Is it worth buying a retail protection plan for a new tv?

You're about to buy a new big-screen TV in time for the Super Bowl--perhaps a high-end 4K model with features like High Dynamic Range.After reading a positive review on this website, you've selected the manufacturer and model that you want.You just want to go to a local retail store to see the TV for yourself and confirm that everything is up to what you've read, and then fork over the money to bring it home.

The most annoying question one can hear from a salesperson is "Do you want our protection plan?"The Geek Squad Protection Plan is available at Best Buy.Sears is one of the few stores that still sells TVs, and it has an In-Home Master Protection Agreement.And so on.

Many consumers won't buy a retailer's protection plan.A small percentage of people will buy a protection plan in each and every case, possibly because at some point in their lives they needed one and didn't have it.A large percentage of consumers are open to buying a retail protection plan for certain products.

Should you buy a retailer protection plan?If you're buying a TV from one of the top brands, you probably don't need to.There are some cases in which it is a good idea.

When it comes to TVs and retail protection plans, the three main questions to ask are: 1) What does the plan offer that the manufacturer's warranty doesn't?)How likely is it that the TV will have an issue during the time period covered by the protection plan?What is the extra cost?

The manufacturer's warranty.Part of the spiel that you're likely to hear from a salesperson is that the manufacturer's warranty doesn't cover every issue that could possibly go wrong with a TV.One incentive for the salesperson to tell you is that the retailer typically makes more profit off the protection plan than the TV itself.In many cases, the salesperson is giving correct information if he or she works for a well-known retailer.

A TV manufacturer's warranty only covers manufacturer defects for a year.I contacted several TV manufacturers to inquire about their TV warranty plans, but they didn't respond to my request for a comment.The overall TV market-share leader in the U.S. declined to comment, but here's how the company explains its warranty on its website:The remote control is only covered for six months.The warranty is not applicable to cases other than defects in material, design and workmanship, if you read the fine print.Maintenance, repair and replacement of parts due to normal wear and tear, as well as accidents, "acts of God" and "voltage fluctuations" are not covered by its warranty.Any damage that happens due to a power surge is not covered by the salesperson.

A retailer's protection plan usually covers everything the manufacturer covers for up to five years.It covers at least some of what the manufacturer won't cover during the first year.

For instance, the manufacturer won't fix your TV to correct any dead pixels, and the cost to fix that issue is immense because it typically means the whole panel must be replaced.The manufacturer's dead pixel coverage varies.On its website, the company says that, when it comes to the size of the display, "LCD displays typically contain a small number of pixels that do not function normally."Your display has been inspected and is in compliance with the manufacturer's specifications, which means that any defects in the display won't affect the operation or use.Not exceeding 7 dots is within factory specification and is not considered a defect under this warranty.It's difficult to get up the wall if the TV you bought has less than seven dead pixels.

According to the policy of the company, dead pixels may be covered or not depending on factors such as how many of them there are and where they are located on the display.

If a customer purchases a Geek Squad Protection Plan, Best Buy will provide a new panel or a TV if the customer experiences a screen problem during the coverage period.

The important question is how likely is it that a TV will have a problem after the retailer's return period is over?

The TV industry analysts that I queried didn't have the kind of data that TV makers did.According to Consumer Reports, TV reliability doesn't seem to be an issue these days, especially with models from major brands.Only five percent of subscribers said they had problems with their TVs from the major brands by the third year of ownership.

According to Mark Sasicki, the TV buyer at Abt Electronics in Glenview, IL, "less than 1.5 percent of the TVs sold at his company's store in the Chicago area had some sort of manufacturer defect or other problem that the retailer became aware of.""Manufacturers have been consistently turning out quality products," he said, but he added that Abt could be "a little unique, as we do not carry a lot of third-tier brands."

He said that it makes sense for consumers to buy a TV protection plan because of the high cost of repair and parts.The panel for a three-year-old TV costs about $950 without an extended protection plan.The bigger the screen, the higher the cost.

He noted that there is a certain amount of dead pixels that are acceptable with a TV, but that the issue "does not come up often" with the TVs sold by Abt.He pointed out that no warranty, be it for an electronic device or an appliance, covers lightning strikes, and that's why everyone recommends a surge protector.

It comes down to this most manufacturer defects will become obvious within a month of regular TV usage, giving you plenty of time to return the TV to the store that you bought it from before the return period is over.Those issues that should be classified as manufacturer defects but aren't are covered under the TV maker's warranty.

Quality TVs from major TV makers don't usually have problems once you get past the first month, at least not until the TV's life cycle starts reaching its end a few years down the line.It wouldn't be profitable for retailers to sell those protection plans if that were the case.

Should you buy a protection plan from a retailer when you get a high-end TV model?Yes.If money is unimportant and you feel the plan is cheap, you can afford it.If you're the sort of person who will sleep better at night if you know that your TV is covered for three years, five years or whatever, then that's a good thing.If you use a TV more than most people, you would be miserable if you could see a single deadpixel on the display.

If you won't be using the TV very much during the initial return period, you might want to consider a protection plan.Maybe you're buying the TV at an ultra-low sale price and waiting to give it to someone as a gift.Maybe you're waiting to put it in a room that's being renovated.If you don't get the retail protection plan, you will be at the mercy of the manufacturer's warranty.

Not all retail protection plan pricing is equal.You could buy a retail protection plan for the 65-inch UN65MU8000FXZA 4K TV from P.C.You would have to pay $399.99 for a five-year plan if you bought it in December.There was no option for a two-year plan at Sears, and it charged a whopping $745.49 for its five year plan on the same TV model.

Some protection plans are better than others.Although P.C.Richard's plans were a lot cheaper than those sold by Sears, and it was also labeled on its website as offering "extended warranty service protection", which is pretty much the same coverage as the manufacturer warranty.The agreement does not cover TV viewing screens, according to its website.Power surge protection, coverage for normal wear and tear, and even "annual preventive maintenance" are some of the features offered by the Sears plans.

If you are considering buying a sub-$500 4K TV from one of the less trustworthy manufacturers, you may want to consider the cost of a retail protection plan.If something goes wrong with the TV after a year, you may just buy a new one.