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: 626 Rate this Company!
Service Timeliness
Repair/Replacement Service
Overall Rating
Total Reviews: 626 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: « 26 [25] 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 … 1 » Show All
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I have been trying for 4 years(April 2006) to have AHS correct a problem THEIR CONTRACTOR caused. Climate Doctor replaced the furnace and charged me an additional $465.00 to bring the new unit up to State/County Code.
The unit has not responded to the thermostat since it was installed.
My Heating and Air Service Co. Mitch Wright Heating and Air advises that the unit was installed improperly and the type of unit should not have been installed as the wind causes the unit to shut down. I have spoken to lead rep. Delfine Brown who keeps saying that it is not the responsibility of AHS. I do not think this company should be allowed to operate in such a poor manner.
This summer(July 2009)I had to wait 7 day’s for a air condition vendor of AHS to install a simple switch. Terrible service indeed. How they keep their license to sell this service should really be in question.
30
Cost of repairs and calls continues to skyrocket. Because of this, I am looking for another company. I think that long time customers should get a discount.
service is poor. their technicians find ways to classify repairs out of warranty scope. I had a water heater t&p valbe broken. called their service. Their technician instead of repairing the t&p valve, wanted to add thermal expansion chamber and charge me another $200. AHS denied the repair. I refused tech for unneccessary repair for $200. I went to home depot, got the valve for $18 and repaired myself. I feel terrible that I had to pay the technician $60 visit fee just to tell me that I need some unnecessary items. It appears that AHS techs want to make more money by suggesting to do additional things. I decided AHS is not worth it and did not renew the contract.
I have four contracts with this company and have decided, after several years with them, the headache and pain it has cost me to constantly fight with them over the lack of customer service and the lack of timeliness of any repairs, that I must change to another company. That is why I am on this site looking for another company.
I have only used them a handful number of times since I have had these contracts, and every time has been an uphill battle to get something done. At this moment, I am fighting them about a hot water heater that went out and flooded the first floor at one home, and I am still waiting on someone to decide to show up at another home to look at my wash machine.
I pay for a service, yet the service is never rendered in a timely manner.
Worst Experience I can Remember in recent history. This company really does bite the big one. The first person they sent out to fix my heater didn’t fix the problem, and lied to my face and he didn’t know what he was doing. The second guy they sent out was a second opition, and the guy made me feel that he didn’t understand the problem. He told me he fixed the yellow flame problem, and when I asked him if I could look myself, I knew something was up. I looked and saw that the yellow frome was still there as before. AHS charged me for the second opinion guy even tho the second opinion guy didn’t charge me. I was led to beleive there would be no charge because of the treatment I received from the first guy. Im still stuck with a heater with a yellow flame which leads to sooting. The heater guy that AHS sent out to me, said that they dont clean the air duct. Secondly, AHS said that they show a bill owing that was past due even though they didn’t send that bill out to me. Also, I was not informed of the charges before service was provided. I knew there was going to be a charge but they didn’t tell me how much. I cancelled the contract, and they are going to pro-rate it. I RECOMMEND TO ANYONE THAT AT THE FIRST SIGN THAT YOU ARE BEING LIED TO BY ANYONE DITCH AHS.
[...] company will cover only heating and cooling appliances. Most of the home warranty companies such as American Home Shield offer a blanket policy covering many other appliances in the home. This program is unusual, [...]
“Bad, Poor, Pathetic, Horrible” are words to use when referring to AHS. But somehow they are worse and beyond these words. Called to have water heater repaired or replaced on 27 Jan 10. There was a big bulge in the side, seam coming apart and wet to the touch with goo coming out. They sent a crooked plumber to do their crooked bidding. The plumber said stuff like…that looks funny…it’s going to blow…it needs to be replaced. BUT, since it wasn’t leaking on the floor and/or didn’t explode in his presence I guess…AHS said not to replace it and they called it “Not Leaking”. But wait, he offered to replace it at a cost to me and offered a deal. What? I complained to AHS and the first call back from them they told me that if it was mechanically working ok then they couldn’t change it. What? The crooked lady that called me today, 2 Feb 10, said it wasn’t leaking…what? Did she see it? I did offer to send pictures. We had another plumber come out within 30 minutes of the AHS plumber on 27 Jan 10. They said it needed to be replaced immediately and were surprised AHS didn’t consider it an emergency. In short, we had to hire that other company to come out to replace it and we were without hot water in our home for a few days. This was all last week…now AHS just calls back today, a week later, to see if they can send someone else. I told them in my complaint when they said his assessment was good for 60 days that it wouldn’t last the weekend. Hello!!! We have had some good home warranties in the past and thought all were equal, they are not. AHS is just bad, bad, bad. I implore you to not do business with this company. Unless you like frustration and being taken for your money…don’t use this company.
Terrible service, terrible contractors. We been in our home for 5 years and have had heating and air issues every year. My story is too long to post, but simply put, we were without ac for 2 weeks in July (and we live in the south), our child was 18 months old at the time, we basically had to move out for 2 weeks because AHS would not get our part expedited, it took 7 days for a compressor to get here from Iowa…I could have driven to Iowa and back in 24 hours and picked up the part myself.
They are terrible and we are switching this year after being a customer of AHS for 4 years.
Run away!!
36 hours for a call back on emergency heat issue. Waited 72 hrs for replacement of expansion tank. This is not rocket science. I could pick up a small expansion tank locally and had it done in 2 hrs.
Poor service all around from AHS. I cancelled my policy.
3 Jan – Called to put in service request for plumbing, I had to shut off plumbing until problem gets fixed.
5 Jan – No call back from AHS, I called back and they said they’ll put in another service request through Simensen.
8 Jan – No call back. I called Simensen (Simensen is a good honest company, btw), they said AHS called them and asked if a plumber was available, but never placed a work order. I called AHS back and they said they haven’t been able to find a service company yet. AHS said they’ll call me back within the next hour to update me on the status; never got a call back.
9 Jan – Called Simensen, I placed an after hours work order with the friendly receptionist. She stated that somebody will give me a call on Monday.
11 Jan – Got call back from Simensen, addressed that they will have my water running again by Wednesday. I called back AHS to submit my work order number, they fed me more complications that this is a ‘duplicate work order,’ and ‘may not be covered if duplicate.’
Simensen Plumbing did a great job servicing my needs, but not AHS. Home Warranty companies serve two main purposes, to make it convenient for me to have work orders placed and to serve as a semi-insurance policy for repairs. AHS never put in a work order and lied to me on multiple occasions about the status of my order. Each telephone representative gave me a different story why the order wasn’t placed and were clearly lies. AHS lacked integrity and behind closed doors, they are not there for their customers.
I’m currently on the phone with them still on hold for the past 30 minutes, listening to their recording say they “care about our customers” and “your call is important to us;” yea right. This isn’t my first time I’ve had a problem with AHS. I’m actually calling to cancel my service and switch to another company which has good reviews, from what I’ve read.
To all who plan on buying a home warranty plan, I reccomend you do a thorough review on the company as all companies are different in some way. I failed to do that before I purchased AHS. Now, spending $60 for my deductable doesn’t compare to losing water for 10 days. I’m not commenting on the repair service since that was done through another company.
AHS is the Worst Home Warranty Company EVER!. When I called to reimburse my claim, AHS told me ‘Claims’ Department don’t have Phone number and all the correspondense is only thru mail or email, Which is Horrible, AND I HAVE TO HOLD FOR 70 MINUTES JUST TO TALK TO SOMEONE. Secondly when I called to cancel my Contract, I was hold for 75 minutes just to cancel my contract. The customer service is the WORST EVER!. They only repeat what ever wsa tought to them and they dont have any real solutions. I am going to try someother service company and see how that is. BUT FOR SURE DO NOT GO WITH ‘AHS’.
Extremely dissatisfied. The “fine print” requires you to be a service provider (plumber, HVAC, etc.) to understand. They refused coverage on having my plumbing snaked because there was no outside access. I live in a 100 yr. old house; they didn’t make outside plumbing access back then. But since it’s in the fine print, I’m now out $900. I’m canceling my contract with AHS.
I was with AHS for over 10 years. They started out great then went to the dogs. I had trouble with my dishwasher. Repairman came out and said nothing was wrong with the washer despite I told him I heard a loud noise come from the dishwasher. He assured me it was okay to use. I continued to use my dishwasher. After a while, I started to see my floor turn dark. I called AHS to come out to check the dishwasher again. They did not respond for several weeks. They finally came out and said it was the plumbing behind the wall. The repairman said it would possibly be covered. I called and requested a repairman come out. Again, several weeks had gone by before a response. When I told them damage had occured to my floor, they immediately sent someone out and said that the plumbing was installed improperly so they denied the claim. I requested a second opinion and the repairman consulted with the first repair company and then he came up with the same diagnosis. When I asked a representative, they advised the 2nd repairman was suppose to do an independent diagnostic exam of the problem. When I assured the representative the repairman was on the phone at my home with the other repair company, the representative said it was nothing they could do. When I asked if I could have an independent plumber come out and assess, the representative advised they could not use any company outside of the ones they contracted with. When I stated the second opinion was biased, the representative said it was nothing they could do. I asked to speak to a manager and the representative blew me off saying there was no manager on duty. I also had a pending dryer claim because the repairman said the dryer could not be fixed. They refused to fix or replace my dryer because I advised I was not paying a $60 service fee for a biased opinion.
If you are looking to invest in a home warranty, look somewhere else. The “customer service” reps are little more than robots trained to say the exact same thing over and over. I have been waiting over a month for my microwave to be repaired. This is a new model and the part is readily available. I have contacted the company five times and three of the times they said they would call me back and they never did. It is sad when you purchase a warranty in order to feel protected against unforeseen break-downs and you feel like you are being scammed by the ones you trusted to protect you. Do your homework BEFORE you trust in this company!
they take your money but when something happens they send repairmen who don”t know what there doing or they find away out so they do not have to replace the item and your stuck payiny for it. rip off we need to get together and fight them take them to court.
I have been with AHS for almost 18 years and have always had problems but this time has been the worst. I put a work order in on 6 Jan 10 and now have been without heat for nearly a month. Same as everyone else, I have been told the company that make my unit has gone out of business and that they would have to do a national search for the part before AHS would consider replacing the unit. As for someone in charge of AHS forget it the MANAGEMENT of this company are bunch of idiots they don’t return phone calls and when customer service asks if you would like to have a manager call you back it won’t happen. The CEOs or who every runs this company should be slapped just for existing on this earth. THey are useless people, my recommendation would be to get a new company as quick as you can. I do know now that I will not renew my insurance with this company when it is due in June.
This is the WORST home warranty company. My experience is as follows:
1) Customer Service reps are rude, uninformed on policy and purposely speak a canned script over and over again. Do not listen to the issue but continue to drone on and on from a canned speech.
2) They do not vet their contractors well if at all. I’ve repeatedly told AHS that the plumber and electrican they’ve sent to my home were not reliable and have done damage to my home, but they refuse to do anything about removing them from their contractor network.
3) Raise monthly premiums annually. AHS has a habit of raising premiums on an annual basis if you actually have anything replaced (which takes an act of God to prove)
I would encourage anyone researching a home warranty company to look elsewhere.
Our oven quit working 2 days before Christmas and a service repair person came in a timely manner. After inspecting the oven he informed us that it needed 2 parts to be repaired. The part order had to be obtained by AHS and we told that a national search would be conducted to find the right part. After two weeks of waiting we were informed that our oven was no longer being manufactured and parts were not available. We were told that we needed to wait to be approved for a replacement oven. AHS tried to give us a oven that was inferior to the professional model we had purchased and we declined and demanded an oven of equal value. After waiting another 10 days, we were informed that we would be allowed up to $4999 for replacement costs. We went to the dealer where we had purchased our original oven and found a comparable oven for $5400. I called AHS and requested that they cut a check to the appliance dealer and I would make up the difference. They refused and told me that the only way I could be reimbursed was if I paid for the entire oven and then they would reimburse me the $4999. I asked to speak to a manager and was told they were unavailable but someone would call be that same day to discuss the issue. No manager called as promised, which is in keeping with our previous experience with the company.
I got a bid from the dealer and headed home. On the way home as my wife drove, I used my I-Phone and entered my oven’s name into Goggle and did a search. Within a half an hour, I had contacted the manufacturer (they were in business using a different name) and was assured that the parts were available to repair my oven. I also learned that the the most expensive parts had a life-time warranty and the parts would be provided and shipped to my home at no charge. The charges for the other parts not under warranty was $190.
I called AHS and informed them that I had easily found the manufactures and arranged for the needed parts to be delivered. I requested that if they sent the service person back to my home to repair my oven and reimburse me for the parts, and I would consider the matter settled.
AHS informed me that they could not reimburse me for the parts since their contact does not allowed insured parties to get their own parts. I was told that I needed to wait for the service person to be approved by their parts and services department. I had saved AHS $4779 and they were still trying to avoid taking care of the expenses of $200.
We have not had a working oven for nearly 5 weeks, (it is now the end of January) I am not convinced that they were really sincere in their efforts to resolve this issue by the tactics they used to stonewall us from getting resolution in having the matter settled. We kept getting sent to various departments who needed to do some minor part of the process of getting the oven repaired or replaced. They promised to call back and didn’t and wouldn’t give us the full name of any person who could see this repair or replacement through.
I am still waiting to for the phone call to have the service person authorized to repair my oven. I will probably have to go to court and report them to business and regulatory agencies before I feel finished with this company. They do not appear to be honest in their dealings with people. How else do you explain that I was able to find a solution for the oven within 30 minutes after waiting for AHS for 30+ days.
Same story as all i have read above, heat went out it is now 4 weeks ago ( in january ) The vendor they sent wont answer his phone, wont call back and has missed a show up appointment 3 times now,( arranged through AHS ). I was so upset over missing work a 3rd time to wait for this vendor when i called AHS i raised my voice to the rep. after hearing the same old story “theres nothing more we can do” The icing on the cake was when i raised my voice the rep raised hers louder and was actually yelling at me over the phone, and told me theres no way she would go without heat for 4 weeks, she would do whatever she had to, than deal with the “consequenses” later. Her meaning was i should go ahead and pay the $1000.00 dollars extra on top of my yearly AHS premium, and service fee. Goodbye AHS. I recommend finding alternate ways to handle repairs in your home, with reputable companies.
Reading reviews are very beneficial. I would advise anyone to use any other warranty company than American Home Shield. They are the worst company I have ever used.
I have been using them for almost 5 years and they never totally fix my problems. It never fails every summer and winter I have to make numerous calls about my AC and heating unit. They only piece things together to get by. Neither unit has yet begun to work properly. I had a guy out yesterday that said he needed to do $80.00 worth of work; when he came out today he had the audacity to say it will be over $850.00.
Please search elsewhere, seriously. I am trying to save you the trouble and money…..
I am completely and totally appalled at your company and service. On one different occasion, you’ve sent contractors to my home who were absolute crooks! In essence what they try to do is stick the homeowner with enough “extras” they say are required to cover their fees for the repair. Case in point, my hot water heater blew, which is covered in my contract with you. The contractor AHS sent out tried to tell me it was in code violation and I would have to pay an additional $905.00 w/out the heater cost for the extras to bring it up to code. Earlier this week I learned I could “cash out” with AHS. What a joke, The contract tried to say that parts included and attached to the water heater needed installation, when they are already installed. Do not use this company, they are making you pay for the water heater and then additional cost. CROOKS
The following is a letter I sent to AHS on January 21, 2010
American Home Shield
To whom it may concern,
I am completely and totally appalled at your company and service. On three different occasions now, you’ve sent contractors to my home who were absolute crooks! I basically paid $60 per contractor to find this out. In essence what they try to do is stick the homeowner with enough “extras” they say are required to cover their fees for the repair. Case in point, my hot water heater blew, which is covered in my contract with you. The contractor AHS sent out tried to tell me since my hot water heater was 18 years old, it was in code violation and I would have to pay an additional $905.00 for the extras to bring it up to code. He also stated the cost of the water heater was $400 and the cost of labor was $400 to install. These amounts ($800) would be covered by AHS. For a grand total of $1,705 to install a 40 gallon water heater. I paid him the $60 and told him to leave. I found another company to install a 50 gal water heater, bring everything up to code for a grand total of $925.00.
Earlier this week I learned I could “cash out” with AHS. What a joke that is. I’m presuming you are going to pay what your contractor told me he was going to charge for the water heater and the labor, $800. Only to find out from AHS you will only pay $425.00 total because AHS buys water heaters in bulk and the contractor is under contract with AHS to only charge a certain amount. So why did your own contractor tell me $800??? I would love to see an invoice where this amount was actually paid to a contractor for this type of work (labor) and another one where you paid such a discounted rate for a comparable water heater!
To summarize, you send out contractors to shaft the homeowners with extras to cover the cost of the repair. You do absolutely nothing to replace the items, but you charge a premium to the homeowner under the pretence of insuring their mechanical and/or appliances but in reality AHS provides nothing more than a glorified referral service. To crooked contractors none the less!
I’ ll make this short and sweet. Stay away! I am with them now and I am leaving asap! They’ ve denied me twice. They don’ t want to spend any money over $200.
I think this home warranty business is a scam. Every time we put in a claim, we have a nice contractor sent out–which is all done very timely and with courtesy. But then the contractor tells us the item is not covered, or the specific part of the repair is not covered, they collect their $60 for their ten minutes of “expert” analysis, and it’s over. I am beginning to think this is a way for contractors to collect some easy money for doing no work at all. I would not renew this policy or recommend it to other homeowners. It’s not a benefit and provides no useful value.