Why A Traditional RV Warranty Policy Is Dead

Sponsored by RV Service Shield

An RV Warranty That Makes Modern Sense

Compared to automobiles, the standard RV warranty included with your travel trailer, 5th wheel, or motorhome is downright embarrassing. Before we judge too harshly, however, remember that your new Ford F150 pickup or Toyota Camry doesn’t have running water, an electric awning, steps, or a black tank. As Xhibit might have put it, “We heard you like houses and cars….so we put a house, on your car!”

While the technology since those first house cars has changed, the challenges have not. RVers still need a way to protect an investment that may cost nearly as much as a house, yet might only get used six times, or six months of the year.

RVing has changed – Your RV warranty should too

Maintaining traditions is fun, but there comes a point when it’s time for a change. RVers have traditionally been offered two choices when sitting at the finance desk while waiting to be handed the keys to their new RV.

You could either take home your RV with the minimal factory warranty, or pursue an expensive, long-term extended RV warranty. You are then locked into that long-term warranty, which includes paying for those months your RV is sitting in storage and not being used. 

RVers still need an RV warranty

Make no mistake, with the reputation RVs have of needing frequent repair, getting that extended warranty still makes sense. When you’re rolling a small apartment down a bumpy road for thousands of miles…things will go wrong. 

To have the peace of mind that you are covered, RVers still want a warranty. The difference is, those same RVers expect their warranty to make sense. For a generation that changes electricity providers, wireless providers, banks, and insurance carriers at the drop of a hat, the traditional, long-term, all or nothing RV warranty is not very appealing.

RV Service Shield puts you back in control

One of the most frustrating things about a traditional RV extended warranty is that it can handcuff you from making simple DIY repairs or doing RV maintenance yourself. Perhaps, after that first year or two of RVing, you’ve learned how to take care of many RV maintenance items yourself, yet your restrictive warranty prevents you from doing them. In that first couple of years, having that warranty was comforting.

Now, however, you could save a lot of time and money by taking care of things yourself, but doing so would void your extended warranty. You are forced to get standard maintenance tasks done by a dealer or RV shop, potentially losing your RV for weeks at a time on something you could do in a weekend on your own. Wouldn’t it be nice to have the ability to stop or easily cancel that warranty if you wanted to?

RV Service Shield – An RV warranty for a new generation

RV Service Shield, founded by an RV industry veteran and consultant to the RV Dealers Association, offers a new and unique perspective on the RV warranty. Here are some of the key features of an RV warranty from RV Service Shield.

Month to Month Contract & Billing

Instead of buying and paying for a multi-year warranty, you choose a month to month option. Perhaps you only want a warranty for the first year or two until you are familiar with all of your RV’s systems. Maybe you have a complex and expensive motorhome that you want to warranty for several years. The point is, it’s up to you.

Stop and Start Coverage

You can buy your RV warranty one month at a time. And you can cancel it at any time. You can restart it at any time. There aren’t any penalties or fees for stopping your coverage. For RVers in those northern areas where the RV is parked and winterized six months of the year, the savings can be substantial.

Once coverage is stopped, you have to pay the start-up fee again to resume it. Your RV will need another assessment. And you may have a different monthly fee. Regardless, for many, this still offers significant savings.

24/7 Technical and Roadside Assistance

The RV Service Shield Technical Assistance Hotline team can walk you through simple troubleshooting techniques. This is how to tell if you have a service or warranty issue. For example, perhaps you are ready to leave your campsite in the morning. But there is a persistent beeping or chiming. You call the RV Service Shield team and they remind you that the sound indicates your levelers are not all the way up. They walk you through some troubleshooting techniques and you are able to get back on the road.

An RV extended warranty from RV Service Shield also includes roadside assistance. When bad luck strikes and you have that tire blowout or have some other debilitating event, roadside assistance is there to serve you.

Mobile RV Mechanic Claim Repairs

If you do run into a service problem and need to execute a warranty claim, RV Service Shield can dispatch a mobile RV mechanic to come to your location to fix the problem. There are some limitations, of course. But most RV problems aren’t the big kind, like a failed transmission or a broken drive shaft. They are the smaller, simpler problems. Think: plumbing failures and slides that won’t extend or retract.

Conclusion

There may not be a quick end to RV repair problems. But at least the RV consumer has more control over the RV warranty purchase process. You can opt for a traditional warranty, or give RV Service Shield a try. Get a free quote for an RV Service Shield RV warranty. Note that due to state regulations, RV Service Shield is not available for residents of California, Washington, Florida, or Massachusetts.

RV LIFE

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