Complaint Review: Warranty Direct

On 16 July 2007 I purchased the Secure Care+ Plan from Warranty Direct. I purchased this plan due to the factory warranty on my 2003 Audi A4 was going to end on 31 July 07. My car had 42,068 miles at the time of the purchase. I then felt like I bought a piece of mind that my car was going to be covered.

On the morning of 2 Aug 07, my car broke down. I took it to the Audi dealership immediately, just as my Warranty Direct contract said I must do. I was informed by the certified Audi technician that my transmission had locked up. The transmission must be replaced.

Since the car was already outside the factory warranty, I gave the dealership the contract number and the claims department for Warranty Direct. The dealership made the claim and it was denied immediately. Warranty direct stated that the transmission problem was pre existing. They made this denial before talking to any of the technicians. If the transmission was broke before I bought the warranty I would have taken it to the dealership while it was under the factory warranty. After I proved that point to them they said they needed to check the service records of the car. I have my car serviced exactly like the manufacture suggest.

After that was settled, they denied the claim due to the fact that it was a wear and tear malfunction that caused the transmission to lock up. Even if it was a wear and tear, my contract plainly states that it covers wear and tear failures. The claims manager (Jeff Baker) stated that my warranty does not cover wear and tear. I called the sales department and asked them, without giving them information about my dispute, if the warranty covers wear and tear. They assured me that any wear and tear failure would be fully covered. The Audi certified technician informed me that the oil sending unit inside the transmission is what caused the transmission to lock up. He said that this was a malfunction, not a wear and tear.

Now I am stuck without a car until this gets resolved. My warranty covers rental vehicles but I am scared to go get one due to the fact they might try to get out of paying for it. It is clear they will take any route necessary to get out of paying for this repair. Also you cannot get any supervisor on the phone. All you get when you call their ext. is voice mail, which of course they do not return your call. This seems like an auto warranty scam.

Jason
Hattiesburg, Mississippi
U.S.A.