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what's the limit on claims per year? looks interesting for anybody buying an older home - they could get you to replace everything in years one and two
Hi @passingnotes,
You can find the limits by clicking on “Learn More” on the homepage pricing section, which will take you here: https://hellosuper.com/plan-deta....
For the first release of the product, we wanted to be simple, transparent, and consistent with the pricing, which means we did need to add limits. That said, we have set these limits to be comprehensive based on our research and our goal for long-term customer retention. In the future, we will increase and eliminate the limits by personalizing the pricing.
Thanks!
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@joreyramer awesome - because, for example, we have tons of new appliances from a remodel, so it would be nice to recognize the decreased likelihood of failure - looking forward to your move into New England! ;)
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@joreyramer@passingnotes Are the coverage limits yearly or forever? I think your website is great. To me, it feels like you're a technology-enabled Home Warranty company. I understand the concept of subscription and wanting to keep customers for the long term, but most Home Warranties still want you to renew every year. I have been frustrated with the home warranty experience in the past -- mainly due to the fact that you call with a problem and they'll find a loophole to get them out of paying for anything. So I like and value the transparency piece. The price to me still seems a little high per month for the whole home -- $900/year is pretty high considering that most years, none of the appliances/issues will occur. When you couple that with the fact that your service covers up to $1,500 on most things..... I'm not sure the nice website/easy of use/transparency are worth the premium.
@jkent2910@passingnotes
Hi Julie, You’ve done your homework!
Average price nationwide of a home warranty runs $500-600. Our whole home plan purchased on an annual basis is $750. (If you buy annually, you get 12 months for the price of 10.) We charge more, but you get more and we’re committed to better service.
The number one complaint with home warranty companies is service quality, but some customers state “insufficient coverage” (e.g., loopholes) as an issue.
We’ve actually removed many of the restrictions that are common in home warranties, like exclusions related to pre-existing conditions, code violations, and insufficient size or efficiency. With us or anyone else, make sure you read the details.
In order to remove some of these restrictions, we did need to make the limits annual. But as I mentioned earlier, we set the limits to be comprehensive based on our research and our goal of long-term customer retention, and the product will include more over time.
Thanks!
The critical question. Distribution. How do you get this in front of home owners in a way that doesn't cost a fortune? I talk to real estate tech entrepreneurs regularly, and reaching consumers is an insanely challenging proposition for all. Are you thinking through having agents/brokers distribute this to their clients, and give them either branding or money?
@drewmeyers Here’s the good news. If you read the @passingnotes thread above, there’s already precedent. Existing incumbents distribute product through both direct and indirect channels. If we achieve our vision of a higher NPS, that would mean we should have lower churn, higher LTV, and therefore larger CAC to play with. Further, there are many companies that refuse to distribute product from the incumbents because of their poor service quality. This means we have distribution opportunities available to us that are not available to them. Thanks!
@joreyramer A great product is necessary in any case. But I still don't really buy the "build it and they will come". Strategically partnering somehow with those servicing the transaction would seem to make a lot of sense for you.
The pricing on the homepage appears to conflict with what's shown in the terms page. The terms alludes to there being a repair fee (which could change when the service provider comes out to do the work). The pricing page simply says there is a copay (a la an hmo health insurance plan). If I sign up today and next year my a/c stops working am I paying the copay only or the actual cost of the repair which could be upwards of several thousand dollars?
@mikekhristo Hi Mike, Good catch! In the "terms of coverage" on the purchase page, you will see the term "service charge" or "co-pay" used interchangeably. This is what you pay when the repair is fully covered.
We also have a “terms of service” that applies towards home services outside of coverage. And here you’ve found a bit of an easter egg! Need an appliance repair on-demand without a subscription in our launch market? Book a repair today at https://hellosuper.com/appliance.... The term “repair fee” in the terms of service relates specifically to that.
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@joreyramer@mikekhristo That's the one thing here that I would recommend reworking: all of this language. It's far from transparent and doesn't inspire confidence. The challenges of offering an "insurance-like" product are rough from a legalese perspective, but it can be done in plain language while keeping the lawyers happy.
@kkdub@mikekhristo Hi Kelly, I’m with you. We’re doing something very different here, and we’re constantly working towards making this information easy, simple, and transparent while still keeping it kosher with the lawyers. :) Thanks!
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I'd love to hear how Super compares to Home Warranty Services like AHS (https://www.ahs.com/) . My gut says its convenience (self-serve, app based) and quality of service (traditional home warranty companies are not looked at in high regard), which would make this a true contender in the space. Would love to hear your thoughts @joreyramer!
@trever: I love this question, so please excuse me if I answer it passionately. :)
The home warranty industry has been around for 40 years and for the past ten years have had the highest percentage of poor grades among Angie’s List categories. (http://www.angieslist.com/news-r...)
Home warranties have a good value proposition, but I’ve spoken with many consumers who are incredibly frustrated with the quality of the service delivery. Fundamentally, if you sell a one year warranty, quality service is less important. We are a subscription business designed for you to take throughout the lifespan of your home; quality is absolutely critical.
Further, their value proposition is incomplete (lacking maintenance and other home service categories), and it does not deliver the experience that I’m looking for (see Medium post above).
I look at the home warranty industry and say that it’s time to use what many technology-focused companies have already done: use mobile to gain more visibility into service processes, track more comprehensive metrics to determine who can best serve a customer, and personalize a service offering for the specifics of the customer, in this case a homeowner, their home, and their needs.
Thanks!
@joreyramer@trever sorry, but I don't buy it.
We are a subscription business designed for you to take throughout the lifespan of your home; quality is absolutely critical. -> Actually in order for your business to succeed in the long term, quality is not critical....margins are. You are not commercially incentivized to supply the highest quality (highest cost) in your cost model when you decide you want to turn a profit. During a growth phase, I can see how quality is key, but given what appears to be an easy cancellation from a customer, how do you expect to maintain your customers (i.e. eliminate churn), provide 5-star service providers and still create healthy enough margins? I'm curious to understand how software here is aligning every involved party to that aim.
use mobile to gain more visibility into service processes -> how is a mobile app going to determine whether an air duct repairman knows what he is talking about when fixing my air duct? This seems to be the biggest issue as a homeowner - I have no idea whether the person on the other side is telling the truth or is knowledgable. Their processes, as it relates to the overall cost of delivery are usually not the issue.
track more comprehensive metrics to determine who can best serve a customer -> which metrics precisely?
personalize a service offering for the specifics of the customer, in this case a homeowner, their home, and their needs -> given the complexities of customer needs and varieties of households, this sounds incredibly manual (and don't foresee it being automated away with software)
Your home page looks wonderful, easy to use, and the service *appears* to be a joy to consume, but with things like this, the devil is in the details.
@mbesto@trever Hi Mike! Let me summarize and answer your questions one by one:
Q: How do you balance margins and customer quality, and how does software help?
A: This is a complex topic, but things work differently for us as a commercial entity than they do for a consumer. A service provider is not simply a single entity. We work with one of the highest rated service providers in one particular region. Within their organization, they have many technicians with different skills and quality work. A consumer will pay the highest retail rate regardless of the technician onsite. We are a commercial entity and may pay different amounts based on the type of engagement. With greater visibility into these aspects, technology helps match the need with the required work and cost.
Q: How is a mobile app going to determine whether an air duct repairman knows what he is talking about when fixing my air duct?
A: The mobile app doesn’t, but we do. Going back to the previous example, only one technician within that service provider is trained to repair a sealed system. We know who. If you call and get a different technician for a broken refrigerator, he may need to send his co-worker back for a second visit if you need that type of repair.
Q: Which metrics precisely?
A: Well we can’t give away all our secrets on Product Hunt! :) But some things are obvious. Was a servicer on-time? How long did a repair take? Which technician performed the service? What were the symptoms, solution, and costs? And more.
Q: How can we personalize a service offering with technology?
A: Some things are simple. Do you have gutter guards? That makes a big difference on gutter cleaning frequency. Some things are difficult. The point is that there has never been a technology company in market aggregating this data for the purposes of building a subscription model for consumers. Now there is.
I totally agree the devil is in the details. We love those details! Thanks!
Do americans not have home insurance? I'm British, just bought my first house and to get a mortgage its a requirement to have home insurance. It seems to me that this product, if I understand it correctly, is something that we have as a bit of a standard here.
If that is true it's pretty surprising this hasn't happened sooner. Looks like the makers have executed this really well.
Hi @samcambridge,
I’m glad you asked! Home insurance covers things that happen to the home like fire, wind, hail, lightning, and theft. These things may never happen to your home. Mortgage companies require home insurance to protect the value of your home in case of default.
We cover things not protected by home insurance, like breakdowns in systems and appliances. These things will absolutely happen to your home.
Many thanks for your comment!
@joreyramer ah I see! I have accidental cover which helps incase of accidental damage but If my cooker dies I'm screwed :)! Perhaps you should make the differences between your service + insurance a little more obvious?
@samcambridge: I appreciate the feedback. We’ll do that. Thanks!
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This is a super (see what I did there) interesting product. I have owned many a home, and have never been satisfied by the home warranty companies. That said, they've typically come with purchase (seller purchases one for the buyer), and I have made claims against them.
One of the things I like about them (perhaps the only?) is that most will offer to just cut you a check instead of having to use them to actually fix the service. Meaning, I had a broken A/C unit. Unfortunately I had to call the home warranty company 3 different times, because after putting duct-tape on it twice they finally realized it was a gonner. But instead of having to wait a week and a half for them to provide the lowest quality replacement, they cut me a check which I put towards something better.
Perhaps some detail on those types of issues would be helpful... do you replace like for like. Is getting a service-person out there a complete hassle? How do you vet the service people? Are they likely to try and continually fix something that is likely past its useful life, or past the typical point where one would decide the benefit of new, maintenance free is nicer than having to continually have folks out to keep fixing?
The coverages are also a bit confusing. Though less-so than a 50 page home warranty terms contract. But it isn't 100% obvious to me. So are the things on the "maintenance schedule" page basically not covered? You note: "We regularly send you information on how to maintain your home to prevent disruptive or dangerous problems from happening. We make it easy to understand how to do it yourself or ask us to do it for you for an additional fee.". So these maintenance items aren't covered... but you potentially make it easier by going through Super to get it fixed? And there's some kind of point or reward system? Things like gutter cleaning, dry vent exhaust cleaning, chimney sweep, etc. are definitely some of those pesky little maintenance items that are in many ways more of a headache then the "big break" type things. On the quarterly service reward, do those accumulate, or is it use-it or lose-it?
I understand why you're doing the co-pay plans... but would just note, including co-pays in the plans makes it feel a lot more old-school, confusing, insurance. As a consumer, now I'm trying to do math in my head. And worse, when my wife is calling for repairs, but isn't clear what plan we're on, whether there is a co-pay or not, etc. it just seems like a hassle. You start thinking "I'm paying $x per month, and then another $y per co-pay, and have had this many breaks... is this really a better way, or am I paying more??"
With a big family, this is the type of service we'd love... i wouldn't even mind the premium plan, if some of those maintenance things were included... I recognize there's a quarterly reward.. but it's hard to understand how much service that will get you... it's not easy to say "I have a $100 reward this quarter, I'm going to use exactly that $100" ... I'd rather have 1 free maintenance procedure per quarter.
Sorry for all the stream of consciousness questions and comments!
@jeremyz123 Jeremy, LOTS of questions. Love it. Let me summarize and answer your questions:
Q: Do we replace like-for-like and/or cut checks?
A: Yes!
Q: Is getting a service-person a complete hassle?
A: NO! We want to make this as easy as possible for you. You can contact us via desktop, tablet, or mobile. You can email, text, or call. Whatever you’d like!
Q: How do you vet the service people?
A: See response to @corleyh above!
Q: Are you likely to try and continually fix something?
A: No, we won’t beat a dead horse. :) We’re working to re-imagine the service experience. It’s expensive to roll a truck, and it’s annoying for a homeowner to have more visits. So obviously, you and I both want to avoid that. BTW, when you get a higher quality service provider, they have better metrics when it comes to the number of visits and the total time to get something fixed.
Q: So are the things on the "maintenance schedule" page basically not covered? Do you make it easier by going through Super? Is there some kind of point or reward system?
A: Maintenance items are not “covered”, but all product levels come with “service rewards”. Service rewards are money you can spend on any home service coordinated by our concierge, but we’d LOVE to see you apply it towards maintenance. We will be launching programs that give you even more service rewards. On a first version of the product, it’s tough to know who needs which maintenance components. But since everyone has breakdowns, we cover breakdowns for everyone.
Q: On the quarterly service reward, do those accumulate, or is it use-it or lose-it?
A: The quarterly service rewards are use-it-or-lose it. As we launch additional service reward programs, we may extend service rewards.
Q: What’s up with co-pays?
A: Yeah, I hate the old-school sounding stuff too, but we wanted to use a term that people instantly understood. As for why we did it, different people have different preferences. Hate co-pays? Our premium home subscription comes with a $0 co-pay. Want a lower monthly subscription? Go with a co-pay. Up to you!
Q: Service rewards vs a free maintenance procedure.
A: I hear you. On a first version of the product, it’s tough to know who needs what. I need gutter cleaning right now, but I wouldn’t as much if I had a gutter guard. But stay tuned! There will be more and more of what you’re asking for as we progress!
Thanks!!
Do you see any aspect of this service being geared towards rental property owners? Not large commercial landlords, but those who have 1-2 investment units/properties.
@paul_hq I’m glad you asked. This is a great product for a primary residence or a rented out secondary residence.
When you have a renter at a secondary residence, you have a predictable monthly mortgage and predictable monthly income, but the maintenance and repair costs are unpredictable. By flattening those costs, we make life easier for landlords, AND the renter gets a great service experience.
It’s great for a full-time rental property, and it’s also great if you’re a host on Airbnb!
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