First American Home Warranty Review (2023)

Established in 1984, First American Home Warranty (FAHW) has a long-standing reputation within the home warranty industry. Its parent company, First American Family, was built more than 125 years ago and excels in trust services, title insurance, and real estate solutions.

In this review, we take a closer look at First American Home Warranty, examine the company’s plans, coverage, and pricing, and help you determine if FAHW is the best home warranty for you and your home.

Get a free quote from First American Home Warranty by using the tool below, and receive $100 off when signing up online:

Our Take on First American Home Warranty

We rated First American Home Warranty 4.6 out of 5 stars and named it the home warranty company with the best appliance coverage of 2023. Its generous appliance coverage, 24/7 customer service availability, and B rating from the BBB make it a worthy investment for homeowners living in the states it serves.

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Annual Home Warranty Cost Calculator

Our team created a calculator to break down the estimated annual cost of owning a home warranty. Enter your monthly premium, service call fee, and estimated number of claims to see your projected annual cost. It’s best to request a quote directly from one of our recommended providers, as annual costs and service fees vary between them.

Note: The annual cost figure generated by our home warranty calculator is not an indication of a company’s actual plan cost, as annual costs and service fees vary based on your plan selections and your home’s size, type, and location.

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Pros and Cons of First American Home Warranty

Here are some of the pros and cons of First American Home Warranty:

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First American Home Warranty Plans and Coverage

First American Home Warranty’s coverage includes three plans: the Starter Plan, Essential Plan, and Premium Plan. The Starter and Essential plans cover both major systems and appliances. First American includes a $3,500 coverage limit per appliance. The Premium Plan adds additional coverage, such as faucets and central vacuum systems, plus it increases appliance limits to $7,000 per covered appliance.

Optional Add-Ons

If you need additional coverage after purchasing your base plan, First American Home Warranty has several options, including HVAC tune-ups. After signing up, First American’s sample contract reveals that policyholders have 30 days to add optional coverage to their plan.

Here’s a full list of First American’s optional add-ons:

• Additional refrigeration ($4.17)
• Central air conditioning (Starter Plan only) ($8.33)
• HVAC tune-up ($2.08)
• Limited roof-leak ($8.33)
• Pool/spa equipment ($20.83)
• Septic tank system/pumping ($7.08)
• Water softeners ($7.08)
• Well pump ($7.08)

The company bundles the First American Advantage upgrade with the Essential and Premium plans. This upgrade bundle covers crane installation expenses, code violations, and appliance removal costs.

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Coverage Exclusions

With any home warranty plan, there are certain exclusions, or specific items that your provider will not cover. While it excludes pre-existing conditions from coverage, First American does not limit the age of a system or appliance it protects.

We combed through First American’s sample contract to find some common exclusions, listed below:

• Water Heaters: Holding or storage tanks, flues, vents, and fuel storage tanks
• Heating System: Space heaters, chimneys, filters, and grills
• Kitchen Appliances: Rotisseries, knobs, dials, lock assemblies, and door glass
• Electrical System: Low voltage systems, power surges, timed circuits, and doorbells

Note that First American covers some of the exclusions mentioned above in its Essential and Premium plans.

While home warranty companies offer financial peace of mind and a way to protect your budget from unforeseen expenses, they sometimes put coverage limits on items. For instance, most companies set coverage caps—dollar amounts on certain systems and appliances—that prevent the company from paying for repairs or replacements over that amount.

First American provides coverage limits based on the item or plan in question. Its Starter and Essential plans generally offer a lower coverage cap per item than the Premium Plan. We recommend reading First American’s sample contract to understand coverage limits, exclusions, and limitations better.

Note: Before acquiring a contract, it’s a good practice to document maintenance and service records for your systems and appliances to ensure they are in safe and efficient working order before coverage begins.

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First American Home Warranty Pricing

First American Home Warranty offers competitively priced plans within the home warranty industry. Although its premiums cost slightly more than other providers, First American provides a higher coverage limit for most items. Based on our sample quote, here’s what each plan costs.

• Starter Plan: $47–$62 per month
• Essential Plan: $57–$72 per month
• Premium Plan: $72–$87 per month

A team member purchased a First American plan to test the experience of owning one. He signed up for an automatic renewal policy that charges his credit card monthly.

The Starter Plan is a solid option for homeowners who need comprehensive coverage at a reasonable price. The Essential and Premium plans cater to those who want the best home protection.

Compared to the average home warranty cost, First American pricing is competitive and falls in the middle of the industry average. Typically, home warranties cost between $25–$50 per month, with more comprehensive policies costing upward of $60 per month.

Service Call Fees

A service call fee is standard for most home warranty companies. The policyholder pays this expense when a service provider arrives at their home to address an issue. Our team member confirmed First American charges his credit card on file after he files his claim. First American offers multiple service call fees ranging from $75 to $125.

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Filing a Claim

During our testing process, our team member filed a claim for his garage-door opener. He logged into his online claims portal via his smartphone. The claims portal shows a drop-down menu where you can select the issue you have and confirm your service request. The next window displays three drop-down menus and a text box for you to add additional information to describe the problem.

Once our team member submitted a claim, First American sent a text confirmation and the assigned contractor’s contact information. Within 30 minutes, the contractor contacted him to book an appointment. Our team member filed his claim on a Friday, so the service provider booked a service visit for the following Monday. Our member reported that the contractor arrived on time and repaired his garage-door opener within 30 minutes. According to our team member, the service contractor was efficient, knowledgeable, and professional.

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State Availability

First American Home Warranty is available in 35 states nationwide. However, it is unavailable in Alaska, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Vermont, or Wisconsin. Our team spoke with a First American representative and discovered the company covers select zip codes in the following states: Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Montana, Nebraska, and Washington. The representative said the company won’t cover some zip codes due to it classifying them as high-risk areas.

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First American Home Warranty Reviews

First American Home Warranty has been accredited with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) since 2000 and has a B rating with the company. As with any home warranty provider, First American Home Warranty reviews contain a mix of complaints and praises. Here are a few customer reviews from the BBB:

“I am very happy with the coverage options, ease of placing, and tracking service calls. Staff is friendly and very helpful. This is why I continue to renew my service coverage. It is great to have peace of mind.” — Paul C. on 4/8/2020

“Very good service. They work fast! Was very pleased with the repair we had done!” — Dustin H. on 4/6/2020

“Leak in [the] bathroom tub. At first, [the] vendor said he did the work even though he had never shown up at the house. Then he said he couldn’t access the plumbing, so we opened up the wall ourselves. Then he said he would need to replace more pipe than originally thought. First American Home Warranty refused to approve the work. So, almost 3 weeks lost and First American still refuses to cover an item clearly covered in the policy. Awful!” — J-Mod on 4/8/2020

We also received a First American review from a This Old House reader:

“They have been horrible to deal with for the last four years. Even pre-pandemic the hold times exceeded 30 mins. Resolution to problems was always a week or more. I have been a customer for over 10 years and the first few years were great. They have been terrible lately, with no signs of getting better.” — Ken C. on 8/12/2022

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Our Conclusion

We scored First American Home Warranty a 93 out of 100 rating. The company offers comprehensive home warranty plans, covers improperly installed, modified or maintained items and doesn’t have a coverage cap on cooling, heating, or ductwork. Additionally, First American provides 24/7 customer service and offers flexible payment options for customers.

First American Home Warranty may be a good option if you own an old home, you’re unsure if you own improperly installed or maintained items, or you don’t want coverage caps on essential home systems. It may not be the best option if you live in one of the states that don’t receive coverage.

Get a free First American Home Warranty quote:

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Frequently Asked Questions

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Company Information

• Company name: First American Home Warranty
• Company type: Public
• CEO: Kristin Swan, Principal
• Founding date: February 8, 1984
• Address: P.O. Box 7248
• City/State: Santa Rosa, CA
• Postal code: 95407

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Our Rating Methodology

We back up our home warranty ratings and recommendations with a detailed rating methodology to score each provider objectively. We conduct research by speaking with company representatives, requesting quotes, analyzing sample contracts, and conducting focus groups and consumer surveys. 

We score each provider against our review standards, which include four comparison categories: coverage, value, trust and transparency, and availability and service. We rate each provider across 31 factors within these categories. Each factor is assigned a point value based on its importance to a homeowner, totaling 100 points. We then convert the final scores to a 5-star rating. 

Here’s a breakdown of our weighted factors:

• Coverage (40%): We scored coverage based on included home systems and appliances, add-on options, and unique benefits. We also compared coverage caps and policy exclusions.

• • Additional coverage items
  • Annual coverage cap
  • Home systems coverage
  • Major appliances coverage
  • Obstructed wall coverage cap

• Value (30%): We compared the coverage level received to monthly pricing to determine plan value. We considered premium pricing, service fees, and flexibility in customizing plan costs. 

• • Average monthly cost
  • Cost flexibility
  • Lowest service fee

• Trust and Transparency (16%): We evaluated each company’s reputation using the Better Business Bureau ratings and customer reviews on third-party review sites. We read through plan change policies, workmanship protections, and sample contract availability. 

• • Brand reputation
  • Policy change flexibility
  • Sample contract availability
  • Workmanship guarantee length

• Availability and Service (14%): We award higher scores for faster claim processing and response times. We also considered service technician policies, including options to choose your technician. 

• • Claims process
  • Guaranteed response time
  • Service flexibility

To share feedback or ask a question about this article, send a note to our Reviews Team at reviews@thisoldhousereviews.com.