Compare
How a plan from us
compares.
A plan from us is one way to deal with a broken appliance, and it isn’t always the best one. Here are the options most households weigh up, our side of each taken from our own terms, and the questions worth asking anyone you’re considering.
We don’t print other companies’ prices or terms here. They change, and they’re theirs to explain, so read them from the source.
Your options
Four ways to handle a breakdown.
A Fix It plan
One price for up to 9 appliances, from £9.99 a month, paid monthly, quarterly or yearly. Parts, labour and the callout are included, there’s no limit on repairs, and we replace the appliance if it can’t be fixed. There’s a 60-day waiting period on each appliance, and a short list of things it doesn’t cover, published in full.
What a plan includesPaying for repairs as they happen
No monthly payment: you pay the bill when something breaks, and keep the money when nothing does. If you could comfortably pay a repair bill tomorrow, this is often the better deal. Over enough years, people who can comfortably pay for their own repairs come out ahead, whoever the cover would have been with.
Our one-off repairsAn extended warranty
Some manufacturers and shops sell extra years of cover on an appliance. What that covers varies, so read its terms. One thing is simple: while an appliance is still under its manufacturer’s warranty, use that. It costs you nothing, and we won’t take your money for repairs you’re already entitled to have done for free.
When not to buy coverOther appliance cover
Plenty of companies sell appliance breakdown cover or appliance insurance, and some of the larger ones run their helplines round the clock. Prices and terms differ, so compare them on the questions below, not only on the monthly figure.
The questions to askQuestions to ask
Good questions to ask any provider, with our answers.
- Is it insurance, a warranty, or something else?
- Fix It Homecare plans are extended cover plans for domestic appliances: a service agreement to repair or replace. They are not insurance policies and not a warranty.
- Terms
- Is there an excess, or anything to pay when the engineer comes?
- No. Parts, labour and the callout are in the price of your plan, and there’s nothing to pay on the doorstep.
- Terms
- Is there a limit on repairs, or on what they can cost?
- No. There’s no limit on how many repairs you can have, and no ceiling on what a repair or a replacement can cost.
- Terms
- Is there a waiting period?
- Yes: 60 days on each appliance, from the day it’s added to your plan. A breakdown in that time isn’t covered, and nor is a fault that was already there.
- Exclusions
- What happens if it can’t be repaired?
- We replace it with a new appliance of the same type and a similar specification, delivered and installed, and take the old one away. Nothing is knocked off for its age.
- Terms
- Can I read every exclusion before I pay?
- Yes. They’re all on one page, and it’s the same list as in our terms. If a fault isn’t on it, it’s covered.
- Exclusions
- Can the price go up?
- Not during a plan year. If it’s going to change at renewal, we write to you at least 30 days before.
- Terms
- Can I cancel, and what does it cost?
- Cancel within 14 days for a full refund. After that, cancel at any time, with no fee and no minimum term.
- Terms
- Where does a complaint go?
- To us first: we acknowledge it within 3 working days and give you our final answer within 28 days. The plan isn’t insurance, so the Financial Ombudsman Service can’t look at it. Our final answer tells you about an approved alternative dispute resolution provider you can use.
- Complaints
- Will anyone ring me to sell me something?
- No. We don’t make marketing calls or send marketing emails, and we don’t pass your details to anyone for marketing.
- Privacy
Where we may not suit you
When someone else may suit you better.
You want help at night or at weekends
Our helpdesk is open Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm. Some of the larger providers do run round the clock. If that matters to you, it’s a fair reason to choose one of them instead.
You want accidental damage covered
Ours doesn’t cover it: dropping it, overloading it, putting the wrong thing through it. If that’s your worry, look for cover that says it includes accidental damage, and read what it says.
It’s not one of our eight appliances
We cover washing machines, ovens, fridge freezers, dishwashers, tumble dryers, hobs, microwaves and vacuum cleaners. Anything else, we can’t cover. And on the ones we do, we fix the appliance, not apps, wifi or software.
It’s for a business
Our plans are for domestic appliances in a home. Launderettes, holiday lets run as a business, salons, cafés and commercial kitchens aren’t covered.
And if something is broken right now, cover won’t help today: there’s a waiting period, and a fault that already exists isn’t covered. Book a one-off repair
Paying as you go
What a single repair typically costs.
Does a plan feel right for you?
If cover from us still makes sense, you can see your price in about a minute. If it doesn’t, we’d rather you knew now.