Complaint Review: HSA Home Warranty - Select State/Province

Like most First-Time Home Buyers--I bought my first home in Iowa --believeing I was in good hands with my realtors. They presented me with (what I THOUGHT) was a reputable HOME WARRANTY company. They asked if I wanted to purchase it. I said "OF COURSE I do!" (Since I was buying an older home) The Home Inspection cant find everything or predict the future.

Four months after I purchased the home--I look at the carpet near my hot water heater. it is soaked. I ask a friend for their advice. They advise to call a plumber ASAP!  Since I am a new home owner--I am now house poor. But i am glad I was smart enough to buy the home warranty.  The plumber comes out and tells me that they often deal with HSA--and I should be covered. They just need to get their approval before they can begin the work.  They ask how much my deductible is.

I think to myself--this is how it is supposed to work--I call the plumber. He gets the work started--and the warranty kicks in.

WRONG! HSA puts up a BIG fight. They kept my plumber on HOLD for over TWO HOURS! They also disconnected him THREE TIMES! I also called to try to find out what my deductible was. HSA Disconnected ME TWO TIMES! They kept me on the phone for over an HOUR! When they finally came on the phone to BOTH my plumber and myself--they told my plumber they would not approve his costs.  And they called me to tell me the same. They told me that they wanted me to go with ANOTHER plumber in the area. Leaving me with a wet basement floor--haggling over the costs when I need the problem fixed NOW!  The other plumber's reputation was not know to be as good as the plumber I called--and they could not come out to fix the problem as fast as the plumber I called.  When you have mechanical problems (esp with an older home) this is why you need a home warranty. 

HSA continued to keep me on the phone and try to get out of paying for the costs--insisting that I did not call them first to go with their first plumber on THEIR list.  For this reason I am out of luck--I have to take their choice--or I will have to pay the difference.(If I go with the plumber I choose to do the work asap) It feels like BAIT and SWITCH or Black Mail. They KNOW they have you in a vulnerable position. You have water leaking all over your home--and you NEED it fixed--and you are trying to do it without going into debt--from the cost and the damage.   But that is why you BOUGHT a home warranty.

SO --the question is this....WHY ISN"T HSA Home warranty covering you when you desperately NEED them. This is WHY you purchased the coverage!  HSA told me they found a lesser quality plumber that would do the job. For less money. They did not say WHEN they would do it or they would nto tell me the break down in costs. They simply said they DID NOT have to tell me what the break down in costs would be --or rather WHY their costs would be less than the plumber I needed when I called them.  In other words--they were just telling me that someone else would do it for less--to GET OUT OF PAYING FOR IT!!! And by NOT breaking down the costs comparisons--they could not prove the other plumber would actually do it for LESS!  HSA is a SCAM--THEY ARE HIGHWAY ROBBERY in the form of HOME WARRANTY!  PREYING ON innocent home buyers and first time home owners like myself.  I am also disabled--this does not help me--since I live on a limited income from Social Security and disability income.  I am sure they are doing this to other with disabilities or with limited incomes--like retired people living on limited budgets. But anyone that is in a NEW home --buys a home warranty as a safety net --esp in the first year--because they have a lot of expenses in their first year. I would have been better off taking the money I spent on HSA and puttin git in the bank. They are not covering ANYTHING! Plus they have wasted my time and given me MORE Stress and worry. Now I worry that something else will happen and the warranty will not cover it.   I am not even a year into home ownership--I still have months left on my warranty. I purchased their warranty PLUS the extra 7 star coverage. In other words --I SHOULD HAVE been covered and thensome! I should not have paid anything beyond a deductible! They were trying to get me to pay half of the costs of a hot water heater replacement! HSA IS A SCAM!!!!!!!!!!! Consumers that use them --Should be very careful--and EVERY ATTY GENERAL in the States for those consumers should investigate them. So should the FCC, FTC and all Realtors (Real Est Comm)  etc.....