There was a recent discussion about AHS and home warranty service questions and whether the insurance was worth the cost. For some this will only confirm what they thought. A home warranty lawsuit has been filed in Florida and seeks to become a class action. Among the claims:
According to the source, the American Home Shield lawsuit claims that benefits for covered items, including air conditioning units and various appliances, were denied outright or only partially repaired. The partial repair in this home warranty insurance case can also work to the insurance provider's advantage, it is alleged, given that a partial repair will increase the likelihood of a future breakdown, affording the provider an opportunity to charge an additional fee to complete the repair. http://tinyurl.com/7b7l4qz
I found many people wanting a new AC system when it was many years old. It was not the insurance companies job to give them a new unit if the old one could be fixed. ...»
I cannot fathom that a partial repair would lessen the life of an appliance. But normally when a washer or dryer or even some AC systems starts to break down, its pretty much at the end of its life anyway. But is it really the insurance companies job to give them new equipment?
The denial outright I have seen happen, But what they ended up doing in the few that I was aware about was to give them a % of the value of the unit as it stood not working. So most only got a few hundred dollars at best.