American Home Warranty Magazine

Home warranties, which have been around for years, originally gained popularity with real estate companies which used them to promote listing services. They promised that warranties would attract buyers and the seller would be protected from repercussions if appliances or systems broke in the days or weeks after closing. Agents also found that home warranties saved occasional sales when they purchased them for buyers spooked by an unfavorable home inspection.

Buyers appreciated the home warranty and they did offer protection to the seller from some post-sale problems, but they probably weren't a major factor in choosing a house or an agent. The early home warranty was also limited in coverage and loaded with restrictions and exclusions. For many years they were a niche product primarily associated only with the buying and selling of property.

Now home warranties are bursting out all over, and marketing is no longer targeted to the home seller. Warranties are available for purchase by buyers, sellers, existing homeowners…

Each year, American Home Warranty Magazine surveys millions of consumers around the world to gather

their opinions and expectations about the products and services they purchase. This information is used to compile rankings based on product quality, customer satisfaction, or other industry-specific metrics that gauge company performance.

This year, National Home Protection ranked number one, 4th year in a row!

I had the recent pleasure of speaking with NHP's Customer Service Manager, Richard Sanders. "So what's the secret behind NHP", I asked. "Very simple", he said. "You don’t just want satisfied customers – you want loyal customers. This is important because many companies, including our competitors, make similar products; and it’s often the service that differentiates them. This being said, you have to surprise customers, which means giving them better service.

To customers, National Home Protection is best known for its "can do" and "will do" attitude. It is that warm and fuzzy feeling that brings...