Home warranty companies can be great for rental properties, but they can also lead to frustration. Make sure to read the fine print in your home warranty policy to understand what is and is not covered. Cheaper home warranty companies tend to have substandard service professionals, so we recommend selecting one of the more reputable companies in your area.
The good news is that our repair coordinators work with all home warranty companies, unless it is an after-hours emergency, with the following guidelines.
1. Requirements to Submit a Request
You must add your home warranty company as a service professional. Under Maintenance and Repair, click Service Pros and add the name and phone number for your home warranty company. Then click Instructions and, under Additional Instructions, add the following:
- Policy holder information
- Contract or policy number
- Dates for the policy
- Phone number
It is also a good idea for the policy holder to call the home warranty company and let them know that Hemlane is authorized to submit, revise, and follow up on claims for their account.
2. Handling of Emergencies and Urgent Requests
In most cases, a home warranty will not follow through with the required turnaround time for emergency situations. We have seen many cases where a warranty company says they will call back in 2 hours with a service professional, and the 2 hours becomes 2 days, since once assigned, the vendor has 48 hours to contact the tenant to schedule. Tenants can get very upset in these situations. The maintenance coordinators may go outside of your home warranty company and, based on the situation, will use their best discretion to preserve the safety of residents and prevent damage to your home.
3. Billing and Payment Process
Essential Package
- We highly recommend that your credit card is on file with the home warranty company and that you authorize it to be charged for every service call. Not all home warranty companies will keep your card on file, and some require payment before a claim can be submitted. In this case, either the owner or management, or the tenant, will need to submit the claim with the warranty company.
- If you want Hemlane to pay rather than leaving a card on file, you must upgrade to the Complete package.
Complete Package
- Hemlane will pay the service call fee using a one-time use credit card and charge it back to the account you selected for Maintenance Billing.
What Happens After the Warranty Assigns a Vendor?
Once the home warranty has assigned a service professional, we lose a significant amount of visibility. When the warranty confirms that a vendor has been assigned, we will notify the tenant with the vendor’s name and contact number, if provided, so they can schedule and follow up through completion. Please keep in mind that the policy holder may still need to be involved if the home warranty company sends notifications to them instead of Hemlane, or if additional authorization or payment is needed.
How Do I Add My Home Warranty Information?
Step 1: Select Maintenance and Repair on the left-hand main menu.
Step 2: Click the Instructions tab and select the property you would like to update.
Step 3: Scroll down the menu and select Additional Instructions on the left menu.
Step 4: Enter the following information:
- Home warranty name
- Home warranty phone number
- Contract or policy number
- Policy holder name
- Policy holder email
- Policy holder phone number
- Web login info, if applicable (optional)
Step 5: Add your home warranty company as a service professional and check all categories. For more information on how to add a service professional, click here.
Keywords: home warranty, warranty plan, insurance plan, service plan, coverage, home coverage