American Home Shield (AHS)
Home Warranty Plan Details and Reviews for American Home Shield (AHS)
Premium: $360
Deductible: $60
Effective: Immediately after payment
Web: ahswarranty.com
Deductible: $60
Effective: Immediately after payment
Web: ahswarranty.com
Customer Service 
Service Timeliness
Repair/Replacement Service
Overall Rating
Total Reviews: 627 Rate this Company!
Service Timeliness
Repair/Replacement Service
Overall Rating
Total Reviews: 627 Rate this Company!
Coverage Area: USA - All States
Offers plans to cover pre-existing conditions and lack of maintenance repairs, for an additional fee.
| Home warranty is a complex insurance product. Unlike home insurance, it does not provide blanket coverage for all appliances. Pre-existing conditions and problems resulting from lack of maintenance of appliance are are generally not covered by home warranty companies. Home warranty sellers may not state these factors clearly, and this will create dissatisfaction among customers. Due to these factors, you will see many negative reviews here. Don't be intimidated by some negative reviews here. If you have maintained your appliances in good condition and go with a reputed home warranty provider, your coverage will be fine. |
We do not endorse any company in particular, however you should ignore the reviews that are overly negative or positive. Such reviews are not likely to offer a balanced view and some of them could be fake reviews posted to promote or demote a company. It is always a good idea to check BBB ratings and make sure the company is licensed to do business in your State by contacting State Insurance Commission. Try to avoid paying annual premium and keep your cancellation rights
Reviews
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Pages: [27] 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 … 1 » Show All
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SAVE YOUR MONEY! I purchased a home in 2007 that included an A.H.S. warranty. Two days after we moved in, the water main broke under the middle of the driveway. I contacted AHS for service, explained in detail the problem AND location of the break, their rep. said that it was definitely covered and dispatched a plumber to my home. The plumber arrived in a timely manner, informed me that he needed a payment of $50 before he could continue. I paid the “service fee”, only because I had already been told by the AHS rep that I was covered. He saw where the water was bubbling up through the driveway, called into AHS for authorization, and was denied the claim, stating the break was not “Under the roof” of the home. My next denial of service was for my ductwork, also supposed to be covered, also payed a $60 service fee, but the list of exclusions is much longer than the list that is covered. The contract you
(the costumer) receives is VERY vague about covered items, leaving AHS much room for “WIEZELING” out of paying.
In short, save the $460 yearly premium and the $60 service fee, take that $470 and just apply it toward any repairs. Trust me you will save yourself priceless amounts of time and aggravation.
Pleasant people on the phone doesn’t make up for the fact that American Homeshield will do what they can not to pay for anything. And their technician here in Austin – ARS are incompetent scamming, lying cheats. I have a house showing a lot of new cracks in the walls. I paid out of pocket to have G&M Plumbing come in and do a static leak test. The house failed the test. I then called AHS to send a technician out to do the test again so I can move forward with identifying where the leak was and then work to get it fixed. So AHS schedules ARS Rescue Router to come out. the technician shows up – I show him that I failed the test. He says AHS won’t cover it … but he’ll call just to be sure. He sits in his trucks, smokes a cigarette and talks on he phone, comes back and tells me AHS won’t cover it AND that he still needs 60 bucks. Seriously. So I call AHS and asked what the deal was – and they tell me the technician didn’t think it needed to be done but if I wanted to pay ANOTHER $60 I could have another technician come out and “diagnose the problem” – translation, come out for $60 and not do the test. OH – and the ARS Recue Router guy – he gave me an estimate to have a static leak test done by him … BOTH AHS and ARS rescue router are terrible scamming cheating companies and I suggest you stay as far away from them as you can.
I had a problem with my heat system. They send a company who came and was on the phone for 2 1/2 hrs(United Air in VA helping one of his workers who was working in another job). Finally, I said to him “Sir: I have to go back to work”. He gave some report to the ASH and left. I complained to the ASH about his report and didn’t accept it. They send another company for 2nd opinion. They checked it and the unit needed some repair. ASH called the owner of the 2nd company. He (Tony) called me and said, “I have to come and check the unit myself and repeated all the things the 1st company reported to ASH”. I knew he is coming to give the same report as the 1st company gave to ASH, because ASH asked him to do it. Otherwise what was the reason to ask the owner of the company to come and check it when his worker already check it and reported the problem to ASH. He said exactly what the first company said about the problem This means they send him to tell exactly what the other company said in order to deny and not to fix the problem. Watch this company, don’t waste ur money. I know they had a complain a couple of months ago from a customer who hired a law firm, pls. if u have any information regarding the law firm mail it to me at nshahgol@yahoo.com. DON’T WASTE UR MONEY.
DO not waste ur money. SAVE IT. They do nothing at the time when something goes bad.
My oven has been broken for over 2 months and I found out today that they have had the pArt for over a month. Every time I call I get a different story
SAVE YOUR MONEY FIND ANOTHER COMPANY. I have had this company for 12 years and only ever used them 3 times. Each time they get worse. The last time in January my water heater went out they sent out a company twice that didn’t even work on that brand. After 4 days of no hot water finally had to replace it myself. THIS IS WHAT THEY TRY TO GET YOU TO DO by making you wait until they outlast YOU!!!!!!!!! I will be chaning companies..
American Home Shield Sucks!
Our stove did not work. An electic contractor came out and we paid the $60 fee. He said a wire was loose in the attic and that he fixed it. The stove then worked for about 1 week before it stopped working again. Another contractor came out (we paid the $60 fee) and said that the electical was out of code and improperly wired. AHS denied the claim and we had to pay $500 to fix it ourselves.
Then, the glass top to our stove cracked. We paid another service fee only to have AHS say that the crack was not due to “wear and tear”, thus denying the claim. So we again, had to pay to fix the appliance ourselves.
Save your money! This company is a bunch of hacks… they are in the “Denial” business not in the business of paying for claims when warranted and customer service.
I would suggest those with bad experiences to file a formal complaint with your respective state, as well as witih the BBB.. By law, they will have to formally respond to you. If enough complaints come in, they may be investigated for bad faith.
I first used American Home Shield about 12 years ago, and had a pleasant experience. I continued the service until this past year and saw my satisfaction slip with every experience. I can appreciate the need to make a profit, but when you accept my money for what you ask, don’t scrimp on delivering the agreed services. The repair people sent were bottom-of-the-barrel, not the better appliance services in the area (one drove a Mercedes and was totally clueless). The best repair people sent were the ones where there were only competent service reps available for them to choose from. Their instructions were to continually repair regardless of whether that was the best decision, or not. It takes a completely dead appliance for them to authorize a replacement. Each repair that lasted 30 days, resulted in another Service Call Fee to me. The repair people get aggravated if they continually get called back for work within the 30 day period as they are not paid again. One just decided to lie and say there was nothing really wrong, it was us. When we asked for a 2nd opinion, they told AHS it should have been replaced the first time and the representative sent had no idea what he was talking about. I am looking now for a new Home Warranty company that realizes why people pay them $600-700 in insurance.
We purchased an AHS warranty when we purchased our current home. We went without air conditioning off and on ALL SUMMER (in Kentucky, that’s pretty miserable) because they just kept filling the unit up with freon instead of fixing the condition at the root of the problem.
The customer service agents that we have dealt with (probably 15+ in the one year since we’ve had our home) are not familiar with what is included in the contract. Also, AHS offers several add-ons, one for improper installation which we elected to add on since you never know what you’re getting when you buy a home. We were told by the technicians sent out that it was not included in the warranty, then when we showed them the paperwork, they would not fix it because AHS would not reimburse them. We quite literally had over 5 different HVAC people look at our unit before it was finally fixed.
We did have a plumbing issue in the kitchen, and although we had to wait all weekend to get someone out (AHS’s fault, not the plumber – he came the same day he was contacted), the technician was very professional and timely. He even had the parts with him and fixed it right there.
When we had an issue with out water heater, we also had to wait several days to get someone out, and at one point when we called AHS they had not even filed the claim. This problem actually happened on a few occassions.
We have a baby due this year, and with all the issues with the house last year, we decided that even though it was a pain we would renew so that we would haven’t a new baby and have to worry about finding technicians and several thousand dollar bills if something big happened. Surprise, surprise – when we went online to renew, the system went down. When we called, we were told it was impossible to renew online. Funny, then why do they have a big “Renew online now” button??? We now are unsure as to whether or not we will renew, and are on this website to look at other alternatives.
I have had American Home Shield for the past three years since we purchased this home. At first I was happy with the service, but it seems that each year there is less that is covered and my annual fee continues to increase. I’ve used their services several times, most often for appliance repair. My stove was over 10 years old and needed repairs 4 times in the span of about 8 months. When it started having a chronic issue, it was again repaired, but until it would not work at all, AHS would not agree to replace it. I am currently waiting 4 weeks for a part on my dishwasher and have had a broken washing machine for the past week. The speed with which items are repaired is unacceptable and I feel like they often continue to repair appliances that probably should just be replaced given their age and the number of times they continue to stop working. Additionally, I had an experience with plumber who came out to determine the cause of a leak, cut open my ceiling to diagnose the problem, never located the cause, I later discoved a cracked toilet tank after the plumber had left and not noticed it and handled the replacement myself. AHS sent someone to patch the ceiling where the plumber had ripped out the drywall and the patchwork was done horribly.
This company is difficult to navigate their system when you have a problem. They don’t call back. My heat pump broke a week after I bought the house (warrenty was included with thee home) AMS finally sent another repairman out to look at the problem, he came up with a different reason the unit was broke. AHS denied his claim too. They now claim the problem was pre existing and won’t pay that either. I have the inspection report of the system when i bought the house and all was good. I wouldn’t have bought the house if the heat didn’t work. This has dragged on for almost a month. The warrenty was $800 dollars and it appears I’m going to have to fix it myself. AMS customer service said if I don’t like their answer I can go to their legal department and they gladly gave me their address.
Strategically hire the worst subcontractors that don’t know what they are doing. Actively try to get out of covering a claim. For example, that pool equipment warranty you pay extra for doesn’t cover anything electronic with regard the pool equipment because it is considered a “home management system” under the exlusions section of the contract. Under this theory, no electronic product in your house would be covered. Horrible company – way too many complaints about them to trust.
I found the repair to be done correctly, however, like so many other people I too felt like I had been ripped off. The rep they sent to my home to repair my refridgerator stated that my part needed was because of maintaince and therefore was not covered. We paid them, then AHS told us to stop payment on the check as it should be covered, so we paid the fee to stop the check. Then 24 hours later they call back and said they decided that the repairman was correct and we are responsible to pay the bill. Now they want cash for the job they did.
I have lived in 3 home in the last twenty years and each of them we had AHS on. But this time, I don’t know what is happened to them. I question why I am paying for a warranty that apparently doesn’t cover anything anymore? I did try an alternate company and they were even worse than this one. Is there truly a warranty company out there that is worth it?
AHS sent their people out for a second opinion and charged me. If I had known I would be charged I would have found another service company (not affiliated with AHS) as it is, I called several companies and one person told me that he had done work for AHS and “knows how they operate.” He stated that he would “never work for them again”
We have had numerous difficulties with this company. We had a wrong size air unit placed on our house. Large utility bills! We called for several months letting them know of problems, they never did anything about it. More problems later with the lack of appropriate air getting into the house so we called independent HVAC and found out that the wrong size unit had been installed, even after we had spoken to AHS and the contract provider at the time the unit was to be replaced. We stated that we needed an unit that is appropriate in size for the home we live in. Even so, it did not happen. We called AHS and let them know. They stated it had been too long, even though multiple calls at the time it was put in about the problems, and they refused to correct it.
In addition, we placed a service call in Oct. 2009. Today is Feb. 26, 2010 and after multiple service calls, repeated calls made to the company, I STILL do not have a working correctly refrigerator, stove, oven, OR dishwasher. They seem to pass the buck and not follow through. I had a service provider in my home who did not even look at the appliances, yet made a diagnoses. In addition, when the times have been scheduled, no show! Yesterday I was on hold for over 30 minutes waiting for a service manager who never answered the call. This is not abnormal. It is difficult to get someone who will take care of the problems: ie: many calls to them asking for help with the problem-told many times that it was to be referred to customer relations, yet it did not happen until 4 1/2 months after the order was placed. Very poor response.
Very difficult to even list all the problems that have happened with this company. We actually did not call AHS for some repairs, instead we called other service providers if the cost was not too high rather than dealing with the difficulties that seem to be prevalent with their company.
Customer Service: If there was a 0, I would definately place it in. I do not normally place reviews on the web, however, I feel that this needs known. Shop around before purchasing your home warranty company.
They do not willingly replace something if it is more than a few dollars-hard to get follow through.
This is a scam! I’m telling you do not to purchase American Home Shield. We’ve been going round and round with them for the past 3 months trying to fix our oven. They send out the Apex appliance repair people from St. Pete, who are incompetent. We’ve lost 4 or 5 days work over this waiting for the repair people. When they do show up, it always the wrong part or the part doesn’t work. Then they go back and reorder the part, again! They are never going to fix the oven. They just want the money. We would have ½ the dollars to replace the oven if we hadn’t signed on with AHS.
Don’t bother – Horrible experience! I’ve had a leaking refrigerator for 3 days. I had 2 appointments, both cancelled at the end of the day. This is not the first time this has happened. After 3 days of waiting, I have over $2000.00 worth of damage to my hardwood floors that’s not covered by AHS. All I want to do is buy another refrigerator, but I have to wait until a service person comes and looks at the refrigerator to purchase a new one. For all of you looking for a warranty company – Don’t bother with this one. This is the second time I’ve had to deal with a problem. Both times have been a pain in the butt. It’s not worth it!
Each time I had a problem they found a reason to exclude or not pay for it. The first time was when my basement was flooded from a busted plumbing pipe. They said it was not covered so I called my home owner’s insurance which of course covered it in full. The second time was my kitchen plumbing was leaking and they said it was not covered. The third time was my washing machine that had been serviced regularly, and this time they did not even send someone to look at it. For half of what I pay in my home owner’s insurance which has covered me for a roof replacement and full damage repair for the flood, AHS has provided me with nothing but excuses for not covering me. They are an absolutely unethical company that should be stopped from conducting business as a home warranty company.
I had this service for about 5 years, but I am deciding to switch. It is true that AHS did replace a few “big ticket” items in my home over the past 5 years, namely, the air conditioner and water heater, as well as a burst pipe repair. So overall, it was worth it for me. BUT… On practically every call you can count on the fact that you need to dedicate the whole day to wait for the service person. That wouldn’t be too bad…
What is the most annoying part is that I swear that those service contractors are trained to come up with some ridiculous excuses to deny the service / replacement on the first visit. In almost all my dealings with AHS, the first contractor would deny the service due to either some fictional “code violation” or “maintenance issue” or “improper installation”. Only shouting on the phone with AHS and demanding a 2nd contractor (and wasting another day at home), who would come in and perfectly agree to repair / replace whatever it was that the first contractor found “unacceptable”. Thus, I believe that there is an operating procedure in place whereby AHS “tries their luck” in denying the service first, counting on people getting peeved with them and not asking for the second visit. And that I find unacceptable.
I’ve had AHS on several properties for serveral years. They’re great for emergency plumbing services & the like but they are horrible at resolving issues with major fixes. And good luck with them every replacing a broken system with like or better than original parts. I woouldn’t wish AHS on my worse enemy.
My oven has been broken since October (5 months). We have had approximately 9 visits by two separate contractors. The last contractor, after visiting 3 times said we need a new oven as it it not fixable and would tell AHS. Today I called AHS and they have decided to try for another contractor. It is unclear if we have any rights from not having access to an oven for all these months but it has cost us a lot of money and limited our options in food preparation. I am unsure what sort of business decision they are taking with just continually sending contractors and I am yet to have an oven that works. On the phone they are usually very kind, polite, and understanding. However they have never followed through on a promise to call me back and it has become somewhat hopeless that anything will be done to fix our oven. Needless to say I am not impressed with their ability to fix this or the lack of capacity to elevate long standing problems to a manager.
stay away from this company. Have been with them for 15 years and cant terminate my contract with them fast enough. Customer service SUCKS/ oh they answere the phone and are polite and condenscending and WILL CALL YOU BACK YEAH RIGHT There is NO FOLLOW up on their part to any action they say they will do. ie “will call the tech and have him call you”!! Two days later still no contact, so now have to start the ball rolling all over again with a new CS (am on my 6th customer service rep) and all of this to get a part for my heat exchanger (no heat since Dec 20, 2009)
Can’t believe all the temper tantrums by adults–Been an AHS contractor since they were based in Ca over 20 years ago- As far as Home Warranty Companies they are the best..Alsways find it humorous to hear name calling
I am so glad I read all these reviews. I contacted American Home Shield because they were rated as being one of three top home warranty companys. Makes me wonder says who??? Now it also makes me wonder about the other two. I guess I will just check them all out to see how many complaints they have and if its really worth the trouble you go through to get anything fixed. I don’t want the hassel. At least if you pay out of pocket you don’t have all the hassels and I would rather just spend the money rather than deal with a bunch of crooks! Thank all of you for saving me a bunch of grief.
I have had this company for 3 years now and have had to make 2 claims with them. The first claim was denied. The 2nd claim was also denied. The 2nd claim was due to a failure of a control panel on my heater. This is a solid state piece of equipment. NO MOVING PARTS. The reason for the denial was failure to maintain. This is like maintaining a battery! Completely insane! Then I am told the contractor sent pictures of my heater. I was in the presence of the contractor the entire time and never saw him take any pictures, even with his phone (which never left the case).
I am dumping them today. Do not trust them. They are liars.