Appliance Insurance Claims Online Guide

By Rachel Simmons, Insurance & Consumer Affairs Editor

Updated: June 2026

When a household appliance breaks down, knowing exactly what to do — and how to manage a claim confidently — makes a real difference. This guide covers how appliance insurance claims work online, which appliances are eligible, what UK repairs typically cost, and how to decide whether insurance, a warranty, or a one-off repair is the right choice for your circumstances.

How Does the Online Appliance Insurance Claims Process Work?

Making a claim is straightforward: log in to the customer service centre at row.co.uk to report your fault and begin the process online. Everything is managed digitally, from raising the claim to tracking its progress.

Once submitted, Row's UK-based claims team will review your case and arrange for an engineer from the national repair network to assess the fault. Where the appliance can be fixed, the engineer will carry out the repair using quality parts. In situations where a repair is not economically viable, a replacement may be provided subject to your policy terms. Cover is available up to £2,000 per item.

To make the process as smooth as possible:

• Keep the appliance's make, model, and serial number to hand — you'll need these when submitting your claim
• Describe the fault clearly and accurately; the more detail you provide, the more efficiently the claim can be assessed
• Avoid attempting DIY repairs before making a claim, as this can complicate the engineer's assessment
• Have proof of purchase accessible, as this is often used to confirm the appliance's age

Which Appliances Are Eligible for Cover?

To qualify for appliance insurance with Row, the item must be under 6 years old at the time you take out cover. This applies across the full range of household appliances, including washing machines, tumble dryers, dishwashers, fridge-freezers, electric ovens, hobs, and more.

Cover includes both mechanical and electrical breakdown as well as accidental damage, with parts, labour, and call-out all included. Policies start from £1.49 per month, and cover is available up to £2,000 per item — which matters for higher-value appliances such as American-style fridge-freezers or integrated range cookers.

What counts as a covered breakdown?

A mechanical or electrical breakdown occurs when an appliance stops working correctly through no deliberate cause — for example, a washing machine drum bearing failing, a dishwasher pump giving out, or a fridge-freezer compressor stopping. Accidental damage covers unintentional incidents such as a freestanding appliance being knocked over or a spill causing an electrical fault.

Common Appliance Breakdowns and What Causes Them

Most household appliance faults fall into a small number of recurring categories. Recognising early warning signs helps you act before a minor fault becomes a major repair.

Washing machines

Washing machines are among the most commonly claimed-on appliances in the UK. Typical faults include drum bearing failure — often signalled by a loud grinding noise on the spin cycle — door seal leaks, heating element failure causing cold washes, and blocked filters leading to draining problems. In hard water areas such as much of southern England and the Midlands, limescale build-up accelerates heating element deterioration considerably.

Dishwashers

Dishwasher faults are frequently pump and motor related. A machine that hums but fails to fill, leaves dishes dirty, or develops a door seal leak are all common presentations. Blockages in the spray arm holes — caused by food debris — are also frequent, and circuit board failures become more likely as dishwashers age past four or five years.

Fridge-freezers

Compressor failure is the most serious fridge-freezer fault, rendering the appliance entirely non-functional. More routine issues include thermostat faults, iced-up evaporator coils (often a sign of a failing defrost system), and fan motor failure. A fridge that runs constantly, fails to reach temperature, or develops persistent frost build-up in the freezer is worth having assessed promptly.

Ovens and hobs

Electric ovens most commonly develop element failures — both the main bake element and the grill element are wear components with a finite lifespan. Fan oven motors can fail and cause uneven heating. For ceramic hobs, cracked glass is typically categorised as accidental damage. Gas hob ignition faults are common and are usually among the more straightforward repairs in this category.

How Much Do Appliance Repairs Cost in the UK?

UK appliance repair costs vary by fault type, appliance, and location. The figures below reflect current market rates and are useful context when weighing your options — though individual quotes will always vary.

• Washing machine: £80–£320. Drum bearing replacement sits at the higher end (£150–£320 including parts and labour); pump replacements are typically £80–£140.
• Dishwasher: £80–£250. Pump replacements commonly run to £120–£200; circuit board repairs can reach £200 or more.
• Fridge-freezer: £100–£400+. Compressor replacement is the costliest fault, often £250–£400. Thermostat and fan motor work is generally £100–£180.
• Electric oven: £80–£200. Element replacements are typically £80–£130; fan motor and thermostat work usually falls between £100 and £180.
• Tumble dryer: £80–£250. Heating element and thermostat replacements are common and typically cost £90–£160; drum bearing work sits at the upper end.

Call-out fees alone can range from £50 to £80 before parts or labour are factored in. For appliances that develop a recurring fault or a major component failure, these costs accumulate quickly.

Appliance Insurance vs Extended Warranty vs Manufacturer Guarantee

These three types of protection serve different purposes, and understanding the distinctions helps you make the right decision for each appliance you own.

A practical advantage of appliance insurance over a retailer extended warranty is that cover is not tied to a single purchase event. If you acquire appliances at different times — or take on responsibility for appliances in a rental property — ongoing insurance is easier to manage. Row's cover can be cancelled at any time with no lock-in, and insuring multiple items attracts a multi-item discount of up to 20%, with 5% off a second appliance.

Practical Maintenance Tips to Extend Appliance Life

Straightforward household maintenance reduces the frequency of avoidable faults. None of these steps require specialist knowledge or tools.

Washing machines

• Run a maintenance wash — an empty cycle at 60°C or 90°C — monthly to clear detergent residue and bacteria from the drum and door seal
• Clean the pump filter every few weeks; a blocked filter is one of the most common causes of drainage faults
• Use the correct detergent quantity — [REDACTED] detergent is a leading cause of drawer and pump blockages
• Leave the door and detergent drawer ajar after use to allow the drum interior to dry, preventing mould on the door seal
• In hard water areas, use a descaling product monthly to protect the heating element

Dishwashers

• Clean the filter at the base of the machine every one to two weeks — a blocked filter is the most common cause of poor wash results
• Check and clear the spray arm holes periodically; a cocktail stick is sufficient for this task
• Run a dishwasher cleaner through an empty cycle monthly to remove grease and limescale build-up
• Keep the rinse aid reservoir topped up — this reduces spotting and helps the drying cycle work efficiently

Fridge-freezers

• Clean the condenser coils at the back or underside of the unit every six months — dust build-up forces the compressor to work harder
• Check door seals regularly; a seal that no longer closes firmly allows warm air in and increases compressor wear
• Don't pack the freezer so tightly that air cannot circulate, and defrost manual-defrost models before frost build-up becomes significant

Repair, Replace, or Insure — How to Decide

Deciding whether to repair a broken appliance, replace it, or arrange cover before a fault develops is a practical question that depends on the appliance's age, the likely repair cost, and how central it is to your household.

As a general rule, if a repair quote exceeds roughly half the cost of a comparable new appliance and the item is already four or five years old, replacement often makes more practical sense. For appliances under three or four years old with a straightforward fault, repair is usually the more economical route — particularly where labour and call-out charges are the main component of the bill rather than expensive parts such as a compressor or circuit board.

For landlords, the calculation is slightly different: appliances in rental properties can be difficult and disruptive to replace at short notice, and having cover in place means the claims process can begin online immediately, without needing to source an engineer independently or negotiate costs under time pressure.

Frequently Asked Questions