Home Warranty of America Review for 2024

Company Overview

Home Warranty of America was established in 1996 and is well-known in the home warranty industry. The company operates nationally and offers home warranty coverage nationwide, unlike other home warranty companies that offer only regional coverage.

HWA was acquired by Direct Energy in 2012. Direct Energy is a major competitive energy services company in North America. In 2022, certain assets were bought by Choice Home Warranty, which is headquartered in New Jersey, though Choice continues to operate Home Warranty of America as a stand-alone brand. Home Warranty of America is a member of the National Home Service Contract Association.

Home Warranty of America is upfront about fees and has made a sample contract available on its website, which many home warranty customers value. However, Home Warranty of America pricing tends to have higher fees compared to similar services.

States Covered

Home Warranty of America is available in all 50 states, plus Washington, D.C. Services in California are issued and offered by Home Service Club of California, Inc.

Considering that 47% of our 538 survey respondents said that coverage and support were the most important aspects of a home warranty, the fact that Home Warranty of America covers every state is an advantage.

Available Plans

Home Warranty of America offers two base home warranty plans throughout the United States.

• Premier Plan covers basic components and parts for many major appliances and systems but leaves out air conditioning/cooling.
• Premier Plus Plan extends coverage to air conditioning and additional items not covered in the Premier Plan. For example, if you have a dishwasher issue, Premier Plus would cover racks, baskets, rollers, and door seals, while Premier would not.

Trade fees vary by plan and by state, but start at $75.

Both plans also cover parts and components for the following (with some limitations):

• Whirlpool bathtub
• Electrical system
• Ductwork
• Permanent sump pump
• Doorbell
• Ceiling fans and exhaust fans
• Central vacuum
• Burglar and fire alarm systems
• Garbage disposal
• Refrigerator with icemaker
• Washing machine
• Dryer

Optional Coverage

You can purchase additional coverage for items that aren't included in the regular plan. This includes: 

• In-ground or built-in pool or spa
• Saltwater pool equipment
• Well pump
• Additional refrigerator
• Additional freezer
• Additional ice maker
• Septic tank plumbing
• Water softeners
• Septic system or sewage ejector pump
• SEER standard/R-410 modifications 

Real Estate Plans

Home Warranty of America also offers tiered home warranty plans for real estate professionals. Plans are available for homes under 5,000 square feet and range from $475 to $675 a year depending on state and coverage. People in most states can choose between a Gold, Platinum, and Diamond tier. However, the Platinum tier isn't available in California.

Plan Pricing 

Home Warranty of America has two plans, though it only publishes starting pricing based on plans with a $100 trade call. You can enter your contact and property information to get a quote.

There are two options for paying trade call fees (TCF)—the upfront fee paid to repair services—for each plan. You can choose either a $75 or $100 TCF. Opting for the higher service fee means you'll pay more when a service provider arrives, but the monthly fee will be lower.

Optional Add-Ons

Home Warranty of America's standard plan offers a lot of coverage. As with all home warranty companies, you'll have to pay a little extra if you want coverage for extra appliances or pool equipment. 

Types of Damage Covered

Like most home warranties, Home Warranty of America covers repair or replacement of covered items that become inoperable due to wear and tear. To be eligible, the breakdown must happen after the coverage period starts.

Plan Exclusions

Home Warranty of America covers almost all breakdowns of appliances, home systems, and home features (doorbells, garage door openers, etc.) that occur from normal wear and tear. However, there are a number of exclusions for each covered system. For instance, in a sample contract, doorbell system coverage excludes doorbells associated with intercom systems and battery-operated doorbells.

Because of the number of exclusions, it's important to read your contract thoroughly to understand which items are excluded from your plan.

Payout Caps

Like most home warranty companies, there is a limit to what Home Warranty of America will pay. In a sample contract, the company's aggregate payout is up to $5,000 for each covered system and $15,000 during the coverage period.

Home Warranty of America also sets a payout cap per coverage period for individual covered systems. For instance, there's an aggregate cap of $1,000 on water heater systems and a $400 cap on ceiling fans and exhaust fans. It will only pay for the repair once during the period of coverage. Your policy will detail the exclusions and caps for each system.

While payout caps vary, the amounts are average for the industry on most items and systems that are covered.

Claim Response Times

Customers can schedule a service appointment when submitting a claim online. Otherwise, there's a 24-hour response time if you can't schedule an appointment when you submit a claim.

Customer Service and Claims

Home Warranty of America offers support hours seven days a week. For customer service or to make a claim, you can reach customer service by calling 888-616-9901  or submitting a request through the customer portal. Customer service is available on the following days and times:

• Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. CT
• Saturday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. CT
• Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. CT

To submit a claim over the phone, select menu option 2 when prompted.

Since Home Warranty of America works with a network of service providers, it will attempt to send one of its in-network technicians to perform diagnosis and repair. Otherwise, if it can't locate a technician, you can get your own technician and have them submit a diagnosis for authorization before starting repairs. Coverage limits still apply.

Customer Satisfaction

Home Warranty of America offers fairly standard home warranty policies. Compared to competitors, coverage is comparable, but pricing runs a bit higher. The extra cost won’t necessarily mean a stellar customer service experience, however. 

HWA's customer satisfaction ratings are mediocre. The company is not BBB-accredited. It received a slightly higher 3.7 out of 5 stars on TrustPilot. Complaints left with both the BBB and TrustPilot relate to slow repair times and unresponsive customer service.

Competition: American Home Shield vs. Home Warranty of America

To provide a comparison between Home Warranty of America and the competition, we chose American Home Shield. Both companies provide similar warranties and comparable add-on coverage.

When it comes to the types of coverage the companies offer, American Home Shield and Home Warranty of America are similar. One difference is that Home Warranty of America allows you to choose either a $75 or $100 trade call fee, whereas American Home Shield has $100 or $125 plans.

Both companies let you add coverage for items like pools and spas. American Home Shield's coverage can also be expensive depending on your plan.

Home Warranty of America has the edge when it comes to customer satisfaction, however. While Home Warranty of America has a 3.7-star rating out of 5 on TrustPilot, American Home Shield has 2.2 stars.

The Bottom Line

Though Home Warranty of America offers plans that provide ample coverage, with standard exclusions and payout caps, its plans appear to be more expensive than those offered by its competitors. In addition, for homeowners who prefer to select their own service providers, HWA doesn't allow this option unless its network providers aren't available.

These concerns, in addition to some cautionary customer reviews, may mean Home Warranty of America may not be your best choice. If you are looking for a reasonably priced home warranty plan, there are other options available to explore that could be more cost-effective and customer-friendly.

Is Home Warranty of America Still In Business?

Home Warranty of America is still in business and has been since 1996. In 2022, some of its assets were acquired by Choice Home Warranty, a technology-first home warranty company that is headquartered in New Jersey.

Who Bought Home Warranty of America?

Home Warranty of America was acquired by Direct Energy in 2012. Then, in 2022, certain assets from Home Warranty of America, Inc. were purchased by Choice Home Warranty. Choice Home Warranty continues to operate Home Warranty of America as a separate brand.

How Long Is the Waiting Period for Home Warranty of America?

Home Warranty of America has a 30-day waiting period from the date of your first payment. This coverage lasts 13 months before you will need to renew it.

Does Home Warranty of America Cover AC Replacement?

Coverage for AC replacement is available with Home Warranty of America's Premier Plus Plan. However, there are a number of exclusions, including (but not limited to): gas air conditioning systems, condenser casings, window units, and improperly sized units.

Methodology

Our methodology for reviewing home warranties includes a quantified scoring system that evaluates four major categories: total plan cost, coverage and support, customizability, and transparency.

Within those four categories, we look at 18 core features that include: fees, response times, payout caps, availability, contract length, customizable coverages, flexibility, cancellation, pricing, exclusions, and other provisions available online. We assign fractional score values ranging from 0.00 to 1.00 points for each feature and then weight those feature values according to advice from subject matter experts, and consumer survey importance ranking. 

We also compare features for each company to industry average values determined from our data collection for the top 25 home warranty providers. Third-party ratings and customer satisfaction scores are factored in to help assess a home warranty company’s overall quality, suitability, and value.