Service technician tightening a pipe under a sink. — Wirestock/iStockphoto

State availability: 46 + District of Columbia

Service call fee:

First American Home Warranty

First American Home Warranty offers high coverage caps and comprehensive coverage for your home systems and appliances.

Best for: Coverage for improper installation

First American Home Warranty at a glance

Look at the most important details of First American Home Warranty (FAHW)’s history, coverage, advantages and drawbacks.

Fast facts

FAHW is a California-based service provider with more than four decades of home warranty experience.
The company says it has 570,000 customers across the country and in 2023 spent more than $213 million in home repairs for those customers.
While First American Home Warranty excludes improperly modified or installed systems and appliances, the First Class Upgrade expands this coverage significantly to include improper installation, permits and more.
The company has a B rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and has held BBB accreditation since 2000.

What we like

First American Home Warranty may not have made our list of the best home warranty companies, but I appreciate that its plans cover the most important appliances and systems in a home, including major kitchen appliances, laundry machines, electrical, plumbing and heating systems. I also like that FAHW has a full money-back guarantee if you cancel within the first 30 days.

What we don’t like

FAHW’s add-on options can confuse customers. For example, the Essential and Premium plans automatically include the First American Advantage upgrade, which can offer expanded coverage limits for certain items. However, these details aren’t clearly defined in the service contract or elsewhere on the site. I also don’t like that the company doesn’t provide a detailed history on its website. There is no growth timeline and no useful About Us page.

First American Home Warranty pros and cons

Like any service provider, First American Home Warranty has pluses and minuses. I appreciate that FAHW offers two service call fees — $100 and $125 — to give customers more control over their premiums. The company doesn’t impose strict coverage limits for many costly home systems, which can reduce your out-of-pocket expenses should those items need repair or replacement. Finally, the company’s First Class Upgrade makes its protection more comprehensive than the typical home warranty policy.

However, First American doesn’t have a systems-exclusive plan, so you may end up buying coverage you don’t need if your appliances stay in working order. The company also doesn’t include air conditioning coverage in its base plan, so you may need to pay more to get protection for this vital system, especially if you live in a consistently hot part of the country.

Pros

You can decide which systems you want covered based on tier coverage
Has multiple add-on options, including the First Class Upgrade, which covers code upgrades and more
Has generous coverage caps

Cons

All plans are blended, covering some appliances and some systems
Air conditioner coverage not included in Starter Plan
Expensive upper-tier plan

*BBB Ratings accurate as of August 2024

How much does First American Home Warranty cost?

The price of a First American Home Warranty policy depends on your location, home size, service call fee and the plan you pick. A higher service call fee will result in lower premiums but more out-of-pocket costs if you file a claim. So, it’s important to choose a service call fee and premium that fits your budget.

FAHW’s Starter Plan prices are among the cheapest in the home warranty industry, but its Premium Plan prices are higher. Here’s a comparison of my quoted premiums for a single-family home smaller than 5,000 square feet, located in Canoga Park, California.

All quotes include a $2 handling fee that applies to all monthly payments.

What services does First American Home Warranty offer?

First American Home Warranty offers three levels of home protection. It labels these plans as Starter (lowest tier), Essential (middle tier) and Premium (highest tier).

The Starter Plan covers some kitchen appliances and essential home systems but excludes a few major ones, such as washers, dryers and air-conditioning system.
The Essential Plan protects major appliances and systems.
The Premium Plan is FAHW’s most comprehensive option, protecting everything that the Essential Plan does, plus a few more items with expanded coverage.

After a repair, First American guarantees a fix for the first 30 days. If the system or appliance breaks within that time, the company will send another technician to fix the problem without charging another service call fee.

First American Home Warranty services

Avoid overpaying for coverage by assessing which appliances and systems are most likely to break down throughout your plan term. Consider how much these items would cost to repair and replace. If that repair/replacement cost is outside your financial reach, those are the items it makes the most sense to cover with a home warranty.

First American Home Warranty add-ons and optional features

First American Home Warranty’s add-ons depend on how you pay for your plan. If you get a plan through a real estate transaction, you’ll be limited to a few specific add-ons. But if you buy a new plan independently, you’ll have more options to pick from.

Additional refrigeration: $4.17 per month
Central air conditioning: $8.33 a month
Limited roof leak: $8.33 per month
Pool and spa: $20.83 per month
Septic system: $7 per month
Water softener: $7.87 per month
Well pump: $7 per month

Appliances Plus

This add-on increases coverage for refrigerators, kitchen appliances and laundry machines to $7,500. It’s designed for luxury appliances that may be more expensive to repair or replace.

First Class Upgrade

The First Class Upgrade covers expenses for building permits, code upgrades up to $250, improper modifications, installations unknown to the homeowner and disposal of appliances and components serviced by an FAHW technician.

HVAC Tune-up

For about $2 per month, you can get an HVAC tune-up in the spring and another in the fall.

Plumbing Plus

This add-on will expand plumbing coverage to include water heater expansion tanks, up to $250 to install a ground-level cleanout and up to $250 for blockages caused by tree roots. It will also cover the costs to access, diagnose and repair concrete encased plumbing systems up to $1,500 and external pipe leaks up to $1,000.

What does First American Home Warranty not cover?

FAHW’s sample contract is broken down by each covered item. Each covered item will include a list of excluded components. Here’s an overview of First American’s exclusions:

Any appliances or systems not located in an individual unit
Any product covered by another warranty
Any recalled product
Code corrections (unless an upgrade is purchased)
Commercial properties or buildings used for business purposes
Common areas in condominiums or mobile home parks
Cosmetic damage
Costs for building permits, hauling away replaced equipment or other construction fees
Repairs or replacements exceeding the pre-set coverage limit for that item
Repairs or replacements because of missing parts, improper installation, fire, flood, smoke, lightning, freezing, theft, storms, accidents, mud, vandalism and other Acts of God
Routine maintenance for covered items
Secondary or incidental damage because of a malfunctioning covered item
Service to appliances or systems near or contaminated by hazardous/toxic materials
Solar electric systems

First American Home Warranty customer service and experience

First American Home Warranty has a 24/7 phone line you can use to request a quote or service, but you may not always get a live person. Calling outside of business hours may result in an automated message. Later, a representative will follow up if they have any questions.

If you’re an existing customer, you’ll have online portal access where you can initiate a claim at any time. The website is plain and doesn’t have as many features as some competitors, like Cinch Home Services. Still, it’s easy to navigate, with plenty of resources to answer questions and learn more about the home warranty industry.

When I called the customer support line, a live person answered within 10 minutes, but they were more interested in making a sale than answering my questions about typical customer service protocol, such as how long it takes claims to process and availability on weekends and holidays.

According to the sample contract, your claim will be dispatched within four hours and a service provider request will be initiated within 48 hours outside these hours. Here’s what some real-life customers have to say about their experiences with the company:

The process for filing claims online is so easy. I’ve filed over the phone previously, and it, too, was easy. I don’t necessarily like that you’ve got to pay when you file the claim, but it does make sense. I’ve had a great degree of success in getting fairly quick service (out within 3 days), but it would be nicer if the contractor’s contact was to be within 24 hours instead of 48. The service professionals that have been out have done good work.

–– John C. via Trustpilot (May 2024)

We had to pay the service fee and then found out that it did not cover the complete repair for our garage door. We had to pay an additional $185.00 to the garage door company. Why are we paying a monthly fee and a service fee if it doesn’t cover our home repairs? We have always been happy with FAHW up until now.

–– Thomas and Donna C. via Trustpilot (May 2024)

The fine print: Terms and conditions you should know

FAHW does an excellent job thoroughly outlining its coverage limits in its service contract. Each section of the service contract has an explicit dollar amount for the covered item, if one applies. Many common home systems, like your electrical and central air conditioning don’t have a specific coverage limit, unless you have a geothermal, oil or water source system.

However, FAHW’s coverage caps vary by state. In California, for example, the coverage limit per kitchen appliance is $5,000, but in Michigan, it’s only $3,500. Both these sums are higher than many of our other home warranty providers. To verify the coverage in your state, make sure you download the sample service contract for your state.

First American Home Warranty vs. competitors

First American Home Warranty didn’t earn a spot on our best home warranty companies of 2024, but it’s far from the bottom of the list of the more than 20 companies we evaluated. FAHW’s main distinction from our best home warranty companies is its limited state availability and more expensive service call fee options. While Select Home Warranty offers a $75 service call fee within its flexible model, FAHW’s lowest service call fee is $100.

Here’s a quick comparison of our ratings, stand-out features, and state availability for FAHW and our top-ranked home warranty companies:

Competitor comparison

Methodology

We carefully evaluated dozens of top home warranty companies by rating them across several factors most likely to matter to customers. We weighted factors in order of importance to consumers, with coverage and pricing at the forefront. The coverage section assessed the number of covered items and focused on the most important systems and appliances, such as electrical, plumbing, air conditioning and laundry machines. In the pricing section, we compared our requested quotes and the lowest average service call fee to assess the value each company could provide for its price tag.

Next, we analyzed each company’s guarantees, including workmanship, money-back and cancellation processes. We awarded each company a trust score after reading customer reviews, evaluating common complaints and digging into any pending legal action against them.

Then, we compared each team’s customer service infrastructure, including claims support, ease of contacting the company outside of typical business hours and how quickly they process service requests. We rated this factor similarly to state availability. Finally, we evaluated each company’s flexibility for different types of properties.

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First American Home Warranty review: A comprehensive guide to cost and coverage