Shopping for Auto Extended Warranties - Some Useful Resources

If you're looking for extended auto warranties, you may want to review these previous posts of mine:

• Mechanical Breakdown Insurance (MBI) Policies and Credit Unions Part 2
• MBI Policies and Credit Unions Part 1
• MBI Policies from Geico and MBA Direct

Mechanical Breakdown Insurance (MBI) policies are sold by insurance companies and are different than the typical extended auto warranties (also called vehicle service contracts). As mentioned by this California government website:

Consumers may get the most for their money with a mechanical breakdown insurance policy, especially one purchased directly from the insurance company. The price of MBI policies is regulated by the CDI to make sure it is not excessive.

Credit unions can offer both VSC and MBI policies through affiliates. I've mentioned Pentagon Federal Credit Union (PFCU) in previous posts. They offer MBI policies in California and VSC policies outside of California (California does not allow VSCs to be sold on the web). The nice thing about this credit union is that they allow you to get immediate quotes with no email address and with no personal information. Just enter your car information. If you're trying to shop around for the best price, this is a good resource to use.

I've also found another credit union that offers a similar service. It's the Agriculture Federal Credit Union (AFCU).

Here are the links to get quotes from these two credit unions:

• Agriculture FCU's Mechanicale Repair Coverage
• Pentagon FCU's Mechanical Breakdown Protection

I gave both sites a try with the following 3 cars: 2005 Ford Mustang, Jeep Grand Cherokee - 4dr and Honda Accord 2WD. I specified each to be 3 years old and with 36,000 miles. Each quote came with dozens of different coverages. For simplicity, I'll just give the cost of the highest coverages that I received.

• Ford Mustang
  PFCU: 6/21/2013 or 100,000 miles, $0 deductible - cost: $2,120.00
  AFCU: 60/ 60000, $0 deductible - cost: $2,194.00
• Jeep Grand Cherokee - 4dr
  PFCU: 6/21/2013 or 100,000 miles, $0 deductible - cost: $2,735.00
  AFCU: 60/ 60000, $0 deductible - cost: $3,007.00
• Honda Accord 2WD
  PFCU: 6/21/2013 or $100,000 miles, $0 deductible - cost: $1,200.00
  AFCU: 60/ 60000, $0 deductible - cost: $1,235.00

People from any state can qualify to become members of both of these credit unions by joining an association with a one-time fee. Also, both credit unions allow you to join the association at the same time you apply for credit union membership. Refer to this PFCU membership page and this AFCU membership page for more details.