If you want to cover repairs on your car, you don’t want to use just any company. You want to compare coverage from the most reputable extended car warranty companies out there.
We’ve researched the best extended warranty companies and found that Endurance, CARCHEX, autopom!, CarShield, and Protect My Car all have good reputations. Read on to find out why they stood out from the competition, then get free quotes from a few providers to find the best coverage.
In This Review:
- 5 Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
- Why Choose An Extended Car Warranty?
- What To Look For In Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
- Where to Find Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
- Shop Smart And Compare Reliable Warranty Providers
5 Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
All of our choices for reliable extended warranty companies have been in business for more than 10 years and earned a 4.0-star rating or higher from us in the area of industry reputation. Here’s a closer look at our top three picks:
Endurance: Best Coverage
Endurance is our top pick according to reputation, and we also think Endurance has the best extended car warranty program overall. Endurance has been in business for 14 years and offers five levels of coverage applicable to many types of vehicles.
Each plan comes with a free year of Endurance Elite Membership, which provides perks like 24/7 roadside assistance, concierge services, and tire repair/replacement. The company is also a direct warranty provider that administers every plan it sells.
The company does have a C+ rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB), which was based on its advertising practices. However, Endurance worked with the BBB to fix the situation, and its current advertising practices are in line with the BBB’s values.
Endurance also replies to each customer complaint posted on its BBB page. Customer service representatives issue refunds where needed and try to resolve problems with customers. Endurance also conducts internal reviews based on complaints to make sure the same issue doesn’t happen to someone else.
Endurance has a 4.3-star rating from over 700 reviews on Trustpilot. Overall, negative reviews and complaints only account for a small fraction of total customers.
To get a free quote from Endurance, you can get started by using the tool below.
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CARCHEX: Best For Older Vehicles
Some vehicles just keep going for miles and miles. If you passed the 100,000-mile mark years ago, you can probably find coverage with a CARCHEX extended warranty. The company offers five different plans and can cover vehicles up to 250,000 miles. It’s one of our top choices for reputable extended car warranty companies.
CARCHEX has been around for 21 years and is a veteran of the extended warranty world. Its plans are clearly laid out online with easy-to-read sample contracts. The plans are administered by other trusted companies, all of which have ratings of B+ or above on the BBB.
CARCHEX has an A+ rating from the BBB along with accreditation. Like Endurance, it has some complaints, but it has responded to each of them. Also, the company only has about 80 complaints at this time, which is a very low number compared to how many customers it has.
Over 1,300 customers have rated CARCHEX with 3.7 stars on Trustpilot. The company is also endorsed by industry heavyweights like Kelley Blue Book, Edmunds.com, CARFAX, and RepairPal. No company is perfect, but you can be sure a company like CARCHEX will work with you to resolve any issues.
To get a free quote from CARCHEX, check out the button below.
Autopom!: Best Customer Service
Compared to the other two extended warranty companies on our list, autopom! is a relative newcomer. It’s also a bit smaller than CARCHEX and Endurance. However, that doesn’t mean it’s less reliable. In our provider review, we found that autopom! had the Best Customer Service overall.
The company is featured on review sites like Best Company, Trustpilot, Thoroughly Reviewed, TopTenReviews, ConsumerReporting, and more. On Trustpilot, it has a very high rating of 4.7 stars. Autopom! also has an A+ rating with accreditation from the BBB along with a high customer rating of 4.5 stars. There’s only one customer complaint at this time.
Autopom! offers four types of coverage, and each type has multiple contracts. You can view each of these contracts on the company’s website before making a purchase or even calling for a quote.
To get a free quote from autopom!, you can get started by checking out the tool below.
Why Choose An Extended Car Warranty?
Manufacturer warranties are great, but they don’t last forever. To expand your vehicle’s protection, you can get an extended warranty from a number of third-party providers.
Extended car warranties (also called vehicle service contracts or protection plans) can give you peace of mind that a variety of auto repairs are covered. If you experience a repair covered in a contract, you don’t have to worry about paying for a tow truck or dipping into your budget to cover rental car costs.
The warranty company will also handle the claim with the shop and pay the shop directly. All of our recommended warranty providers let drivers go to any repair facility certified by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASEⓇ).
Reputable extended car warranty companies also provide a number of benefits along with whatever repairs the plan covers. Some common perks include:
- 24/7 roadside assistance
- Trip interruption reimbursement
- Rental car reimbursement
A huge benefit of extended warranties is that you can plan out your monthly and yearly budget better. With covered repairs, all you have to do is pay your deductible, if you have one. Many drivers avoid paying for $1,000 or $2,000 repairs out of pocket with an extended warranty.
Lastly, to be an educated shopper, you should also know what extended warranties don’t cover:
- Wear and tear
- Scheduled maintenance like alignments and oil changes
- Preventative maintenance
- Damage from accidents, the environment, or lack of maintenance
- Cosmetic items
- Unauthorized repair costs
What To Look For In Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
Just sifting through warranty expiration notices or advertisements online makes it clear that there are many extended warranty companies out there. But some are definitely better than others. Here are a few techniques you can use to avoid the worst extended auto warranty companies and find reputable providers.
Consider Company Reputation
To check out a company’s reputation, it’s a good idea to head over to its BBB page. Not every company will have a perfect score from the BBB, but the reliable extended car warranty companies will work with the BBB to resolve complaints and fix issues.
Another thing to note is whether the business has accreditation from the BBB. Not all companies participate in this program, since it requires a fee for membership. However, it can be a good marker for companies that care about customers.
Read Responses To Negative Reviews
Any business that has had a significant number of customers will get some negative reviews. This is true for reputable extended car warranty companies, as well. The main thing to notice is whether the customer service team responds to negative reviews and complaints.
If a company doesn’t seem to care about replying and working with unhappy customers, that’s a bad sign. Reputable companies will respond and offer suggestions for a resolution or even offer full refunds on the spot. This goes for reviews and complaints on the BBB as well as Trustpilot, which is another spot where people leave independent company reviews.
Look For Clarity And Honesty
Another big thing to notice is if you can find sample contracts online. You should be able to read an entire contract before you make a purchase. If a company will only send you a contract after you purchase the plan, that’s not a good thing.
Reputable extended car warranty providers are upfront about what their plans do and do not cover. Customer service representatives should also be able to explain the pros and cons of their warranties without exaggerating the benefits. No warranty covers everything, so no reputable company would make that promise.
Where To Find Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
Top providers offer coverage options for drivers in any state (though some don’t cover California). The best place to find them is actually online, and not through a dealership. Aftermarket dealership warranties may or may not be reliable, but you don’t have much time to figure that out when faced with a purchase decision when you’re buying a vehicle.
You can use auto industry review sites (like this one) to locate reputable providers, or resources like Consumer Reports. Good extended warranty companies are out there, and you can find them if you know where to look.
Once you get a few new or used car warranty quotes, you’ll see what prices and monthly payments are available to you. In our research, we found that a good price for an extended car warranty is between $340 and $700 per year of coverage. For example, a four-year plan could cost between $1,500 and $2,500, depending on the contract and your car’s make, model, and mileage.
Shop Smart And Compare Reliable Warranty Providers
Extended car warranties are worth it if you find a reputable provider. Thankfully, there are a number of them out there. We listed our favorites here, and you can’t go wrong with any of them. The best thing to do is get multiple quotes from different reputable providers and compare your options. The more quotes you can get, the better.
Get started with a personalized quote from Endurance.