The Coverage Schedule: The Page That Names Your Home, Your Appliances, and Your Terms

Most service contracts for a house are read as a list of what they cover, but the page that deserves your attention first is usually the one that says what the contract is attached to. Many agreements include a coverage schedule, sometimes called a declarations page or a summary of terms, near the front. It records the particulars of your agreement, and it is worth reading before the rest.

What the schedule usually records

Check the property address against your home exactly, including any unit number or lot description that appears. Find the start date and the length of the term. Find the list of appliances and systems the agreement names, and compare that list with what is actually in your house, because an item missing from the schedule is an item the contract may not address at all.

Look for the service call fee, which is the amount you pay the company each time a technician comes out for a covered problem. Look for the annual cap, which is the most the company will pay toward covered repairs during one contract year. Look for the name of the obligor, which is the company legally responsible for paying claims under the contract. Some schedules also state a waiting period, the stretch of time after the contract begins during which claims for certain items are not yet accepted.

Compare the schedule with what you were told

Place the schedule beside your written quote and any notes you made during a sales call. If the quote mentions a fee or a cap that the schedule does not show, or the schedule lists an item nobody discussed with you, ask for a written explanation before you agree. Keep a copy of every version you receive and note the day each one arrived, so you can show later which version you relied on.

Questions worth asking

Ask which document controls if the schedule and the full contract say different things. Ask whether the obligor named on the schedule is the same company that will answer your calls and process your requests. Ask how the schedule changes if you add an item later, and whether that change will be sent to you in writing. Ask what happens to any waiting period if you cancel and later sign up again.

For published figures on these same points across several companies, see Twelve home warranty companies compared, term by term. If you would like to read a full agreement before you commit, the sample contract page shows which companies make their agreements available to read in advance.