In the automatic, I was always worried about the "stranded" factor if the starter fails. The starter itself can be refreshed for a couple bucks and some elbow grease, so it wasn't the expense. That concern can be addressed with a replacement schedule (rebuild one starter while using the other) however.
With a stick shift it has been a no-brainer. If the starter quits, bump start it. Folks get into spending gas on speed matching and whatnot, I don't worry about it, there's always a better ratio trans waiting for me in the boneyard anyway if I am killing it
And there have been a few folks who have EOCd since new with many miles and no issues to report.