Push back on the warranty pushers

re “Surely there is here an opportunity for a reputable insurer to offer repair insurance for all your domestic appliances at mutually-satisfactory rates”

British Gas already offer this option under the HomeCare plan. Have had many a dishwasher repair and washing machine repair over the years. It is fairly expensive, but I am a happy customer.

Whilst I agree (as said in other conversations) that extended warranties would be beneficial in supporting and promoting good quality manufacturer’s products, cheaper (and maybe less good) products could not be expected to last as long – certainly not 10 years. Either way, some failures would happen within the warranty period, and this would inevitably be at some cost to the manufacturer and passed on to the purchaser.

On the whole, though, as with cars and JLP TVs it’s high time warranties were better-related to expected trouble free life. Better components, quality control and design can achieve this, not necessarily at much extra cost. You would think it would be a “competitive advantage” but maybe it’s a case of who dares make the first move. It took around 100 years with cars.

Fair comment, Malcolm. If we assume that the main reason for failure is amount of use rather than age, an expensive washing machine could come with a warranty covering 10 years or a certain number of hours use. A cheaper machine might have a ten year warranty and half this number of hours use.

We cannot afford to carry on using up finite resources and creating waste at present rates, so consumers should be expecting products to last longer. Obviously that would not be appropriate for products such as phones, where the technology is developing fast and there is a big demand for the latest product, but most domestic appliances don’t really change much. Most faults occur during the warranty period, so I am not convinced that a ten year warranty is impractical, though manufacturers would have to stop using penny pinching and using cheap components, whereby failure of a small part often results in a large appliance being scrapped.

A ten year warranty would save consumers struggling to exercise their rights under the Sale of Goods Act.

Regarding phones, while some need or desirre the latest technology, others (many?) – like me – are quite happy with a phone that makes calls and sends messages. So my 7 year old Nokia does what I need.
One problem with more durable products is that it breaks the replacement cycle that drives industry and provides employment. Washing machines that last twice as long means you only sell half of what you used to – good for the environment but what do the staff and workers that are redundant do? I’m all in favour of durability, but there are economic consequences.

In a world with dwindling resources and mountains of waste, we owe it to future generations to build our appliances last longer. In the UK, we import most domestic appliances, but we could employ many people in doing repairs, and selling second-hand appliances, so the net effect on the economy could well be positive.

What’s wrong with people learning to fix their own appliances, which was common one or two generations ago? I’m still using a 31 year old washing machine that I bought in 1982. It has cost me about £100 in parts during that time. I am keen to keep it because it uses more water than modern machines, so rinsing is effective, and it is hot & cold fill, which is now uncommon in the UK. There is plenty of opportunity to run evening classes in home maintenance, so more employment opportunities.

I share your views on phones. My old Nokia 3510i would last 7-10 days on a charge, but sadly it became unreliable and its replacement manages only half that time. We are not typical, and most people want to replace their phones as soon as their contract ends, if not before. I can relate to that because I am happy to spend £1.5k on a laptop every three years, simply because the technology moves on so fast – unlike most domestic appliances.

I’ve had a gear box, alternator and a turbo fail on a well maintained car . A pump on my dishwasher leaked- pump replacement £350 + labour. Again, not something that could be maintained. These are the sort of items that extended warranties would cover. Even well designed and built products will have failures – the warranty simply spreads the cost of repair amongst all purchasers at a small individual cost and, like all insurance, gives peace of mind.

I have not taken out an extended warranty but if I was offered an extra 8 years cover on a dishwasher for £149, as Malcolm was, I might just be tempted. Likewise, a family with half a dozen kids could benefit from an extended warranty on their washing machine.

Chris, I agree with comments you make in your blog. I have voiced an opinion before that some Which? conversations start with a rather overhyped tabloid-style introduction and an unbalanced appraisal of the situation. They seem to argue that it stimulates the conversation. I feel, however, that some conversations are more important than others – warranties and energy tariffs as examples, particularly when they develop into member polls. It is then vital to give balanced information otherwise the poll is distorted.
There are extended warranties that have merit – as you list. I would not normally take one up but did feel a Miele 10 year dishwasher warranty was worth having.
It would perhaps have been better if Which? listed relevant available warranties,or sites where they were listed, and gave consumers some guidance on the price at which an extended warranty becomes sensible – for example as a % of the purchase price per year.
I look to Which? for information that is not readily available elsewhere, and expect it to be fairly complete and unbiassed. Sometimes they let us down.

Patrick, advice on what a best deal constitutes, and where it might be found is, I thought, one of the objectives of the Consumers’ Association. It would have been helpful to have applied this to extended warranties. I do take your point that the original Which? report focussed on pressure or incorrect selling of warranties and was going to point this out above – except this aspect was not part of the introduction to this conversation.

That is great news. Of course, all suppliers should provide a 10 year warranty on TVs and similar expensive purchases

As far as I know it has been 5 years on John Lewis TVs for a long time – including sale TVs – at no additional cost.

In addition to the five years they offer on TVs John Lewis have also started to offer 2 years guarantee on all electronic and electrical product.

http://extendedwarrantycomparison.co.uk/john-lewis-offer-2-year-guarantee-electronics-electrical-products/