First Premier Home Warranty Review

Company Overview

First Premier Home Warranty was founded in 1989, and offers home warranty plans across 48 states. The company is proud of its technician screening process, which aims to rigorously check the work and reputation of contractors before they are employed. First Premier is based in New York City. 

First Premier Home Warranties are very competitively priced, and offer a good level of coverage. However, they are not available in California, and the company provides little information to customers before they sign up. This makes it difficult to assess the level of service the company offers.

States Covered

First Premier offers home warranty plans in all US states except California and Iowa. That means you can get plans in all of the following states:

• Alabama
• Alaska
• Arizona
• Arkansas
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• Florida
• Georgia
• Hawaii
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Maine
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Montana
• Nebraska
• Nevada
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New Mexico
• New York
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Utah
• Vermont
• Virginia
• Washington
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin
• Wyoming

Available Plans

First Premier offers two levels of home warranty plans: the Premier Plan, the Platinum plan. There are also optional add-ons for each plan. They encourage customers to fill out some key information before providing the cost of these plans. However, our research suggests that the cost of the plans are quite similar no matter where you live, and is highly competitive. 

First Premier offers a good level of coverage in comparison to other companies. The Premier plan covers most basic house equipment, and the Platinum plan covers more complicated, expensive systems such as air conditioning and heating systems. The Optional plan provides extra coverage for larger AC systems, swimming pools, and septic systems.

Here is what each plan covers:

Real Estate Plans

First Premier also offers home warranty plans for real estate professionals. However, the company provided us with little information about how these differ from their standard consumer home warranty plans. 

If you are a real estate professional and you are interested in the plans offered by First Premier, you can download a brochure on the company’s website.

Plan Pricing

The pricing for First Premier Home Warranty plans is available for customers who request a quote by providing personal information. While the information requested includes state of residence, our research we found that the cost of their plans was identical across several states.

It was also highly competitive relative to other leading home warranty companies. A Premier plan in either New York or Missouri would cost $419 per year, and a Platinum Plan in either state $499. This puts the average cost of a First Premier plan at $459, significantly lower than many other companies, whose plans can cost more than $500 annually.

In fact, the average cost of a First Premier plan was the lowest of any we surveyed – $459 per year. This compares to an industry-wide average of $574, potentially the average consumer more than $100 a year. 

This is reflected in their service fees as well. The industry-wide average service fee is about $82. With service fees ranging from $60 to $75, First Premier offers good value when it comes to these fees.

This lower price doesn’t appear to limit the coverage offered by these plans, which is in line with other companies in this industry. First Premier offers monthly and annual plans, as well, so it’s possible to get a home warranty plan for a limited period.

Optional Add-Ons

First Premier Home Warranty also offers a good level of coverage for items and machinery that is generally more expensive to fix. Pricing for this coverage ranges from $25 per year for add-ons like central vacuum or sump pump coverage to $150 per year for coverage on items like a pool or spa. A wide range of items can be covered, including:

• Central Vacuum 
• Free Standing Ice Maker 
• Limited Roof Leak 
• Pool / Spa 
• Refrigerator Ice Maker 
• Second Refrigerator 
• Septic Pumping 
• Septic System 
• Stand Alone Freezer 
• Sump Pump 
• Water Softener 
• Well Pump 

Types of Damage Covered

First Premier offered little information about the types of damage their warranties cover, and no sample contract was available to our researchers. Because of this lack of information, we encourage buyers to carefully check the contract they sign with First Premier, and to seek assurances from the company that their policies will cover damage to high-cost items.

Plan Exclusions

The below items were not included in First Premier's list of coverage:

• Cosmetic items like knobs, rollers, handles, and doors
• Air conditioning maintenance and associated registers or grills
• Sediment build-up or reservoir tanks for water heater coverage
• Damage caused by acts of God like theft, fire, and storm damage

Plans generally won’t cover routine maintenance, cosmetic defects or system or appliance upgrades. Coverage doesn’t apply if a system or appliance stops working because of misuse or abuse. It also doesn’t cover malfunctions due to lightning strikes or fire; for protection from these events, you need homeowners insurance.

Payout Caps and Limitations

Home warranty plans typically have caps and limitations, and First Premier’s plans are no different. Our research suggests, however, that First Premier are fairly generous when it comes to these limits – we were told that the payout cap for their policies is $15,000 per item per year.

Some home warranty companies limit the amount that can be paid out per item, and some limit the total aggregate payout they will make per year. Almost every other plan we’ve researched has a stricter limit than First Premier, though. 

Again, since the company does not provide sample contracts on its website, it is difficult to ascertain whether this general payout cap is applicable in all cases. Because of this, customers are encouraged to check with the company if there are payout caps associated with specific items.

Claim Response Time

First Premier notes that typically, technicians will respond to your problem within 24 to 48 hours. The company is proud of its screening process, which it says ensures that contractors are vetted thoroughly.

However, in terms of response time for claims First Premier’s stated performance is ahead of all other competitors at 20 minutes. This likely means that they will respond to emails or messages in that time frame in order to start the claim and schedule a repair person to come out to investigate. Many of First Premier’s competitors have much longer claim response times - up to 72 hours. 

Customer Service and Claims Process

First Premier offers three ways to get in touch with them – via their website, business email, or phone. Their contact details are as follows:

• Online: https://firstpremierhomewarranty.com/contact-us/
• Email: info@firstpremierhomewarranty.com
• Phone: 1-800-388-1918

No further information is provided, and the company does not appear to have a mailing address. They do not set out customer service expectations in the information they provide on their website.

However, in our research the company was quick to respond to claims. They responded to our request within 20 minutes, which is much faster than many of their competitors. 

Customer Satisfaction

First Premier’s customer satisfaction scores are respectable. On the website Better Business Bureau, where customers can share reviews of companies, our team found 55 reviews of First Premier. This is a low number in comparison to many other home warranty companies, but the average rating of these reviews wasn’t bad, at 3.82 out of 5 stars. 

First Premier vs. the Competition

Let’s compare the service offered by First Premier with that provided by American Home Shield Warranty. American Home Shield was founded in 1971 and, with more than 9,000 BBB reviews to its name, is well established in the industry. 

Here’s how the two companies compare:

In principle, First Premier is a better deal than American Home Shield on almost every measure. As long as you live in a state that they cover, First Premier provides inexpensive home warranties without compromising on cost.

The disadvantage is that the company is a relatively new one, and hasn’t had time to build up trust among customers. At the moment, the company appears to be doing well when it comes to providing customer satisfaction, but cautious customers might prefer to go with a more established company.

First Premier FAQs

How Much Does First Premier Home Warranty Cost?

The average cost of a First Premier Home Warranty plan in our research was $459. The company requires you to provide information in order to get a quote, but it doesn’t seem to matter where you live.

What Does First Premier Home Warranty Cover?

First Premier's lowest-tier plan includes coverage for the following:

• Plumbing System
• Plumbing Stopage
• Water Heater
• Whirlpool Bathtub
• Electrical System
• Oven/Range/Stove
  
• Cooktop
  
• Sump Pump
  
• Built-in Microwave
  
• Dishwasher
  
• Garbage Disposal
  
• Trash Compactor
  
• Ductwork
  
• Garage Door Opener
  
• Ceiling & Exhaust Fans
  
• A/C System (2 Units)
  
• Heating System (2 Units)
• Clothes Washer
• Refrigerator
  
• Clothes Dryer
  

First Premier’s mid-range plan (the Platinum plan), covers:

• Plumbing System
• Plumbing Stopage
• Water Heater
• Whirlpool Bathtub
• Electrical System
• Oven/Range/Stove
• Cooktop
• Sump Pump
• Built-in Microwave
• Dishwasher
• Garbage Disposal
• Trash Compactor
• Ductwork
• Garage Door Opener
• Ceiling & Exhaust Fans

What Doesn’t First Premier Home Warranty Cover?

First Premier weren’t able to provide us with a list of exclusions to their plan, so customers are advised to read their contracts carefully.

How Much Is The First Premier Home Warranty Service Fee?

Service fees for First Premier home warranty services range from $60 to $75.

Can You Cancel First Premier Home Warranty For Free?

Yes. You can cancel First Premier Home Warranty plans at no cost. Not all home warranty companies offer this provision so it is a very consumer-friendly policy for those who change their mind.

How Do You File a Claim With First Premier Home Warranty?

First Premier offers three ways to get in touch with them – via their website, business email, or phone. Their contact details are as follows:

• Online: https://firstpremierhomewarranty.com/contact-us/
• Email: info@firstpremierhomewarranty.com
• Phone: 1-800-388-1918

Methodology

There are several aspects to consider when evaluating a home warranty company and its coverages. To assist in your decision process, our methodology for reviewing home warranties includes a quantified scoring system that evaluates four major categories - total plan cost, coverage and support, customizability and transparency. Within those four major evaluation categories we look at 18 core features that include annual plan fees and service fees, claim response times, payout caps, states available, contract length range, customizable coverages, ability to use own repair person, free cancelation, plan pricing, plan exclusions and other plan provisions available online. We assign fractional score values ranging from 0.00 to 1.00 points for each feature and then weight those feature values according to subject matter expert advice and consumer survey importance ranking.  We also compare features for each company to industry average values determined from our data collection for the top 25 home warranty providers. Third-party ratings and customer satisfaction scores are factored in to help assess a home warranty company’s overall quality, suitability and value.