CarShield Reviews
CarShield Review: Is it Worth Buying?
CarShield is a company offering a range of vehicle service protection plans, stating they are one of the most popular extended car warranty companies doing business since 2005.
The company claims to protect its customers from costly auto repairs, no matter how new or old the vehicle is. They have service plans designed for every stage of automobile ownership.
Below we take a look at their coverage options and help you answer some popular questions, most importantly whether this service is worth it or not.
How Does CarShield Work?
CarShield offers a simple and personalized experience to receive protection for your automobile.
First, potential customers request a free quote, personalizing the information to their vehicle. Doing so allows for an accurate quote.
Next you and CarShield will work on developing a personalized plan that will realistically fit your budget and lifestyle.
Once you're enrolled you can reach out to their claims department in case of any mechanical issues with your vehicle, including emergency breakdown.
If the issue is covered by your plan, CarShield will pay the mechanic directly and you’ll be responsible for the deductible and any overage charges.
This business model provides protection for customers when their vehicle is past the coverage terms of their existing warranty, or for those who've decided to prepare for worst case scenarios with an older high mileage vehicle.
This sounds simple enough, but potential customers should be aware that CarShield plans come with a variety of important caveats.
Almost all online complaints about CarShield come from customers who never fully read their service contracts and are disappointed to find that an expensive car repair bill is denied by CarShield.
CarShield Plans and Coverage
CarShield plans include a variety of services, including 24/7 roadside assistance, choice of mechanic for repairs, courtesy towing, and rental car eligibility.
Unlike a dealer purchased car warranty, CarShield offers you a vehicle service contract. The main difference being that a 3rd party (called an obligator), such American Auto Shield, administers your protection plan.
This allows CarShield to offer 6 different protection plans with a variety of options, and allows for repairs to be made at any dealership or repair facility certified by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE).
If you want the highest level of coverage the Diamond Plan will cover the following items:
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The lower priced plans cover fewer items allowing you to select the level of coverage vs price you want.
In your contract you will also have a detailed breakdown of what CarShield does not cover.
This includes, but is not limited to:
- Sheet metal, Hoses, Trim, Weatherstripping, & Lighting
- Spark plugs and wires
- External nuts, bolts, or fasteners
- Parts that have been modified or altered
- Wear-and-tear components such as brake pads and air filters
- Damage caused by acts of nature, collision, vandalism, or lack of proper maintenance
- Auto repairs that have been made without pre-authorization from a CarShield claims representative
- Misuses such as racing or off-road driving
- Tampering with the odometer
- Pre-existing mechanical issues
- Damage from a non-covered part
It’s important to understand the potential implication of some of these exclusions.
For instance, one customer review that we found detailed a situation where coverage of the repair of a covered part was denied because it was deemed the part failed due to a fault in the external fasteners.
Extra Benefits:
If a qualified repair is quoted for more than 4 hours of labor, CarShield will offer up to $40 per day for a rental vehicle.
*Additional Notes of Importance*
If you’re thinking of signing up for CarShield to deal with impending repairs, be aware that the company has a 20-day/500-mile waiting period, along with the aforementioned clause against covering pre-existing issues.
When it comes to the actual repairs, they state that part replacement may include new, used or remanufactured parts of like kind and quality.
Customer Service
If you have a more general question or comment, you are able to leave a message on their website’s contact page. All you have to do is leave your email, phone number and name.
If you are ready to get a quote you can call 800-277-7170.
For more specific issues, questions or concerns relating to customer service, they have specific numbers for different services you may be needing.
1-800-380-2165 for United Car Care
1-800-531-1925 for American Auto Shield
1-800-492-6762 for INDS
1- 866-222-7869 for Roadside Assistance
Cost & Price Plans
To get the true cost of your plan you have to go through the full process of getting a quote.
However, on average, the cost of a plan is between $99.99 and $129.99 per month.
The obvious key variables will be the plan you choose, vehicle make and model, and mileage.
In general, Car Shield offers competitive prices when compared to other popular extended warranty companies on the market.
Customer Reviews & Complaints
Positive Reviews
We found a range of customer experiences with CarShield from online customer reviews.
There are many positive reviews with customers stating that the company is dependable and allows them to feel that their vehicle is being properly protected.
From needing towing to mechanical breakdowns, some people have found that CarShield is able to cover a variety of claims for them, ranging from serious to less serious.
Customers cite that CarShield offer plans that many other companies do not - from service plans on older cars, to extremely flexible price options.
They also get decent marks for customer service and people seem very pleased with the service when everything goes right.
Negative Reviews
On the other hand there are a lot of complaints and customer service horror stories detailed in many angry reviews.
In general most of the bad reviews come from instances where customers were unexpectedly denied coverage, were not happy with their reimbursement totals, or their mechanics had difficulties obtaining payment from CarShield.
The company has an F rating with the BBB and, on that platform, they have a rating of 1.4/5 stars from an average of 1,421 customer reviews.
From reading those negative reviews you can see instances where using CarShield can be frustrating and not seem worth it.
Many complaints pertaining to serious high dollar repairs described a difficult process full of bureaucratic pitfalls.
In some cases claims adjusters will require detailed maintenance records & receipts for your vehicle in an attempt to prove pre-existing conditions or blame the breakdown on a lack of routine maintenance.
Further some unhappy customers found that CarShield doesn’t distinguish the difference whether the lack of routine car maintenance comes from the vehicle's current owner or previous owner.
Other people had issues with the fact that the rental car they were getting was not covered for enough time.
One important detail to keep in mind is that the company relies on a “nationally recognized labor guide” to determine repair rates. If your mechanic’s rates and labor hours quoted are above that, you will have to pay the price difference yourself.
Another issue that customers raised is that some mechanics refuse to work with CarShield, precisely due to some of these additional issues they encounter when trying to collect payment.
On a positive note, it does appear that CarShield has an active customer service team that replies to online complaints, albeit not always with what customers want to hear.
CarShield Alternatives
While what CarShield is doing is different from many companies that protect vehicles, they do have competitors as well.
CarShield vs. Endurance Warranty
Endurance Warranty is another popular choice for vehicle protection by American citizens. It, for the most part, has very similar offers to CarShield.
However, it specifically specializes in extending warranties on cars, as the name suggests. When comparing CarShield vs Endurance Auto Warranty, the latter has been in business since 1988, making it more experienced than CarShield.
That being said, Endurance Warranty seems to offer less personalized or flexible plans. Another alternative that you may want to consider for vehicle protection is Toco Auto Warranty. It runs, again, pretty similarly to CarShield.
CarShield vs. Toco Warranty
Toco allows you to bring your vehicle to any repair shop of choice to fix it in case of mechanical issues and promises that you will not need to make any down payments.
It would seem the main difference is that Toco Warranty seems to offer more varying plans, which will cover less or more of your vehicle.
CarShield vs. Liberty Auto Warranty
This company has been protecting vehicles for over 40 years and offers extremely flexible prices, along with 6 months without payments.
However, their plans seem to be less personalized to your specific case and vehicle than CarShield’s.
All of these options run somewhat similarly, with minor differences here and there.
It would be best to request a free quote from the different companies and get a feel for their style of customer service before you choose one.
Is CarShield Worth It?
Buying a used car can be a risky endeavor and people want assurances that their investment will be protected.
CarShield provides those assurances, but keep in mind that they are a for-profit business.
Their service contract is designed in a way where they will put the burden of proof on the customer and their mechanic to show that costly repairs are due to mechanical failures and not due to neglect.
If you’re confident that you can clear those hurdles, then one of their extended warranties may be a good bet on a high mileage vehicle.
It will also help to thoroughly read the CarShield service contract and ask as many questions of the sales rep as possible to ensure that you understand all of the terms and conditions of the service.
If you have any experience with CarShield or their services, please leave your reviews below.
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CarShield Customer Reviews
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CA not covered, NO false advertisements
Why do California get CarShield commercial ads when IT DOES NOT cover Californians vehicles? This is annoying and doesn't make sense.
Don't fall for the crooked sales pitch
Customer Service
Very disappointed with this Car Shield company. After a cancellation of my policy they kept withdrawing payments from my bank and I couldn't get a refund back. I asked for the recording of the call and they denied showing it to me.
Worse ever
I've had to use Car Shields service 3 times for my F250, this was at a FORD dealer. The first time it was for front end work, they paid for labor and only 30% for part which I had to dig in my pocket. The second and third time they would not cover. I have my F250 in a shop now for a fuel return and of course they won't cover. Their claim is it's not a covered part, so here is another $800.00 repair that I have to pay for. So what are they good for If you have to pay for yourself. Take the money that you would pay them and save it and you will be ahead of the game.
Run From CarShield
Zero stars if I could, The worst service I ever had in my life, the worst warranty service I ever had in my life.
These people are sending me around and around, even the repair shop was concerned about the treatment that I was receiving from them because normally a claim doesn’t take that long and he can’t understand why they put me through a lot for something they take money out of my account for every month.
I’m a gold star member and this is the first time I’ve used this service, and they put me through hell and back, also referring to the repair shop speaking about this is unusual. I would never refer anyone to them, the minute they approve my claim I’m canceling them...
Doesn't cover squat shield!
Even with their premium high cost plans costing thousands of dollars per year, they don't cover squat. Multiple times we've had our car to a real quality ASE certified dealership for repairs and Car Shield offered to pay pennies for the repairs. Literally about 30% of what the real expert dealer mechanics said the repairs actually cost. Forget Car Shield. Save Your Money! Go Elsewhere!
Carshield is not a good company
This is a negative review about Carshield. They do not do what their commercials say. There are a very bad company. Do not go with them or someone else that’s more reputable as endurance because they did not do what they were supposed to do for my car so please do something else, as far as I am concerned, they are a fraudulent company. Thank you.
How long before the owner goes to jail at Carshield
You can get all your money back that you paid in!
I called today to see how to go about using my policy. I was connected to a great guy named Chris Chambers from Omega Auto Center based in Boca. I asked my question and he told me that basically, Car Shield is no more. He told me about their F rating with BBB and other ratings that are awful.
I bought into
CarShield in October of 2015. My payments were about $100 a month, then went up to $109 a month. This is October of 2023, which is 96 months times $109/month and when I did the math, I about fell off my chair. I have paid in $10,995 to date. I can't believe it.
So Chris told me he would get my money back that I had paid in within 4 weeks. There is also a class action lawsuit filed that he will add my name to as well. He said that their plan, which is rated an A+ by the BBB will add on another 100,000 miles to the policy, Free maintenance for a year. Free road side assistance, etc. You pay your monthly fees for 18 months and then you're done paying until you renew the coverage.
I will do more checking on them, but if you want to get all the money you've paid in, give Chris a call.
I'm still in shock about the amount of money I paid in over all that time. Can't wait to get the money back into my account.
Call this guy! Chris Chambers 561-717-4162. That's his direct line.
CarShield doesn't do what they promise on contracts, or commercials
Car Shield is one of the most disreputable companies that I've ever witnessed.
I purchased Carshield protection on September 3. 2020 for my 2017 Hyundai Sonata. In May of this year 2023, my check engine light came on. My car was still driveable, but it had lost some power. I immediately pulled over to the nearest exit, about half a mile from the occurrence.
I called Carshield and spoke with one of their representatives. After listening to my problem, the representative proceeded to give me a list of the repair shops they used. Hyundai turned me down flat out, citing they do not do business with Carshield, as they do not pay their bills.
I was given 3 more, and out of those few, only one, (Mr. Transmission) was located in Crichton, in Mobile Alabama. I was told to bring my car in, I did everything that was asked of me in under 2 hours. I was told to leave my car, the mechanic told me that he would call me back as soon as he contacted Carshield.
The following day, I received a call from the mechanic from Mr. Transmission. I was informed that Carshield refused to send out an adjuster to make an assessment of what was going on with my car! When I called Carshield back, the customer representatives were unsure of what was going on. I asked to speak to someone from their corporate headquarters, and they told me, they did not have that information.
After having made several calls, I was extremely disgusted, as I had allowed these people to go into my account every month, without fail, and withdraw funds from my bank. Eventually, they became downright hostile and ugly with me. That's when I realized that, although the recording says it may be recording for training purposes, not one of the representatives feared losing their jobs or being reprimanded for such unprofessional behavior. There is no accountability at this company!
My car is still not working. I was forced to go out and buy another car for my wife, in order for her to have a vehicle to drive to work. Please steer clear of this company! You would be better off, placing your funds into an interest-bearing account at your bank. At least you would have a way to pay for repairs in the event that something happened to your vehicle.
I get physically ill, when I see commercials with both Vivica Fox and Ice Tea, both referencing their cars using the script (My Baby) stay away from these crooks! They talk a great game when they're trying to get you hooked.
Carshield is a scam! They can make these commercials, and pay these actors because they use our money to pay them, to hook even more unsuspecting people into being hoodwinked. If I can save one person, that will help. Carshield has garnered an "F" with the BBB. PLEASE, KEEP YOUR MONEY, IN YOUR POCKETS! Otherwise, you will be extremely disappointed.
YES! Same issues, I guess we are to blame for not doing our do diligence and not checking on this 3rd rate company. If we had the reputable repair shops would have informed us both as to what we had. I was sent to two shake and bake shops who themselves had to bargain with these folks on repair cost. It cost me dearly.
You will not get your money back.
My problem with Car Shield is that they debited my account monthly for a whole year and the first time I need their services, they refused to pay for car repairs. The claim adjusters were rude and belittling on the phone. I even used a car repair shop they recommend,
They do not pay!! Beware!!
THANK YOU!!!
Thanks to all that posted reviews on this company. I almost gave them my business.
Warranty Service
This company expects your used car to be in new car condition when you contract their service. to be declined a claim due to pre-existing conditions knowing the car is used is puzzling.
Carshield is a scam. Don't waste your money.
This pertains to Carshield Auto Warranty. I have taken my car to the shop for the third time and was denied. My car was in the shop for three different issues, and an excuse for each was given for the denial. In total, I will have come out of pocket $9,000.00. Every issue has included my drivetrain. I spoke to a representative and clarified my policy to see if I was covered on this latest issue and was told I was covered. Hindsight is 20/20, and if I knew all of this, I would have saved my money instead of giving it to Carshield. I canceled my policy today and wasted two years and $2,500.00 for nothing. I will never recommend Carshield to anyone, even my enemies. I feel like a fool for falling for this scam and should have canceled after the first issue. I would give this company 0 stars if I could. This is for anyone out there, avoid this company. This company is a scam.
RIP Off
They don't cover what they say, twice I have been refused coverage on items they said they would cover with their premium plan.
I believe Carshield is a scam.
I had carshield for several months when I was driving across country from Michigan to Arizona. When I was in New Mexico my engine blew. I had no warning whatsoever.
My car was less than 5 years old at the time. Carshield said they would not cover it because I would have had a warning. So I cancelled it and they still took out the next months payment from my bank account.
Respect your customers and do not lie to them
CarShield will take your money and they will not fix your car, they always give you excuses not to fix your car...
Do Not Subscribe To Carshield
I rate CarShield a Minus 5 (-5). There are way too many hoops to jump through to get vehicle repaired.
My truck has been sitting in the parking lot over a week waiting on authorization from CarShield to do the repairs while CarShield flops back and forth between adjustors.
Bottom Line DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT SUBSCRIBE TO CARSHIELD. Trust the BBB "F" rating. It's a scam and a waste of time and money.
so true
Ding Dong The Wicked Witch Is Dead!!!!
I wish there was a minus one star. This company is horrible. DO NOT PURCHASE ANYTHING FROM CARSHIELD. They will deny any claim and that’s if you can find a mechanic who will accept them. They are rude as well. AVOID THEM.
I don't know if any auto extended warranties are worth it but I know this is the worst I’ve ever seen. The people are ruthless and rude, so I hope if you try this again it won't be with CARSHIELD!
so true