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Should I Buy A Used Car Extended Warranty

A warranty is given to cars as an insurance regardless of it being new or used. The car could be problematic mechanically, making it an expensive fix, permitting a warranty to being bought to avoid the risk of paying up front for any replacement. The question, is buying an extended warranty for a used car worth it? It is an old car and it may have already gone through tough times to where it is all fixed, but nobody is sure about the car’s history, so why not?

Most dealers will offer car buyers a free warranty that covers from the first three months of ownership. But, few problems, or none, take place in those three months. Dealers are aware of this, so, through a third-party, used car owners are offered to buy an extended warranty, as if it was car insurance to have in hand after the original warranty expires. Used-car owners are paying an average of $1,000 for it, keeping with them a piece of mind in the event of the car has issues. It is common and good to have with a used car in that mind. Plus, there are a lot of car dealers that will offer extended warranties for used cars for great value.

Some will question or recommend not buying an extended warranty because it would be almost worthless compared to new cars. In this case, the cost of a warranty is more expensive than the repair while the warranty is working. But, there are cases that the extended warranty cost is worth it, such as the used car being considerably unreliable with various mechanical issues. All cars and their user ratings can be searched through reliability websites, auto forums, and simply seeking opinions from other drivers and experts who know about the car in question. Statistically, more than 80 percent of used-car owners who had bought their extended warranty and used it stated that all claims were responded to. The same amount of extended-warranty buyers also stated they would buy one again.

Half of people who bought an extended warranty for their used car filed a claim over five years of usage. While it is a lot of money spent for insurance, many of those people who filed claims relied on their extended warranty. About two-thirds of them had to use it after the second year of driving it. So it’s fifty-fifty on using it, but in the event a repair claim in needed, the extended warranty comes into play. Plus, CarFax may not catch the entire history because of the lack of claims or any wiping of the records, which is possible.

So, is there some risk of an extended warranty for used cars? Yes, but there is risk of everything. It is a coin flip to whether or not it will be used, but drivers want to be on the side of caution when it comes to cars and its safety. We are required to have car insurance, so this is extra insurance for the long run.