Blue Ribbon Home Warranty

I have been a Managing Broker/​Owner of a Real Estate Company since 2003. I have had around 6 people over those early years that had a issues arise covered by their Blue Ribbon Home Warranty. They shared with me that they could not get return phone calls, or the coverage the warranty had been purchased for. 2 of those I assisted and it was ridiculous. Blue Ribbon did everything possible to not pay out on the warranty for legit claims. I quit giving referrals for them years ago. They are the worst home warranty company out there.

I recently purchased a home that has seemed to need one repair after the next. The seller sold me the home with a Blue Ribbon Home Warranty, Gold plan. So far, I have had 5 out of 6 services covered. I met John, the owner, a few months back when I had a negative experience with one of the staff taking a work order for a leak in my ceiling. John listened and took my concerns seriously. He said that there would be some staffing changes made. Apparently, he followed through. I have had to call in two more times and the service was top notch and repairs made relatively quickly. This most recent call was regarding my furnace that actually needed to be replaced, not repaired. I was a bit freaked out and upset, because it was in such bad shape the technician did not even want to turn it on out of safety concerns. Although John was only contractually obligated to pay $ 1400 toward my furnace, he instead offered to meet me half way and paid for half of the total replacement. I am so appreciative. It seems people here on Unilocal may have had some issues in the past, but I would recommend taking unresolved or serious complaints directly to John. He’s a reasonable guy and will do what he can to help, when he can. People need to read the contract carefully and understand that not everything is covered and some repairs/​replacements have a cap. Thank you so much for helping me out, John. God bless you.

By far the most worthless thing I have ever spent money on in my life. I’m ⁰⁄₇ on claims being honored. They always have a way to get out of doing the work. The excuse is usually buried deep within the fine print or loosely interpreted contract language (in their favor)…not too shockingly, their salesmen neglect to mention any of this to you at the point of sale.

I signed up with BRHW in 2011 when I bought my new house. Between then and May 2015, they sent out some pretty great people who fixed my furnace (twice), some plumbing issues, washing machine, and hot water heater. I had no complaints and everyone I worked with was very helpful.
BUT THEN my contract neared expiration in May 2015. The past four years, BRHW sent me a reminder and letter asking whether I wished to continue and a contract to fill out and send back. This year I did not get anything. I called three times in May to ask someone what to do, — because I wanted to extend my contract — but no one ever called me back. Then I e-​mailed the name of the «local representative» for my area and their «contact us» link. No one responded to either message. To this day (one month later), complete radio silence. I am disappointed, because I liked the service and thought it was valuable to have a warranty. But I got dumped. Unprofessionally, in my opinion. So, beware the renewal. I do not know if I fell through the cracks or if they just decided that they no longer wanted my money. Either way, boo to BRHW.
– UPDATE!
BRHW called me within hours of this original two-​star review to apologize for their oversight and allow me to renew without interruption. They explained that a change in personnel likely meant I «fell through the cracks.» I’m pretty impressed with the response and their offer and will definitely renew. Two thumbs up and back to five stars.

I got my BRHW when I closed on my home last year and have had 3 items in need of repair. The process has been quick and professional. I’ve had over $ 800 worth of work done and only paid $ 55/​copay for each visit. I am going to be renewing my Silver plan… certainly pays for itself. My reps have all been very helpful and the techs have been very professional. You really MUST read the allowable and maximums and understand what happens in certain situations. I ask questions when I don’t understand something and always have been able to get a clear answer. Great warranty!

These guys came to the rescue — or so I thought — when I needed a water valve replaced. 2 months later that very valve started leaking, and they wanted to charge me all over again. Apparently they only cover their own work for 30 days. Not worth the money — hire someone who will stand behind their work (if they exist).

Our furnace went out (it is about 16 years old) and the cost to fix it was $ 1200, which BR agreed to cover. We opted to replace the furnace and BR was willing to pay the max $ 1545 towards the new furnace. I was very pleased with this! We will continue to use this company.

Run! This money-​hungry company will do everything they can to deny a claim. They should be shut down! They have denied 3 of 3 claims I filed by interpreting the contract to suit their ideas. Total scam and very nasty on the phone.
They are very nice until you need something. I will be filing a complaint with the State. Awful company.

John at Blue Ribbon seems to have opinions to share with others about your personal situation to his service provider contractors. Unprofessional! He has no business telling others or saying his opinion about your situation or decisions you have made to others.
Save your money and headaches. They will always be willing to except your money and except the contract but not so willing to pay out when needed. Save your $ 35 dollars a month or whatever it is you pay them and put it in a savings/​investment account, You’ll be better off!

This warranty isn’t worth the paper it is written on. Realtors love to use this as a Band-​Aid, and I have always wondered what would happen if something really happened under this warranty. With the «Silver plan» it is $ 55 just to have someone come out. Then if something is wrong, you will still have to pay more to have it fixed. We had an issue with our water heater, and the quickest they could get us on the schedule was 3 days later. 3 days! If you are closing on a house, just ask for the money, don’t waste your time on this worthless warranty.

My realtor bought a blue ribbon policy for me when I purchased my home last year. I have had to use it twice and both times it was easy to deal with their claims people. The first time was when my hot water heater went out during the really cold spell we had in 11 – 13. I came home from a trip to find a puddle on the floor. I called and they were so swamped from furnace calls they allowed my contractor to check the unit, replace it and I submitted the bill and they reimbursed the agreed upon amount. It did take a few weeks to get the check but with all the claims they had it didn’t surprise me. The day before I went on vacation last week the repairman came out on my washer problem. While he was working on it the mother board went out. They offered to repay or pay me the amount of repair immediately. I opted for the cash as I hated my washer anyway. I haven’t seen a renewal price yet, but I’m sure it will be high. I’ve definitely gotten the money out of the policy.

Most of these places will do anything and everything possible to get out of paying for things. Blue Ribbon has a $ 55 payment just to get a technician out and ½ of the time we called, the item that was faulty was not covered. Examples are innumerable, but bottom line is that they cover one part, not the other. My advice save your money and use it for for any repairs.

After our real estate agent purchased a Blue Ribbon Home Warranty warranty for our new house we have contacted them a few time. Several issues arose with our house after we bought it and we contacted them but they keep referring to the small print to avoid paying for appliance repairs (which was the main point of getting their warranty) and even electrical issues for wiring in the breaker panel that we did not change in any way.
I think this company seems like a scam and I am surprised to see the good reviews.

Tim at Blue Ribbon Home Warranty helped make stressful situation more manageable, especially considering that I’d misplaced the paper listing my policy number. Tim was able to look up my information and immediately submitted a work order to have my furnace inspected. The technician came out the same day. All I had to do was forward a copy of the service invoice and home inspection report (luckily I already had electronic copies!). The only thing that could have made the service better was if I had received a detailed outline of what my policy covers. When I inquired about the possibility of a total replacement (my 30-​year-​old furnace is on its last leg), I couldn’t get a straight answer whether or not this was covered by my policy. I would have liked to have known for peace of mind.

I have used blue ribbon for about 10 years now, I pay about 35 a month and they have replaced or fixed stove, refrigerator, air conditioner, hot water heater, garage door opener, multiple drain cleanings, and so on. It is real nice to know things are going to get fixed without worrying about what the rip off will be… could not be happier, they are fair but frugal. Just buy the correct program and have items inspected before you expect them to pay out any big money, work with them and they’re fine and helpful, if you have ever used any of the national companies it is a pleasure working with blue ribbon after getting screwed everytime you even try to put in a claim with the national companies.
Latest update. .New washing machine
No cost to me except premiums

In 2009 I was negotiating the close on my house in Denver from California and having to rely on a lot of advice from local contacts and my real estate agent sight-​unseen.
My agent strongly recommended that we work Blue Ribbon into the closing deal where the owner would pay for a year’s coverage in the home. So we did.
A year later we renewed the coverage and have each year since.
I know that BR has a rep for good service where replacement of appliances is concerned, but they also give credit to a good functioning home that makes no claims by giving their accounts sweet discounts.
I just renewed for my fourth year and am satisfied with the peace of mind they have provided as well as their acknowledgment of keeping my home in good working order.

I have been a Realtor in the Greeley area for almost 27 years and I have tried a lot of different home warranties. But I have found Blue Ribbon Home Warranty to be the most reliable of all of them.
I have Sold 159 warranties without anyone having a problem. And I have several people that have told me they have repurchased them again after the 14 months is up.
I always hear how happy home owners are when they have to make that call and they get a quick and honest answer and quick repair service. As you know nothing ever goes out unless it is snowy, a holiday or late at night.
Call me anytime !!

I continue to recommnd Blue Ribbon to friends, but was reminded again why i do so. Even during a holiday week, they were responsive after hours, showed up on time the next morning because i didn’t need them that night, give the extra information to help me help myself. It is a huge relief to have them as my backup

Everything looked good when we signed up, but when our furnace failed two months into the policy, Blue Ribbon wouldn’t help us. They had lots of excuses like it was old, it had rust on a corner, it was vibrating. But in the end, the logic they kept coming back to is: it wouldn’t have failed if it was in «good» condition.
Luckily, for them they have a «good» loophole in their policy, which they have sole discretion in determining. Since it’s not documented what they find is «good», I walked through it with two different Blue Ribbon employees now, and it keeps coming down to «failures» implies not good. That logic kind of defeats the whole point of a home warranty.
BTW, beware: even certified «good», i.e. items certified by a contractor on their approved list, does not protect you. The same logic was repeated, if it needs to be replaced in the warranty period, it must of not have been good, and by the way, that approved contractor must have not been good. So not only will you be denied, but that contractor is also punished and removed from their list. In Blue Ribbon’s mind, failures of any kind, imply bad and not their problem.
FYI, you’re supposedly safe if an item is repairable. When I say failure, I mean items that are not «fixable». Was told multiple times if an item is repairable, they’d cover it, because it implies: if it’s good enough to fix, it’s good enough to be covered. With that said, be careful. Our furnace was «fixable», but the technician recommended a replacement instead. So in other words, items must be repairable AND better to repair than to replace.
In summary, between the contract loopholes and business practice logic, Blue Ribbon’s warranty ends up being a 14 months of fixes, not replacements, half the warranty of the next guy. Like the Rating says: Eek! Methinks not.
[UPDATE] All of the above is about the first time an item fails, but it gets even worse if you’re unlucky and the same item fails a second time. A concept not discussed in Blue Ribbon’s contract, but explained in detail over the phone, is the concept of «compromised». Once an item fails, it’s «compromised» and regardless of any fix, a compromised item can no longer become «good». In other words, if an item fails a second time for any reason, it’s not covered under Blue Ribbon’s contract/​policies. An item failing twice in a 14 month period is unlikely, but considering Blue Ribbon offers 10 year warranties, being protected only the first time an item fails is not that great of a warranty.
[TIP] On a previous house, we had a home warranty that was only 12 months and $ 5 more for a service call, but $ 50 cheaper, no «good» clause, and no after hour fees. Within a month, we called about the 75 year old floor heater not working. The hired technician came out on the weekend, but left because he didn’t have the part (they’re hard to get for 75 year old floor heaters that aren’t made anymore). If it was Blue Ribbon, they would of asked for the inspection report (the one we had done well before a home warranty company was selected). Gave us grief that it wasn’t an inspector on their approved list. Looked over the report and saw that the «good» condition was not indicated. Stopped blaming us that we didn’t get an approved inspector, and start using the report to argue it was not in good condition and not covered. Go the extra step to blame us for not performing the preventive maintenance noted in the inspection report, the same report minutes before was being argued that it was not valid. Blamed it on it being old (can’t argue with that). Then, after saying all that, add that if it was good, it wouldn’t have failed. So, all together, it’s our fault it was «bad» and therefore our fault it failed. What actually happened with this other home warranty company was… I called up the home warranty, the technician had noted he could not get the part so the representative apologized that they couldn’t fix it, and no questions asked, sent a replacement check to put in a furnace since floor heaters are not even replaceable. No hoops; no loopholes; no blame game. The point is, not all home warranty companies are the same. With Blue Ribbon, after paying the additional fees for hiring an approved inspector and performing all of the out of pocket maintenance ((by the way, preventative maintenance is not in Blue Ribbon’s contract, but is just another factor factor that can be used against you), you’re talking at least twice the cost of the next company. My tip would be to shop around and skim through sample contracts. «Good» and «additional fees», as I found out with Blue Ribbon, are good signs to go with the next company. For a few minutes of your time, you’ll save yourself a lot of hassle.

I just used Blue Ribbon to warranty my home, as a way to help prepare if for sale. Turned out to be a good thing because the buyers requested we have a home warranty in place and we had already set it up. A home warranty plan is good idea for older homes /​appliances /​HVAC. Blue Ribbon was easy to work with and quick to respond with a qualifying onsite inspection. I have not tried using the service to repair any items under warranty.