5 Ways to Lower Your Repair Bills
The following tips were pulled from a previous article about why appliance repairman are so expensive. Read on for money saving tips.
1. Warranties
Know if you're in or out of warranty and what your warranty covers. Ms. Lehman suggests keeping copies of your warranties in one folder or going online to download them and store them in one electronic file. Even if you haven't sent in your warranty registration, you should be all right if you have the receipt or, lacking that, if you charged the item you can obtain the information from your credit card company.
2. Be prepared
Have the brand, model and serial number available when you call for service. Those details can usually be found on the paperwork that came with the item. Otherwise you will waste everyone's time searching for it. Although these numbers are usually on the appliances, in some cases -- like a frost-bound refrigerator -- they are difficult to see.
3. Keep to Schedule
Try to be there when you say you will. We all know that it's maddening to be given a three- or four-hour window, but all too often jobs take longer than expected. Or there's the customer who, after the initial repair is finished, says, "as long as you're here," and trots out other broken machines. It's worth asking if the service company will call you five or 10 minutes before arrival, so you can run nearby errands while waiting.
4. Don't Wait
Get help sooner rather than later. "One of my biggest frustrations is having someone says, 'Oh yeah, the dryer has been acting goofy for three to four months,' " Mr. Schmidt said, because it's likely that bad part has caused something else to wear out.
5. Observe Don't Obstruct
It's fine to observe the technician working. You certainly don't have to disappear. But keep pets and children away. "I don't need your inquisitive 4-year-old going through my toolbox," Mr. Johnson said.
photo: forwardcom
