LAS VEGAS Customers are criticizing a large home warranty company for failing to fulfill its commitments to repair or replace damaged appliances.
With more than 2.2 million members, American Home Shield (AHS) is one of the top providers of home warranty policies in the US. The publicly traded parent company of the company, Frontdoor, recorded sales of about $1.8 billion in fiscal 2023, up 7% from the previous year. Executives have praised AHS to investors for continuing to hold the category-leading share of warranties connected to house purchases this year.
This is due in part to a recent marketing effort featuring Rachel Dratch, a former cast member of Saturday Night Live, which the business claims has helped raise public knowledge of AHS’s brand from 39% two years ago to 54% today. Dratch portrays Warrantina in the TV ads, a fortune teller who occasionally advises customers to safeguard their protected appliances and home systems against future issues like broken air conditioner fans and leaking refrigerator coils.
However, some clients report that they’ve had trouble getting AHS to address typical problems like those. They claim that the business has not fulfilled its pledge to offer covered repairs for a minimum of 23 household appliances, regardless of their age, condition, or repair history—including those with hidden, pre-existing issues.
When the air conditioner in Julian Sanchez’s Las Vegas house failed in May, he had been a customer of AHS for over three years. He said that after sending a third-party repair expert to examine the damaged 15-year-old device, the company left it in worse condition.
Sanchez, 34, stated, “They took a piece of my air conditioner and left it on the roof.” I anticipated a fast diagnostic and a solution. I received the exact opposite.
Sanchez said that he had always made his full, on-time premium payments, which might total up to $72.99 per month. However, he said that the majority of his daily calls to American Home Shield were not returned, even after being put on hold for more than forty-five minutes. Sanchez claimed that when he eventually got through to a live operator, the individual appeared ignorant and undertrained to handle his demands.
“They have to push it up the chain once you connect with them,” he said. They’ll just keep giving you the runaround.
To stay cool, Sanchez and his 29-year-old wife, Patrician Nunez, spent the most of the days and nights with their five kids on the ground floor of their house. The National Weather Service reports that the Las Vegas region has recorded 112 days above 100 degrees this year, including scorching temperatures this summer.
I anticipated a fast diagnostic and a solution. I received the exact opposite.
Julian Sanchez, a client of AHS
During a tour of the bedrooms upstairs, Sanchez stated that the temperature would typically be in the high nineties to low hundreds.
Nunez continued, “There was no way we could be up there.” Our daughters were unable to sleep in the bedroom, so we would host sleepovers in our living rooms. Simply put, it was just too hot.
Over the next six weeks, further repair technicians were sent out. Sanchez claimed that because the AC system had been disassembled, one person wouldn’t even look at it. Another determined that foreign debris, not the typical wear and tear covered by his contract, was the cause of the damage.
Alexander Bachuwa, a consumer rights lawyer in New York, stated that AHS frequently responds in such way.
Bachuwa, who has submitted at least 50 claims and earned over $44,000 for American Home Shield customers in the past few years, stated, “Every single case I have is the same: They come out there, they diagnose the problem, and they say, Not normal wear and tear.” They’ll do everything it takes to refute your claim.
According to AHS, the right coverage decision was made following three independent inspections of Sanchez’s air conditioner.
According to a company representative, AHS takes great satisfaction in offering our members high-quality protection and service. Between January 2022 and September 2024, the agency processed over 319,000 service requests in the Las Vegas area and disbursed over $56 million. We regret that Mr. Sanchez’s expectations were not fulfilled.
According to AHS, it offered to fix Sanchez’s air conditioner for free after returning a $125 service charge as an accommodation. Sanchez said no. Rather, he is collaborating with Bachuwa to advocate for a complete replacement of his unit, which is expected to cost at least $12,000. Sanchez claims that when he first filed his claim, the system could have been fixed for a much less money.
In each and every one of my cases, they arrive, identify the issue, and state that it is not typical wear and tear.
Lawyer for consumer rights Alexander Bachuwa
The only options available to many dissatisfied consumers are to file an arbitration claim or pursue a lawsuit in small claims court. According to the terms and circumstances of AHS’s contract, there are no class actions; instead, each customer must submit a claim on their own, Bachuwa stated.
The Better Business Bureau’s website, which lists almost 21,000 complaints against AHS over the last three years, gives the company a rating of two stars out of five. Melanie McGovern, a BBB spokesman, advised potential clients of home warranty companies to carefully consider their choices before signing a contract.
According to her, the most important thing for customers to do is read the entire contract. Before making a purchase, you should read the reviews, check the complaint statistics, and understand what it does and does not cover. Has the business replied? Have they resolved everything?
Sanchez stated that he wants AHS to reevaluate what it considers to be typical wear and tear on common appliances and to give consumers’ complaints more consideration in the interim.
It’s not just me, so I hope they take the time to listen to people, he said. Many families are being placed in extremely difficult circumstances.
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