Do you really need an extended warranty?

CLIFTON, N.J. (WABC) -- A warning about spending extra money on an extended warranty: do you really need one?

Buying one may seem like the smart thing to do, but there are things you need to take into consideration before saying yes.

In this case to get covered the customer has to do all the work..and even then the company couldn't find her in the system.

She was getting a lot of hot air, until we stepped in to see if cooler heads could prevail.

It's the hottest day of the year so far and it is stifling on the 3rd floor of Frederica Sedlock's Clifton home.

No matter where she sets the temp on the window AC unit it won't get cool.

Frederica didn't fret when her 4 year old Frigidaire went on the fritz, because she had purchased a 5 year extended warranty.

"It was an extra $69 for the warranty and the unit was $500," she said.

Money well spent she thought, until she called the warranty company for service.

"They asked me if I had the card I received when I registered it and they said if you can't produce it the warranty is null and void," Frederica said.

Frederica says she filled out the forms, ripping off serial and model numbers from the box it came in.

She has her original receipts, proof she paid for the warranty. She even has a copy of the application form she say she sent to the warranty company - Neco Alliance Rebates -to activate her coverage.

Fast forward 4 years.. Neco claims it never got it - and she's not covered.

We went to the retailer who sold her the warranty, Joe D's doesn't service units but agreed to refund the $69 extended warranty charge. Frederica refused the refund, she wants someone to fix it. "I just want a working air conditioner," she said.

So next we went directly to the warranty company, Neco Alliance, which asked Frigidaire for help getting Frederica's air frigid again.

Within 2 days, Frigidaire had shipped a brand new $500 A-C.

"You people are wonderful, you really know who to talk to!," Frederica told us. "no one wanted to help me. When 7 On Your Side came and assisted me I have a working AC, so thank you!"

The big takeaway before you buy an extended warranty. First - read the fine print see what is covered. If there are a lot of exclusions - be wary.

Don't pay more than 20 percent of the purchase price for it. And consider whether you really need it. Consumer Reports says most products don't break down before the end of

the extended warranty, and the premiums you pay - could be pure profit for the warranty company.