someone should pay the extra money for an extended warrantee: when you buy a rear projection micro display television and when you buy an Apple computer.

“Consumer Reports says that's because repair costs are high on the rear projection TVs and they are three times more likely to need repairs than other TVs. Also Apple computers come with only 90 days of phone tech support and their warranties include extended tech support.”

Besides those two products, Consumer Reports speculates the other $1.6 billion shoppers spend on extended warranties may as well be spent on air.

There are several cited reasons as to why the typical consumer does not need an extended warrantee.

The most obvious reason to bypass this is because the product usually lasts beyond even the extended warrantee’s coverage.

“When products fail sooner, they typically do so within the product's warranty period. Consider buying electronics and appliances as gifts as close to the giving date as possible so the recipient begins to use it right away.” This gives you or the recipient more time to utilize the standard warrantee dated guidelines.

If the product does break, the out-of-pocket repair costs tend to be less than the extended warrantee price. And for other items, it may be cheaper just to buy a newer model than to pay its extended warrantee.

“‘Instead of buying a warranty, that you're unlikely to use, you'd be better off paying to fix your computer if it breaks,’ Consumer Reports advises.”

Overall, Consumer Reporters has done studies on various products that often offer extended warranties and show the product shouldn’t break or need maintenance during that extended time frame.

If your product does break however and you didn’t obtain an extended warrantee and it is past the included warrantee date, you should “Read your credit card's terms and disclosure. The small print could reveal that some credit purchases come with extra, free warranty protection that lengthens the manufacturer's warranty.”

Consumer Reports also advises you to compare warrantee terms of products offered from other retailers and to never pay more than 20 percent of the purchase price on an extended warrantee.

Use the extra money you will save by not buying an extended warrantee this holiday season to have a night out on the town or buy that extra gift you couldn’t afford.

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