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Old Republic Home Protection

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Houses are a big pain, no doubt about it. Something is always broken, stopped up, leaking or starting to smoke. The idea of a "home warranty" sounds attractive but all too often, the reality is something else, as the complaints in this section show.

Minor appliance repairs can turn into major productions and major repairs are all too often not covered under the "pre-existing condition" clause. So the question is: would you be better off saving the money you'd spend on a warranty and putting it aside to help cover routine maintenance problems?

Henry of Pacheco CA (1/21/03) thinks so:
Their standard plan covers nothing. They won't cover things that can be cleared from your sewer line, they won't cover things that can't be cleared from your sewer line and they won't cover you sewer line at all unless it breaks right under your house.

I'm out three grand to replace the sewer line on the house I just bought, plus carpet cleaning.

Rene of Kenner LA (03/17/09)
i bought my house in October 2008 an got a home warranty through old republic i was told they will cover anything that goes wrong in my house so far I've had 3 problems and they always send a tech to tell me that my problem is pre-existing an is not covered the latest is my ac has gone out and there tech says that it was improperly installed by the previous owner of the house.an they will not cover the 3500.00 cost to repair it.

now we are stuck with a house with no ac in Louisiana and summer is coming soon and I'm out 450 for the fake home warranty 180 for the 3 service calls 400 for plumbing work they would not cover, an a 3500.00 repair i cant afford to pay

Susan of Oklahoma City, OK January 30, 2009

Susan of Oklahoma City OK (01/30/09)
When I bought my home from Century 21 All Pro in October of 2008, my Realitor bragged and bragged about Old Republic Home Warranty Company and strongly encouraged me to purchase a policy, she said she had her Policy with them and went on and on how great they were. I paid 410.00 for the home coverage and an additional 150.00 to cover my hot tub.

When a Mechanical failure occured causing the tub to freeze when the temp droped to 17 degrees the tub NO longer held water, kept leaking out, and would not function. I had a company that dealt with hot tubs come and diagnosis the problem. In their letter they said that freezing caused damage. Hot Tubs do NOT freeze on their own. There has to be an equipment failure to enable any hot tub to freeze. Old Republic to date has denied the clain because they said they do NOT cover Freezing, only equipment failure.

The Hot Tub facility that made the diganosis told them that in order for the damage to have occured there had to have been an equipment failure and or a mechanical failure, or power failure and or surge to have done/caused what happened. In addition to a verbal report I have sent to Old Republic written documentation.

I had back surgery July 2008 and the use of the Hot Tub helps me with my pain and movement. I can NOT afford over 5000 dollars to buy a new hot tub. The repair costs are estimated at 2,900. Old Republic wont honor the claim because they say they do not cover Freezing, only equipment failure. I have tried unsucessfuly to try reasonable communication. A Hot Tub can NOT, and does NOT freeze on it own, it takes a mechanical failure for that to occur. What can I do if anything to encourage them to honor my claim.

Todd of Glendale, AZ January 6, 2009

Todd of Glendale AZ (01/06/09)
I have had my downstairs A/C charged 3 times and no one will look for the leak when it's 115 outside. Now it's cold and my heat doesn't work yet they won't call me back.

Very hot inside the house during summer and freezing cold in the winter. Electric bill skyrocketed because the unit just runs and doesn't cool or heat when it's supposed to.

Tiffany of Chester, SC December 19, 2008

Tiffany of Chester SC (12/19/08)
We purchased our home in September 2008. Our upstairs heater went out in mid November 2008 and at the same time, we discovered that we have a block in our sewage. The company wouldn't cover the sewage, but the first lady that I spoke to, Rita said that they cover everything on HVAC and I should have no problems. We received a call from the authorization department letting us know that they didn't have a local contractor so we would need to choose one on our own.

We chose the first contractor he came over and diagnosed the problem and said we needed a new system and some of our ductwork needed to be replaced. It took two weeks to receive an answer from the company letting us know that even though the repairs were covered, he was charging too much for them and we needed to get a second opinion at our expense. We did that.

The second technician said that if he doesn't replace everything he would have to put in new returns and a filter box and a few other things. It would be cheaper and still work. And it was cheaper - 1500 cheaper. It has now been a week and a half and we have talked to several people. None of them keep accurate notes so every time that I talk to them I have to re-tell the story.

Finally I got through to a supervisor, Rebecca. Rebecca assured me that she would take care of me. Well, Rebecca will not return my call after two days of leaving messages. I called her supervisor Jimmy who has a message on his voicemail saying he will be out until Dcember 11th. I have tried to reach him from December 16th until the 19th with no progress. I spoke with Demar today who is now saying that only 300 of the 3264 will likely be covered. But, he will call me back to confirm.

Because they cover a whole new unit and new ductwork but not the other things that would fix it the cheaper way! I asked him to have the supervisor call me back today - she gets in an hour later then her voicemail says.

I am pregnant and I have a two year old and we have had no heat for almost a month. Not to mention the stress from calling them EVERY day and the time and effort taken away from my work to do this.

Marty of Clarksville, TN December 16, 2008

Marty of Clarksville TN (12/16/08)
My family moved into a new house on December 5, 2008. Less than a week later, on December 11, our heat stopped working. I did preliminary troubleshooting...checked breakers, all connections, etc, and nothing appeared out of the ordinary. I called in my repair request the following day day. Five days after the heat quit, a repair person showed up. They did some diagnostics, but I question their diagnostics. They reported the combustion fan had seized up, which prevented the furnace from starting. The fan can be turned by hand, it's certainly not seized up.

I asked if voltage was getting to the fan, they said it was, but the motor wouldn't start. Later, I checked behind them after I thought about it more. There was voltage all the way to the relay, but no further. I reported this to the heating company, but I might as well talk to the wall. The repair guy mentioned the warranty, so he knew in advance. I'm certain they're working together with contractors to milk money from the consumer. Meanwhile, I've sat through two bouts of cold weather trying to keep my kids warm. My repairs are still pending, but I would not recommend Old Republic Home Warranty based on my quick-gained education.

Temps in the 20s, no heat, kids are cold, and I'll probably be calling Old Republic to get a plumber to fix frozen pipes.

Tim of Madison, TN December 11, 2008

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