It’s not always easy to tell whether or not a home warranty company is trustworthy, especially when the company is new to the market. Most new companies will try to build a good reputation for themselves by delivering service in a timely manner and following the contract terms. Some new companies, however, are overwhelmed by unexpected challenges associated with running a home warranty business – like a shortage of contractors, for example. As a result, they fall behind schedule and don’t honor their contracts, leaving many customers unhappy.

These companies keep signing up new customers and promising them services they cannot deliver. Eventually, they close without any prior notice, leaving the customers with unfulfilled contracts and no reimbursement. One of these companies was the ironically named Endurance Home Warranty.

The Red Flags

Established in 2017 in Wilmington, Delaware, Endurance Home Warranty offered services in all 50 states + DC, which was impressive for a newly-founded company. Their nationwide availability put Endurance Home Warranty at the same tier as the best home warranty companies. However, upon looking closely at the company’s operations, it was impossible to miss the many red flags that warned the customers about the Endurance Home Warranty scam. Read on to learn about common warning signs to look out for when shopping for a home warranty.

• Ratings and Accreditation

Endurance Home Warranty company offered coverage for major home systems and appliances, to meet the various demands of its customers. Since they were providing very reasonable premiums along with low deductibles, the company was quite competitive. Endurance Home Warranty had managed to get high ratings on Google Reviews, but was not accredited by the BBB, and had very limited reviews, if any at all, on other popular consumer reporting sites. This should be a red flag for those considering signing a contract with a company.

• Limited Means of Communication

Another common warning sign that potential home warranty buyers should consider and that indicated the Endurance Home Warranty scam is a company having limited accessibility and responsiveness to questions. Access to Endurance Home Warranty was quite limited. Representatives were available only via phone. The company did not have any social media presence, which was quite unusual, and no online chat.

When the company closed down in 2019, many upset customers mentioned in their feedback that it was hard to get in touch with the company representatives, either by phone or by email.

• Coverage Terms Violations

In terms of coverage, Endurance Home Warranty did not initially raise any concerns, and pricing seemed very reasonable. The company provided three coverage plans with fairly competitive premiums. However, there were some customer complaints about the company not honoring the contract, which was the biggest Endurance Home Warranty scam red flag. For example, one of the customers had purchased a pool warranty, but the company refused to fix his pool. Other customers had to pay out-of-pocket for the appliance repairs because the company promised to reimburse their expenses, but then never paid them back. Endurance Home Warranty company representatives had told the customers that their checks had been mailed, but the customers never received them.

• Tricky Terms and Conditions

A good sign of a company’s credibility is the transparency of its terms and conditions. Some home warranty providers make this data very easy to access, but others do not make it easy for homeowners to review this information before making a commitment.

Though most of Endurance Home Warranty’s terms and conditions were pretty clear, one big thing that stood out was the lack of information about repair timeframes. As a result, customers had a lot of issues with getting repairs in a timely manner, if getting them at all.

Endurance Home Warranty posted guidelines regarding important issues such as the effective date of the contract and cancellation fees but failed to actually follow their own policies. The company tried to keep up with the industry standards in terms of automatic policy renewal and cancellation, its coverage-effectiveness period, as well as emergency service and re-service availability. However, they were in over their head and customers had a hard time trying to cancel the services and get any reimbursement. Eventually, the company disconnected their phone lines and stopped responding to any emails. The story of the Endurance Home Warranty scam provides us with many examples of red flags to look for when you’re buying a home warranty.