Jesus Sanchez Garcia is a senior writer for USA TODAY Homefront. His expertise focuses on home warranties, with over 50 hours spent reviewing provider sample contracts to understand their benefits. He also regularly performs consumer research, such as surveys and customer interviews with an eye on incorporating data into his writing. Jesus has a bachelor’s in business administration from California State University, Stanislaus, and is still located within California’s vibrant Central Valley. When he is not researching or writing, he enjoys supporting his favorite sports teams, spending time with loved ones and chasing new adventures outdoors.
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Elite Home Warranty has a variety of features that make it unique. For example, Elite allows you to choose your preferred service technician to fix your major appliance or system breakdown. Elite also offers up to 30 optional add-ons, allowing you to fully customize your home protection plan.
Elite opened its doors in 2020 and quickly built a reputation for comprehensive coverage and solid customer service. It covers all states except California, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin.
Our team at Homefront analyzed Elite’s coverage plans, costs, additional features and sample contracts and determined it’s one of the best home warranty companies.
Elite Home Warranty scored 4.4 out of 5 stars in our proprietary rating system. Elite scored well across most of our rating system’s categories, especially in the reputation and coverage options categories. It did drop points in a few customer service categories.
One of Elite’s standout features is its “Customize Your Own” plan. You can mix and match the home systems and appliances you need into one plan. Other home warranty providers we reviewed don’t offer that level of customization.
Elite also allows you to choose your service provider. The representative I spoke with said Elite must first verify that your technician is licensed and certified before authorizing a repair. He also noted that Elite’s 90-day workmanship guarantee won’t apply to repairs completed by your chosen technician.
Its workmanship guarantee is another standout feature. Based on our research, the industry standard for workmanship guarantees is 30 days — Elite’s is 90.
Elite isn’t perfect. After reading its sample contract, I found that Elite charges an extra $80 per service call fee to repair pro-series appliances, raising its $70 fee to $150. Other home warranty companies won’t charge a higher service fee for these appliances.
Elite also lists coverage limitations for older systems in its sample contract. If a covered item is 10 years or older, Elite will only cover up to 50% of the item’s coverage cap. However, this limitation doesn’t apply to HVAC systems.
While more of a preference issue, Elite doesn’t provide personalized quotes online. When I filled out Elite’s online quote form, it didn’t display plan prices after I submitted my information. I needed to call Elite’s sales department to get pricing information. Once you speak with a representative, they will forward your quote to your email.
Elite Home Warranty offers a fully customizable plan and an extensive workmanship guarantee. Other top-ranking companies, such as American Home Shield and Liberty Home Guard, feature more robust coverage and add-on variety.
See how the best home warranty companies compare on key factors:
The monthly premiums shown are national averages based on quotes we pulled for three ZIP codes in each state the providers service. We used 2,000-square-foot, single-family homes to obtain our quotes.
Elite Home Warranty has three standard home warranty coverage plans and one customizable plan. It pairs each plan with a $70 service call fee. Below is a brief description of each Elite coverage plan:
Elite lists additional factors, such as its workmanship guarantee and per-item coverage cap, that affect coverage. Elite has a $15,000 annual aggregate limit, meaning it will pay up to that amount per policy year. Below is an overview:
The tables below display the items included in each Elite Home Warranty plan based on the coverage category:
Elite Home Warranty offers a robust variety of additional coverage options to supplement your standard plan. Below is the full list of add-ons:
Elite Home Warranty has several exclusions listed in its sample contract. For example, it won’t cover routine maintenance, such as air conditioner filter replacement and cleanings. Elite also excludes malfunctions caused by misuse, abuse, acts of nature, sediment damage and structural and manufacturer defects.
You can find more information on Elite’s exclusions in its state-specific sample contract directory. I viewed sample contracts for several states and found them to be the same except for the supplemental state-specific provisions listed at the bottom.
As mentioned above, Elite Home Warranty has a clunky quote process. The company will provide a plan premium via email after you call a representative. Speaking with a representative can be beneficial, though, because they can answer any questions about coverage. All other home warranty companies we’ve reviewed provide a price online after you submit your information, which is a feature we feel Elite should have.
When I called Elite to finish the quote process, I discovered that it provides two extra months of coverage when choosing an annual premium. The table below shows the monthly premium costs based on a 2,014-square-foot, single-family home in Marion, New York. Your pricing will vary depending on your home’s size and location as well as your plan selections.
Elite Home Warranty has a stellar A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB). In addition to having a good BBB rating, Elite holds solid customer ratings. On the three third-party review sites I checked, Elite holds a rating of at least 4 stars on each.
Many customers experienced great customer service from Elite representatives when filing a claim, as highlighted by this Trustpilot review from Robert. To confirm the validity of his experience, I interviewed a team member who filed a claim with Elite for his high-end appliance. He reported similar treatment from Elite representatives, noting their professionalism and attention to detail.
However, there were several negative reviews from customers who weren’t fully satisfied with the company’s communication during the claims process. Alicia’s Google review indicates she had a roof issue that needed additional work outside of Elite’s scope of repair. She also reported trouble with open communication, though Elite recommended a repair person to finish the job.
Elite Home Warranty’s coverage plan takes effect 30 days after sign-up. During that initial waiting period, we recommend familiarizing yourself with how your home warranty works. Below is a quick summary of how to use your Elite coverage plan.
Elite’s service contract lists all the information, provisions and instructions you need to file a claim. It links its service contract directory on its home page navigation bar for easy access. Below are the main sections of Elite’s contract terms to review:
At the time of this review, Elite only accepts claims over the phone via its 24/7 claims hotline. The representative who helped me with my quote mentioned that Elite is working on developing an online claims portal for more convenient claims submission.
The “Filing a Claim” section of Elite’s service contract states: “Under normal circumstances, service will commence within 24–48 hours after we receive your service request.” Our team member who filed a claim with Elite received service for his issue within that time frame.
Your Elite Home Warranty coverage plan will last for 12 months unless you sign up for a multiyear plan. As indicated in the “Definitions” section of Elite’s service contract, your plan takes effect after your “Agreement Effective Date” — which is 30 days after your purchase date. “This waiting period is in place to prevent repair requests for already broken items,” said the Elite representative who provided my quote.
In the event of a contractual dispute with Elite Home Warranty, you have several options to increase the chance of a resolution. You should take the following steps:
Few home warranty companies provide the customization and add-on variety that Elite Home Warranty offers. It extends a generous 90-day workmanship guarantee on all completed repairs and has solid coverage caps per item. Elite also allows you to choose your own technician, giving you added flexibility.
However, that flexibility comes with a cost: Elite won’t include its 90-day workmanship guarantee when you work with your own technician. Elite also upcharges for high-end appliance repairs.
Fill out the Elite Home Warranty quote form to request your personalized quote. We recommend requesting quotes from multiple providers to compare costs, plan options and workmanship guarantees.
We research and rate home warranty providers to help you choose the right option for your budget and your home. The best home warranty companies offer multiple coverage choices, high coverage limits, competitive pricing, good reviews, solid service and extra features.
We rate companies based on our in-depth methodology. We score companies out of 100 on factors related to their coverage options, coverage limits, pricing, reputation, customer service and extra features. We then divide the final score by 20 to obtain a 5-star rating in our reviews.
BBB, Trustpilot and Google Reviews ratings are accurate as of January 2024.
Editorial note: The name “Homefront” refers to the alliance between USA TODAY and Home Solutions that publishes review, comparison, and informational articles designed to help USA TODAY readers make smarter purchasing and investment decisions about their home. Under the alliance, Homefront provides and publishes research and articles about home service and home improvement topics.
Homefront has an affiliate disclosure policy. The opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the Homefront editorial staff alone (see About Homefront). Homefront adheres to strict editorial integrity standards. The information is believed to be accurate as of the publish date, but always check the provider’s website for the most current information.