Get A Load Of This

You always hear on those investigative TV reports during ratings sweeps time that you shouldn't trust repairmen. The air conditioning guy might break a part in the compressor so he can charge you more to fix it, the electrician may start talking "electrese" so he can convince you that you need more work done than you really do.

Well today, the washing machine repairman came to see why our 4-year old front-loader was making so much noise in the final spin cycle. He was very nice, clean-cut, and seemed to know what he was talking about. In fact, he told me what the problem was on the phone before he even arrived. After he explained the mechanics of the washer to me, he went to his truck to input the model number into the main computer to see what it would cost to fix the machine.

Ready?

$670!

He told me that a whole new washing machine wouldn't be much more. When I told him that I shouldn't have to buy a whole new washer every four years, he said "I've seen 'em go bad after ONE year." He also said that the $62 dollars I paid today to have him tell me the bad news could be applied to the repairs, but that the repairs were only guaranteed for 90 days.

So now I'm trying to figure out his game. Is he trying to talk me into repairing the machine or buy a new one? And if all the experts say that extended warranties are supposed to be such a bad deal, why do I feel that by not getting one I've been hung out to dry?