extended warranties - worth the cash?

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I have just bought a Canon EOS 300 kit and have the option to take buy an extended 7 yr warranty covering parts and labor for the body and lens (28-90mm). I have heard negative feedback about the coverage and worth of such a warranty. Does anyone know whether this is worth doing and what it covers?

-- nichola garbett (thetitchdoctor@hotmail.com), April 06, 2001

Answers

If it breaks, it's worth it, if it doesn't it's not. Just like Auto insurance.

Make sure the warranty company is reputable though. Canon themselves used to offer a 4 year extended warranty (5 years total) for around $40 for most "consumer" camera bodies. I don't know if they still do.

Some of the "warranties" with 3rd party companies may not be the paper they are written on. You don't even know if the "warranty company" will still be in business next year, never mind in 7 years time. Canon will certainly be around!

Some stores lie. They'll tell you it's a Canon warranty, but what they mean is it's a warranty FOR Canon products, not a warranty issued by CANON USA. Watch out for that one.

-- Bob Atkins (bobatkins@hotmail.com), April 07, 2001.


Nichola: In my opinion, the extended camera warranties offered by CANON are a modestly priced and WISE investment, IF one plans to own the camera beyond the time-limit of the standard "factory" warranty. Once a low- or mid-priced camera's standard factory warranty has expired, the cost of subsequent service (should it be required) can easily approach, or even exceed, the original purchase-price of the camera (or other item). Personally, I've never hesitated to pay the added cost of a Canon extended camera warranty, and have previously purchased them for the EOS Elan, A2, and 1N cameras. (Because my EOS 1V HS came with a three year factory warranty, Canon was not offering an extended warranty on this camera when I purchased it).

Be sure to read the fine print of any extended warranty, as in my experience, CANON extended warranties are usually not "additive" to the original factory warranty. For example, if the original factory warranty is for one year, an extended Canon "five year" warranty does not mean that the camera is covered for a total of 1 + 5 = 6 years. Rather, the camera will likely be covered for a total of 5 years from the date of purchase. Furthermore, I'm a bit skeptical of 3rd party warranties, especially one that would claim to offer seven years of coverage. In general, I believe the SAFEST bet is to buy a CANON extended warranty, rather than a 3rd party extended warranty, since as Bob said, it's quite likely that Canon will still be around for years to come, but the future of certain "3rd parties" may not be so clear.

As far as what a CANON extended warranty covers, I believe one can generally assume that it is simply an extension of the terms of the original factory warranty. That is, so long as the problem is not due to abuse, neglect, accident, or some action by the original purchaser that would void the terms of the warranty, Canon should honor *their* extended warranty. Furthermore, I suspect that Canon, Inc. is less likely to contest or evade a valid claim on one of *their* extended warranties, than might some 3rd parties. Finally, keep in mind that many 3rd party "warrantors" may first rely on their own in-house repair shop (if they have one); or, they may have a service contract with an outside repair service to handle their 3rd party warranties, extended or otherwise. If so, there may occasionally be diagnostic and repair problems that are beyond their capabilities and expertise, and they will then (hopefully) forward those "problems" to a Factory Service Center. On the other hand, if one has purchased the *manufacturer's* extended warranty in the first place, then one is entitled to send their purchase directly (and immediately) to the Factory Service Center, without a 3rd party insisting that they first try to fix the problem.

-- kurt heintzelman (heintzelman.1@osu.edu), April 07, 2001.


I purchased the extended warranty and found it to be helpful on one event and not on another. The first problem had to do with a lens slipping its ring. This was fixed under the extended warranty. The second event was determined to be a wear and tear kind of thing (hot shoe was slightly damaged from something bumping it) so I had to pay out of pocket. I typically don't get my money's worth out of the warranty from the repair perspective, but I do from the "peace of mind" perspective.

-- S Butler (sbutler2@ameritech.net), April 13, 2001.

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