Pages

Tuesday, 14 January 2014

Components Of Extended Service Plans

By Marissa Velazquez


Service plans exist as a contract. Consumers who choose to pay the extra cost for them are given the plan when they make a purchase on certain items, particularly those that are perceived to be valuable. The contracts are a lot like extended warranties, but there are some differences between the two. Extended service plans are made available in numerous varieties.

These contracts are different from warranties that are given by the manufacturer of a product. Usually these kinds of contracts will require preventative and routine maintenance in line with the manufacturer warranty. Still, there does not have to be product failure or malfunction in order for these to be activated. These plans start on the purchase date, which is different than extended warranties that become active when the manufacturer warranty expires.

A major distinction between these is that warranties are made specifically to cover defects in materials or workmanship of a product. However, service plans offer coverage for product failure, no matter the cause. Typically there are exclusions that will be outlined in the contract itself. Many offer additional benefits, including technical support, priority service, theft, accidental damage and no lemons policy.

How the products will be serviced is determined by the plan itself. Some will say that the work is to be done by technicians that have been hired by the retailer. Others may call for the product to be sent somewhere else to be fixed, which could add to cost because of cost to ship. Retailers may also choose to give the consumer a store credit or a new replacement from their inventory. This usually happens when the product proves to be non-repairable or too costly to fix.

Ultimately, the consumer is the person who decides whether this is needed and worth the money. Many times this is based on what the product is and the perceived value it has. Most standard contracts will cover the average repair costs and are given to those as a way to keep customers from hiring competing companies to do the repair work.

As the name would suggest, these contracts tend to last for a while and sometimes include added perks. People who do not know much about the product that they are purchasing should consider choosing a plan that includes customer support and similar benefits. Still, this is a decision that should be left up to the consumer only because these are in no way required.

These are available through a lot of retailers around the world. They are usually popular with products that are deemed valuable or fragile, such as electronic devices. Some of the goods sold through retailers bring in very little money to the store, so selling these kinds of contracts and accessories is crucial to increasing store revenue.

Extended service plans refers to contracts consumers may opt to have when purchasing certain goods. These are much like extended warranties, but there are some notable differences between the two. In general, they are used to replace or fix products that have malfunctioned or failed. These will vary in cost and coverage.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment