Before you compare the price of a service contract, look at the exit. The purchase price is the first line on the paper. What you get back, or owe, if you stop early is the other half of the cost, and it is often the part people read last.
Start with the cancellation clause
Find the section on cancellation and read it twice. You are looking for three things: who can cancel, how notice has to be given, and how any refund is calculated. Many contracts require written notice sent to a stated address or email. A phone call may not count. Keep proof that you sent the notice and the date you sent it.
Next, find the refund method. Some contracts return the unused part of the paid term. Others subtract a cancellation fee first. Some keep the whole amount once a service visit has been scheduled or a claim has been opened. The wording is the answer. If the clause uses a term you do not understand, ask the seller to explain it in writing before you sign.
Know what a waiting period does to your claim
A waiting period is the stretch of time after the contract starts during which some or all covered repairs are not yet accepted. It keeps new buyers from signing up for a system that is already failing. For you, it means the contract may not protect you during its opening stretch, even though you are paying from the start. Find the waiting period in the terms, note when it ends, and compare that end date against the season when you most need the system to run. A central air contract bought in late autumn may not be active when the first hot week arrives. A furnace contract bought in late spring may not be active when the first cold morning does. The planning date on each system page helps you judge how close the system is to the age where a waiting period matters most. The gas furnace page shows how an install year becomes a planning date.
Check the transfer terms when you sell
If you may sell the home while the contract is active, read the transfer section before you sign. Some contracts move with the property to the next owner. Others end at closing. Some allow the transfer for a charge, and some require the new owner to accept the terms in writing. Ask whether transfer is allowed, what the steps are, who pays any transfer charge, and whether any unused amount goes to you, to the buyer, or stays with the company.
Ask these questions before you sign
Write them down and get the answers in writing. How is the refund calculated if I cancel in the first month? Is there a cancellation fee, and when does it apply? What notice do I have to give, and to what address? Does the contract transfer if I sell the home, and what does that take? How long is the waiting period, and what happens to a repair claim filed during it? What is excluded from coverage, and where is that list? Who answers the phone when a claim is opened?
Put the exit next to the purchase
Compare the total you would pay with the total you could recover. A contract that is inexpensive to start but costly to leave costs more if your plans change. A contract with a short waiting period and a clear refund line gives you more room to decide later. Neither one is a promise that a future claim will be paid. The contract language governs that.
The published figures for the systems on this site live in our tables and system pages, not in any contract summary. Use those pages for service life and planning dates, then use the contract text for the money terms. Keep both papers in the same folder, and reread the cancellation section each time the term is nearing its end.