Consumer reports advices that when you buy a major appliance, it is not necessary to buy and extended warranty. They say that most appliances will last 15 to 20 years.

That may have been good advice 25 years ago, but the reality is nothing that you buy is made to last anymore. I work in an applicance store and we have service calls all the time on models 2 and 3 years old, sometimes multiple calls. The problem is that if you are replace an old appliance with something new, although the features are better, the overall quality is not nearly as good as what they just replaced. What happens then is the customers thinks the new appliance will last just as long as the one they replaced. Check with friends and relatives who have bought newer appliances and see what their experiences have been.

When I first got into the electronic service business, the manufacturers sent us to training classes all the time, so when a new model was introduced we had the training and manauls necessary to affect any repairs

Now, not only is there a lack of training but the technology is changing so fast that if your appliance does break, you may have a hard time finding someone who can get it running properly.

I do not endorse any particular program, but some of the benefits that most do offer is unlimited repairs, voltage surge coverage, replacement if the unit can't be fixed.

1. Service calls in our store are $79.50 to come to the home and that doesn't include any parts, it doen't take many of those to pay for the warranty.

2. WIth more and more appliances using electronic control boards, the chances of that board being damaged by lightning or voltage surge are greater than the older models being run by mechanical timers and controls.

Most extended plans cover lightning or voltage surge so if the unit is destroyed the company then has the option to replace it if repairs are costly.

In the case of refrigeration, most plans cover some type of re-imbursement for food loss.