Western General Warranty

[Ian Macnab]

I have a Western General extended warranty for my 97 Dodge Neon with. Recently one of the engine died. I took it to the dealer (Roberson Motors) and they told me that one of the pistons had a hole in it. They claimed that it was caused by using the wrong brand of spark plug (non mopar). I know thats not the case. Western General said they would cover the damage if I had the receipts for the 60,000 tune up. They wanted receipts for the fuel filter, plugs, and wires. The dealer had replaced the fuel filter, and I had done the rest. The problem is that I could only find the receipt for the plug wires and not the plugs. Therefore, now they are not going to cover the damage and I'm stuck with the bill. The dealer can even vouch for the fact that the plugs have been replaced recently, but it doesn't do any good. Is there any other course of action? I know now not to waste my money on Western General.

[MBailey]

Ian,

Don't despair, there are alot of things you can do!

First of all, file a written complaint with both the Attorney General and the Board of Insurance of your state. Send these letters certified mail. Next, obtain the name of the CEO or most senior executive at Western General and send them a copy of the above complaints via REGISTERED mail. Then, sit back and wait.

You will receive a response from the state agencies that your complaint is being investigated. At the same time, your letter to Western General will end up in the hands of someone who will have to do something about it, and regardless of how they feel about the claim, they MUST reply to the state.

Many times, with a claim that rests on such a trivial technicality such as yours, someone in senior management will authorize the claim for payment, to prevent any further expense or aggravation to the company, and to stay in good standing with state authorities. If they don't care either way, then you'll have to fight them in court. Chances are good you would prevail in court, so Western General will probably work with you. Remember, in almost all cases, the laws of the state in which the complaint is filed supersede individual policy wording. Besides, you're not talking about a six-figure claim here, so I doubt seriously they will put up much of a fight. Bear in mind, a business strategy of some insurance companies is to train their claims personnel to be obstinate about paying "borderline" claims, just to get rid of people who are not willing to put up a fight. Sad, but true!

Believe it or not, I had to use the same tactics to have a vandalism claim on my vehicle paid by State Farm - and they are the mother of all insurance companies - but I won!

I hope this helps. Just make sure you document everything, record all phone conversations, and most of all - don't give up.

A WORD OF CAUTION TO ANY CONSUMERS WHO MAY BE READING THIS:

While there are very many reputable extended warranty companies doing business in this country, there are also very many who are just in it to collect contract fees and not pay up when called upon. The best way to protect yourself from these situations is to buy ONLY the extended warranty that is offered by the manufacturer of the vehicle you are purchasing. By franchise agreement ALL new car dealers must offer for sale the extended warranty policies of their respective manufacturers - don't let any dealership personnel tell you otherwise!