1. Profits from the sale of extended warranties are substantial and most owners will never require enough service to justify the cost of the contract. Paying $5,000 upfront to cover a repair that costs $500 three years later is not a wise investment.

2. Warranties are not universally accepted and some dealers that sell one brand of policy will not accept coverage under another brand of policy.

3. Policies are carefully worded and are intended to be exempt themselves from the most costly types of repairs. Contracts are written to maximize denials.

4. It is essential that both the owner and any service manager make themselves aware of the wording and clauses in any extended warranty contract. The use of any word in the exemption clause, stated during a request for coverage, will automatically result in a denial of coverage.

5. Despite claims by those selling extended warranties, there is little evidence to support claims an extended warranty is helpful in selling a unit, when it comes time to move up.

6. In many cases, the person at the other end of the line when a claim is called in may be nothing more than a clerical employee with no knowledge of RV technology or repair.

If you decide to purchase an extended warranty, read it carefully. When you purchase an extended warranty, you are simply placing a bet you will need more service at some date in the future than the contract costs at the time of purchase. If that were the case for many owners, warranty carriers would go broke. They are, in fact, proliferating. Think about it!