We were given a one-year AHS home warranty when we purchased our current home. Within the first year, the water heater failed. They told me it was covered and they would send a plumber out. When the plumber came out he said that the water heater was covered but that we would have to pay him $50 to remove and reinstall the water softener which was blocking access to the water heater for removal and replacement. I asked him why the warranty company wouldn't cover that, and he said they just didn't. I said we'll see about that. I called them and explained the situation and they said sorry we don't cover that. I asked where it stated that in the contract, since I had the contract right in my hands in front of me. She said we just don't. I said that's not how a contract works. I said, let me read to you what it does say in the contract. It says that you will pay up to $500 to refinish a wall if it becomes necessary to make a hole in the wall to access a covered component. I'm going to have him knock a giant hole in the wall big enough to get the water heater out, and then you can pay $500 to refinish the wall, instead of $50 to R&R the water softener. How does that sound? She said, Tell him we'll cover removal and reinstallation of the water softener. You don't say.
Then when our second refrigerator freezer that we kept out in the garage stopped working, I called them and they sent a repair guy out. He said it needed a new compressor. They said they wouldn't cover it because it was a garage refrigerator. Again I asked, where does it say that in the contract? She said we just don't because it's a garage refrigerator. Once again, I said let me read to you what it does say in the contract. It says you cover all appliances that are contained within the main foundation of the home. Since my home is a ranch style with no basement and an attached garage, the garage and the house share one common concrete slab, which means it is within the foundation of the home. They covered it. I'm not a lawyer, but I can read. Contracts are there for a reason, and they're usually carefully worded. I suspect they made some revisions to their contracts after I got through with them. They did not give me any trouble whatsoever when my garbage disposal failed.