It’s difficult enough to make a decision when purchasing big ticket items. We’re talking about items that we use on a regular day-to-day basis. For example, home appliances (washer, dryer, refrigerator, stove, microwave), computers, television, and the like. There are dozens to hundreds of selections to choose from. That task in itself could be very daunting. You need to factor in the product reliability, read up on consumer reviews, and perform your own side by side comparison as well. So I thought it’d be a great idea to put a checklist of things to look out for before taking a leap in making that huge purchase. I will use my recent purchase experience with a refrigerator.
The Price Is Right
This was a huge factor. It’s not the only factor, but it played a huge role in the decision making process. It’s always good to have a budgeted amount, a threshold that will guide you when it comes to making your purchase. The last time we purchased a fridge was over 12 years ago, and I remember it being $1,200 + tax. I didn’t want to spend so much, so it’s best to set a budget.
Take advantage of available discounts
During my most recent purchase, there were many discounts available. Some of the fridge were on clearance or markdowns. Other stores had Open Box items where you buy the fridge as-is. There are also Price Match guarantees as long as you provide a copy of the ad or the link to the website that shows the lower price. If you have access to military discounts, there are stores that offer additional 10% discounts. Lowe’s and Best Buy are two examples that offer such discounts in my area.
Use the right credit card
If you’re in the points-earning hobby game, you should know about the minimum spend requirements when opening a new credit card. I opened up a new American Express Business Platinum Card a month ago. It had a pretty steep minimum spend requirement of $10,000 within 3 months. We had flooring projects at home, including the purchase of a new fridge. My wife was so confident we’d meet the spend, and she was right. That’s my next tip. If you can, you might as well consider opening up a new credit card that will garner you additional rewards before you make your next big purchase.
Mind your warranty and protection
No matter how great of a product it is, or no matter the reputation, things will break. It’s good to know that these appliances typically come with a one to two year standard manufacturer warranty. This warranty usually covers manufacturer defects. So the question is why is it important to use the right credit card? As you may already know, not all credit cards are created equal. Some cards offer more protection than others.
Knowing that I planned on using my new American Express Business Platinum card, I learned the following warranty and protection directly from American Express:
- Extended Warranty♦︎When an American Express® Card Member charges an eligible product with his or her Card account, Extended Warranty♦︎ can provide up to one extra year added to the original U.S. manufacturer’s warranty. Applies to warranties of 5 years or less. Coverage is up to the actual amount charged to your Card for the item up to a maximum of $10,000; not to exceed $50,000 per Card Member account per calendar year. Please read important exclusions and restrictions.
- Purchase Protection♦︎When an American Express® Card Member charges a covered purchase with their Business Platinum Card®account, Purchase Protection♦︎ can help protect them for up to 90 days from the date of purchase if the item is stolen, accidentally damaged or lost. The coverage is limited up to $10,000 per occurrence, up to $50,000 per Card Member account per calendar year. Please read important exclusions and restrictions.
Delivery and Installation
There are big ticket items that you can bring home yourself. But there are many appliances that will require delivery and installation. Not many of us have access to a huge delivery truck or are experienced movers. it was a good thing that when I narrowed my selection between Lowe’s, Sam’s Club, and Best Buy, all three of them offered free delivery. If I wanted for my old fridge to be hauled away, they were going to charge an additional $15. That was not bad at all.
Returns
Always know the store’s return policy. This could very well vary and could be part of your deciding factor. Be watchful of stores that also charge restocking fees. This is usually from special ordered items, built-in items. Best Buy, for example, charges the following fees:
15% of item purchase price – Built-In Cooktops, Built-In Refrigerators, Built-In Wall Ovens, Drones, DSLR Cameras and Lenses, Mirrorless Cameras and Lenses, Projectors, Rideables and Special Order Products
$35 – Cell Phones and Devices that Can Be Activated, and Unlocked Phones
What’s the point?
Before I decided to use my American Express Business Platinum Card, I considered using two other options.
- Amex Blue Business Plus – this would’ve given me 2 Membership Rewards points per dollar. My $1,500 purchase would mean 3,000 Membership Rewards; or
- Use United MileagePlusX App (aka MPX) – this would’ve been a double dip opportunity. I could’ve purchased a Best Buy gift card from the MPX app (giving me roughly1,500 Membership Rewards), plus earn an additional 1,500 United Miles + 25% bonus = 1,875 United Miles.
If I used United MPX, my purchase will appear as a gift card purchase in Amex’s eyes. There have been many reports of clawbacks where Amex frowns on purchasing gift cards when meeting the minimum spend. Also, from Best Buy’s eyes, I would end up using a Best Buy gift card (purchased with my Amex). If a Best Buy gift card was used, the refrigerator purchase will not be given the same extra warranty and protection had I purchased the fridge directly with my Amex Business Platinum Card. I also decided to forego using the Amex Blue Business Plus since I had a minimum spend I needed to meet with my Amex Business Platinum card.
How about you? What’s your next major purchase? What credit card do you use when making a major purchase? Have you reviewed the warranty and protection benefits? I highly recommend going in prepared when making a purchase. After all, these big ticket items are supposed to help you and not leave you worried.
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Dan Miller travels with his wife and 6 (SIX!) children. He loves to help families travel for free / cheap, especially larger families. If you are looking for help, drop him an email at 
Odd.
I am buying a new fridge this weekend. You really missed a couple of points.
First, a cash back or miles shopping portal. I am buying from Sears and getting 5% cash back.
Second, I am using my AMEX everyday card to buy $500 in Sears GC’s at my grocery store – another 2250 membership rewards points gained. Plus $10 off a tank of gas through my grocery store’s gas rewards program.
Since I was working on my Amex min spend, I didn’t want to take a chance on buying gift cards due to clawbacks. I wanted to fulfill my min spend as organic as possible. I also did mention my option of using United MPX app (another miles shopping portal) but that would mean that I’d be buying a gift card from that app as well – something I wanted to avoid. Lastly, since it’s a big ticket item, I opted to use my card directly and used it for the purchase to ensure that should anything go wrong, I’d be able to use the Amex purchase protection benefits and extended warranty benefits. In the long run, I was willing to give up the additional miles in order to get the extended Warranty and purchase protection benefits for peace of mind.
Does buying gift cards not count as part of a spend when trying meet the min spend?
Since I was working on meeting my minimum spend with an Amex card, it’s highly advisable to go organic – meaning, no gift cards and the like. Many reports out there on clawbacks especially with those who just got a new card and decided to use their new card to buy gift cards https://www.doctorofcredit.com/amex-updates-terms-penalize-gaming-signup-bonus-system/
A few gift cards here and there (i.e. <$500 or so) should be OK. But if you did like $5K in gift cards to meet a $10K minimum spend that would run a greater risk of clawback.
Many stores allow you to earn via the cashback/miles portal for in-store pick up.
Many cards including Amex Business Plat offer a return protection benefit which would cover the restocking fee or allow you to return an item if the merchant won't accept a return within 90 days subject to dollar limits.
Very good to know….thanks for sharing. Knowing that I was already at my tail end of my $10K, the fridge put me right above $10K – thus, it allowed me meet my min spend. I decided to keep everything as organic know that I’ve already done all the hard work in staying organic.
Instead of having the retailer haul it away, check with your local utility co. Mine offered $50 and haul away to update to a new energy efficient appliance. You had to prove that the old appliance still worked. Had to schedule the pickup and received the check about 2 weeks later. Very easy $50 in vs. $15 out.
Thanks for the suggestion. We actually decided to keep the old fridge in our garage. We have a large family (and a huge extended family), and we could use another fridge in our garage. I will, however, keep your suggestion in mind. Thanks!