Home Warranty Education

Home Warranty Frequently Asked Questions

Whether you’re familiar with home warranties or not, it’s normal to have questions about them if you’re considering purchasing one. However, a home warranty plan doesn’t have to be daunting. At Landmark Home Warranty, we get asked a lot of questions about home warranties. These are the answers to the most frequently asked questions we get!


What is a home warranty?

A home warranty is typically a one-year service contract that covers the repairs or replacements of a home’s major systems and appliances when they break down from normal wear and tear.

How does a home warranty work?

Homeowners pay a yearly or monthly charge for home warranty coverage. When a covered breakdown of a home’s system or appliance occurs, the homeowner pays a small service call fee (normally between $60-$100) for diagnosis. In return, the home warranty company finds a contractor to diagnose and repair the covered breakdown. The home warranty company will repair the covered breakdown, or replace it if it is irreparable, as long as it is covered in the home warranty contract.

Why do I need a home warranty?

Many homeowners choose to purchase a home warranty to help protect their budgets. Systems and appliances don’t last forever, but it’s hard to know when exactly they’ll break down. A home warranty plan can help homeowners feel prepared that when the inevitable does happen, they aren’t caught off guard and neither is their budget. For homeowners who are moving into a new home, a home warranty can ease the stress of having potentially old or worn out appliances unexpectedly break down right after moving into a new home. 

Is there a difference between home insurance and a home warranty?

Many homeowners hear about a home warranty plan and think they already have the coverage it provides with their home insurance. A home warranty plan covers components of many of the systems and appliances within a home, while home insurance usually covers the home’s structure and protects it from flooding, fire, burglary, and so on. A home needs both. You can see more information about the differences between home insurance and a home warranty here.

What does a home warranty cover?

A home warranty plan covers the repairs and replacements of mechanical components of a home’s major systems and appliances. These include a home’s:

  • Air conditioning system
  • Heating system
  • Electrical system
  • Plumbing system
  • Oven
  • Dishwasher
  • Refrigerator
  • Washer and Dryer
  • And more!

If you are purchasing a home warranty from Landmark, our plans have coverage on different appliances, but our highest coverage plans cover the mechanical parts on each of the aforementioned systems and appliances. Of course, the entire system or appliance isn’t covered, so make sure to look through the contract for a full list of what is and is not covered under each plan and system and appliance. You can download a contract here. You can also click on each system or appliance on the compare plans pages of our website to see a detailed list of what is covered, excluded, and any limits. For real estate plans click here. For consumer plans click here.

What does a home warranty not cover?

Home warranty plans do not cover known, pre-existing conditions. If a homeowner purchases a home warranty with a system or appliance that is already broken down, the home warranty plan will not repair or replace it. This is often why home warranty companies require home inspection reports to be filed with the purchase of a home warranty plan. If something is listed in the home inspection plan that was not repaired or replaced before home warranty coverage begins, it is not eligible to have a repair or replacement completed on it through the home warranty. That’s why homeowners should always fix the problems noted on their home inspection report before moving into a new home!

Home warranty plans usually have a list of excluded items that are not covered for each system and appliance under the contract. Some of these items may not be covered because the parts of the item may be extremely difficult to get or need a specialist to repair. You can see the full list of items that are not covered under the Landmark Home Warranty contract by downloading a brochure here. You can also click on each system or appliance on the compare plans pages of our website to see a detailed list of what is covered, excluded and any limits. For real estate plans click here. For consumer plans click here.

What is a limit?

One last item that homeowners may notice by looking through a home warranty contract are limits. These limits may be monetary or just system or appliance specific. They state how much money the home warranty company will pay out as a whole to repair or replace the system or appliance during the contract term. After that limit is reached, the homeowner will have to pay for the rest of the repair or replacement out of pocket. For Landmark Home Warranty plans specifically, not every system or appliance listed in the contract has a limit. You can look through the items that have monetary limits by downloading a contract here. You can also click on each system or appliance on the compare plans pages of our website to see a detailed list of what is covered, excluded and any limits. For real estate plans click here. For consumer plans click here.

How much does a home warranty cost?

A home warranty plan ranges in cost depending on the level of coverage. Improve.net (as of May 2020) says the average cost of a home warranty plan is between For Landmark Home Warranty, plans range between $350 to $600 a year, or $35-$65 a month. Homeowners can customize their plan and add additional coverage for multiple appliances they may have in a home (for a home with two garage door openers, you can add coverage for the second garage door opener, for example) or for less common items like swimming pools or septic systems. These add-ons range in price as well, but they give homeowners the ability to customize their home warranty coverage for the price that best suits them.

How do I open a service request?

If you have a home warranty plan with Landmark and you’re experiencing a breakdown on a covered system or appliance, you can easily open a service request. You can even do it online! All you have to do is log into your online account and click the green “request service” button at the top right-hand corner of your homeowner portal. Then, answer the questions and prompts about the breakdown. You’ll pay your service call fee, and you’ll have opened a service request! You can find our detailed video, infographic and guide on how to open a service request here. You can also give Landmark Home Warranty a call at 866-306-2999 and a customer service representative can assist you in opening a service request. 

What is a service call fee?

A service call fee is the fee you pay for a contractor to diagnose your covered system or appliance. If your breakdown is not covered under the home warranty contract, you still have to pay your service call fee. This fee is normally between $60-$100, but on some plans with pest control, termite coverage may be more expensive at $195 for treatment.

What is the difference between a homeowner plan and a real estate plan?

For Landmark Home Warranty plans in particular, there are a number of differences between plans for homeowners involved in a real estate transaction and those who have lived in their home for longer than 30 days.

Homeowner plans have two plans: the Home Systems plan and the Total Protection plan. The Home Systems plan covers mechanical parts of just the home’s major systems. The Total Protection plan includes everything in the Home Systems plan and adds coverage to all the major home appliances.

The real estate plans are a bit more specific on coverage, with plans offering different varieties of coverage of a home’s systems and appliances. These plans depend on your state and the level of coverage you need for your home.

For homeowners who are purchasing a home, the plans are a bit less expensive. This is because most homes on the market have the major issues with systems and appliances already fixed before being listed. If they don’t, a home inspection should find them and they should be fixed before closing.

For homeowner plans, it’s more likely that the home’s systems and appliances are suffering from wear and tear or are older, so Landmark Home Warranty prices those plans accordingly.

When does home warranty coverage begin?

For real estate plans, home warranty coverage begins the day of closing on your new home. For homeowner plans, there is a 30-day waiting period before you can open a service request.

How do I order a home warranty?

You can order a home warranty plan easily online, or by calling Landmark Home Warranty.

If you’ve purchased your home in the last 30 days, learn how to order a real estate home warranty plan here.

If you’re purchasing a home warranty for a home you’ve lived in for longer than 30 days, you can learn how to order a homeowner plan here.

How do I renew my plan?

If you already have a home warranty plan through Landmark, you can renew online easily or through the phone. You can learn how to renew your plan online with this detailed video, infographic, and step-by-step guide.

Why should I choose Landmark Home Warranty?

The last and most important question: when considering a home warranty plan, why should you choose Landmark Home Warranty as your home warranty company? The answer is simple: we deliver remarkable service every day. It is our motto after all! Not only do we know we have excellent coverage and customer service skills, we have the awards to prove it! We were named the Best Regional Home Warranty from Home Warranty Reviews.com in 2020, which is the fifth time we’ve received the award. In 2019, we were named the Consumer Choice award for Home Warranties from Best Company based on coverage and reviews from real customers. We were also named the 2019 Best Localized Operation from Review Home Warranties. These three most recent awards span a long line of awards we have received in the past, which proves that you can count on Landmark Home Warranty for comprehensive coverage and remarkable service.

Home Warranty Education

Everything you need to know about what a home warranty is, how it works and what it covers. Real estate professionals: use these articles to help your clients!

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