The extended warranties are no doubt profitable for the retailers, at least that seems to be common wisdom nowadays. But never the less, an extended warranty including accidental damage is still cheaper than an insurance rider on my home insurance for the same period of time. But it's only attractive if you can depend on the insurance company coming through with a quality repair, hence my question about whether anyone has used the Mack extended warranties.
My impression is that a lot of electronic gear/devices/appliances are far more complicated than they need to be and often don't last a long time after the warranty expires. In the past couple of years I have had 3 higher-end appliances die a few years after the warranty expired and none could be repaired because the electronic circuit boards were no longer available. Twice in the last decade, I've had extended warranties thrown in as part of a "bargaining package" for a laptop and for a TV; both needed the mother boards replaced at about the 2 year mark. In the past, when I've bought consumer goods/appliances I've always thought the extended warranties were a waste of money, but now I'm starting to rethink that position. Is this trend something we are likely to see in photographic equipment? Today a lot of gear, including top-of-the-line camera bodies are made in locations which have historically been associated with lower quality control.
Anyway, for an extended warranty to be be attractive, it probably depends more on how much you can afford to lose a camera. For a high-income, pro photographer it's probably more of an inconvenience, but for others having a $4K - $5k camera body die after a year or two, it would hurt.