Buying a car is a right of passage for most drivers, but the spending goes way beyond the purchase price. Unfortunately, the cost of car ownership is always on the rise, with the AAA estimating that the annual figure has tipped over $12,000.

As a result, car owners across the country are looking for ways to minimize their financial outgoings, and while there are a number of ways you can do that, nothing quite beats investing in an extended auto warranty. By protecting you from the cost of unexpected component failure, having one in place can save you hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars per year. But with so many providers out there, it can be difficult to know which one is best for you and your vehicle.

To save you hours of research, our comparison series puts two extended car warranty providers, also known as vehicle service contract providers, head to head to see which offers better plan variety, standards of service, and overall value for money. In this guide, we’ll be comparing Endurance Warranty with Complete Auto Care. Keep reading to find out who will be crowned as our overall winner.

Comparing the Companies

First, let’s find out what we can about the two companies and how established they are in the extended warranty space:

Endurance Warranty Overview

Established in 2006, Endurance has spent the better part of two decades defending drivers from the rising cost of car ownership. From our headquarters in Illinois, we’ve helped thousands of drivers save big on unexpected repair bills, and we’re here to help you, too.

Our extensive range of auto protection plans has something for almost everyone, with programs designed for everyday commuters, high-mileage vehicle owners, and even select luxury vehicle models. In addition to unrivaled eligibility, we also pride ourselves on our flexibility. If none of our base plans quite meet your individual needs and budget, our trained plan advisors can customize a plan just for you.

Along with industry-leading coverage, you can expect an unbeatable suite of added benefits. All Endurance plans include 24/7 roadside assistance (including towing, fuel delivery, and lockout services), rental car reimbursement, and trip interruption coverage as standard. Endurance customers also get a year’s access to our Elite Benefits package, adding on up to four tire repairs or replacements annually, key fob replacement, up to $500 in collision discounts, and up to $1,000 in total loss protection.*

Unlike the majority of our competitors, we’re also the direct administrator of our plans, making for a much smoother (and less stressful) claims process should the worst happen. Our advisors are always available to answer queries via phone or email, plus the Endurance Mobile app gives you instant access to all of the most important plan information. On top of all that, Endurance plans are also fully transferable, potentially increasing the value of your vehicle should you come to sell it.

Complete Auto Care Overview

Complete Auto Care is a vehicle service contract provider based in Florida. Although its website doesn’t provide much information about the company itself, its Better Business Bureau (BBB) page states that it has been in business for six years. The company isn’t BBB accredited, and its customer review rating is just 2.23/5 stars.

There isn’t much to review about the business on its website other than the fact that it offers three levels of extended warranty coverage available throughout the U.S. and Canada. Although it is not the direct administrator of this coverage, it is backed by the insurance service company AM Best.

Existing Complete Auto Care customers are required to visit a separate website to access plan information. There is an email address and phone number to contact for questions and another form to fill in to request a free quote. Overall, however, the business doesn’t have a particularly professional appearance or a positive reputation.

Available Coverage Options

As you’d expect, both providers offer a different selection of coverage plans. Let’s put them side by side:

Endurance Warranty Plans

• Supreme: As comprehensive as it gets outside of a factory warranty, Supreme is an exclusionary plan that covers almost every part, component, and system in your vehicle. That even goes for seals, gaskets, and some more advanced components.
• Supreme For Highline Vehicles: Luxury vehicles are the dream for many drivers, but unfortunately they’re some of the most unreliable on the road. To help with the more frequent (and expensive) repairs, Supreme For Highline Vehicles protects specific luxury vehicles that have under 80,000 miles on the clock and are under 8 years of age.
• Superior: A step down from Supreme, Superior is another comprehensive plan that protects a wide range of parts. Stated components include several electronic parts, and protection for more advanced tech is also available.
• Advantage: Advantage is unique in that not only does it offer fantastic coverage, but it’s also the only plan on the market to include up to $3,500 per year in maintenance fees. So you can keep your car in top running condition and make expensive breakdowns even less likely.
• Select Premier: If you own a high-mileage vehicle, it can be tricky to find an extended car warranty that will cover you, but Select Premier is the solution. Designed to protect older cars with more than 150,000 miles on the odometer, it covers key components such as transmission and drive axle assembly components, cooling system, fuel system, and select air conditioning and electrical parts.
• Secure: Secure is our most affordable monthly plan, covering just those crucial powertrain components that cost the most to repair.
• Secure Plus: As you might expect, Secure Plus includes everything from our Secure plan, with added coverage for brakes, air conditioning, steering, and select electrical parts.

Complete Auto Care Warranties

• Exclusionary: The precise details are not clear, but this is how Complete Auto Care explains what the plan protects: “This is the highest level of protection that you can get on a vehicle and will protect your vehicle as if you are new vehicle. With this protection, you will only be responsible for wear and tear items, cosmetics, and normal routine maintenance.”
• Mid-Level: Not quite as comprehensive as Exclusionary, Mid-Level is intended to cover most repairs for major component systems and most electrical systems.
• Powertrain Plus: Basic powertrain coverage for older and high-mileage vehicles. Complete Auto Care doesn’t go into detail about what the ‘Plus’ involves.

Customer Service and Online Reputation

Endurance’s customer service team has won multiple awards, including a Gold Globee for Customer Service & Support Team of the Year at the 2024 Golden Bridge Awards. Plan advisors and customer service representatives are on hand to answer any questions you might have before or after purchasing a vehicle service contract and can help guide you through the claims process. This commitment to an excellent customer experience is reflected in our A- BBB rating and online reviews on sites like Trustpilot.

As for Complete Auto Care, online reviews are a bit negative. Customers mention difficulty in contacting a company representative, not being told the full cost of their plan during the signup process, and having cancellation requests denied despite being within the 30-day money-back period.

Claims Processing

As the direct administrator of our plans, making a claim with Endurance couldn’t be easier. When a breakdown occurs, simply get the vehicle to a safe place to prevent further damage and use your roadside assistance perk to have it towed to the auto shop of your choice. Once there, let the mechanic know about your Endurance contract, and as long as the component is covered by your contract, all you have to do is pay your deductible, and we’ll take care of the rest.

Complete Auto Care sells plans but doesn’t administer them, which ultimately means dealing with layers of middlemen if you need to make a claim. In response to complaints about claims being denied, they reply but not in detail. A number of customers state that claims have been denied despite the affected components being covered.

Other Benefits

Third-party vehicle service contract providers are incentivized to give you more bang for your buck than manufacturers and dealerships, so added benefits are commonly included with plans. The same goes for Endurance and Complete Auto Care:

Endurance Warranty Benefits

• 24/7 roadside assistance: We want to make sure you’re looked after from the moment your vehicle breaks down, so 24/7 roadside assistance is part of every Endurance plan — including towing, fuel delivery, and lockout services.
• Trip-interruption costs: To minimize the inconvenience of breaking down far from home, we’ll cover trip-interruption costs like meals and accommodation.
• Rental car reimbursement: Sometimes, your car will take a little longer to repair, but with rental car reimbursement, you can be back on the road right away.
• Endurance Elite Benefits:  An exclusive perks package available FREE for the first year, our Elite Benefits supercharge your existing benefits with up to four tire repairs or replacements annually, key fob replacement, up to $500 in collision discounts, and up to $1,000 in total loss protection.*

Complete Auto Care Benefits

• 24-hour roadside assistance: Complete Auto Care offers just one added benefit with their plans: 24/7 roadside assistance. According to the information on their website, there are no other perks available to customers — even if they’re willing to pay extra for them.

Endurance Warranty vs. Complete Car Warranty: Pros and Cons

To finish up, let’s summarize the pros and cons of each provider:

Endurance Warranty pros:

• Almost two decades (20 years) in business
• America’s most trusted provider
• Wide variety of protection plans
• Suite of fantastic perks with each
• Have work carried out at any certified auto shop
• Award-winning customer service team available 24/7
• Smartphone app puts plan info in your pocket
• Direct administrator of all plans
• Plans are fully transferable

Endurance Warranty cons:

• Only available within the U.S.

Complete Car Warranty pros:

• Available in both U.S. and Canada
• Plans include 24-hour roadside assistance
• Online portal allows you to access plan information

Complete Car Warranty cons:

• Only three plans to choose from
• Not the direct administrator
• Only one added benefit included
• Website is empty
• Negative reviews
• No app

And the Winner Is: Endurance

Unexpected breakdowns are as expensive as they are stressful, so when the inevitable happens, you want to be certain someone reliable has your back. Don’t take the risk with a less-than-reputable auto protection plan provider when you could sign with America’s most trusted.

Whoever you are, whatever you drive, contact an Endurance advisor at (800) 253-8203 to request a FREE quote or shop online to see plans and pricing at a glance. We also have plenty more helpful articles like this one, so if you’d like to do some more reading first, head over to our extended warranty blog.