Woman Has Problem With Car Warranty Company

An Upstate woman says a car warranty company used scare-tactics to convince her to buy a warranty she didn’t need.

When Anita Phelps drove her 2010 Toyota Camry off the dealership lot, she thought she was good to go. Until she received a letter from a company called Vehicle Protection Center.

The letter contained all of her vehicle information, and stated that she needed to call immediately.

“Scared me because I didn't even know what to do,” said Phelps. “I was like, how could I not have coverage? I just bought this car.”

Feeling flustered, she called the number and says she was told to write a $195 check for a down payment, right away.

"No it has to be done right away because it's not covered. You have no warranty on your car. If something was to happen it's going to be you to pay," said Phelps, when describing what the person told her over the phone.

But soon after, she called her dealer, Dave Edwards Toyota, and realized the mistake.

Her car was already under warranty, an extended 7 year/100-thousand mile plan.

Officials at the dealership say they receive a lot of calls from customers asking about those car warranty companies.

"The calls that I usually get are people who are concerned that their warranty's run out and that's evidently intentional from the companies. They kind of alarm people, and people don't want to be without warranty,” said Pre-Owned Manager Andrew Brand. “So unfortunately they do purchase things that they don't necessarily need.”

People like Phelps.

She says the company agreed to cancel her account after she wrote in several letters asking them to do so. But she says the pressure kept coming.

Wanting it all to stop, and her money back, she called the Problem Solver.

A spokesperson for Vehicle Protection Center told us they took Phelps off their future call-back lists and promised to send her a check for that $195 down payment through overnight mail.

The company says it gives new customers 30 to 60 days to review their coverage and cancel if needed. And you will typically get a full refund.

But to cancel, you do have to send a letter stating you want to do so.

Dave Edwards Toyota tells us those outside car warranty companies are not associated with the dealership.

It suggests doing your homework first, before signing on with any warranty company.

If you receive an offer by phone or mail, check your warranty status first before agreeing to anything.

If you can't find the paperwork at home, you can call your dealership for that information.

And if you do decide to go through one of those companies, get them to send you the warranty information and paperwork first, before handing over any money.