Before driving an Audi, Judy Mesick was driving a Volkswagen Passat. And when she bought her Passat at Boardwalk Volkswagen in Redwood City, she also bought a few optional extended warranties to go along with it.
“I just bought the package,” Mesick said. “I wanted the safety, the security. If I got dinged in the back, I wanted it fixed, and I didn’t want the hassle. And all those things were covered by these warranties.”
When Mesick traded in the Passat for her Audi earlier this year, she says Boardwalk Volkswagen told her she’d get a prorated refund based on the time left on her warranties. But, she didn’t. She says she called the dealer several times asking for her money.
“I got no phone calls back,” Mesick said.
So Mesick reached out to us.
“I contacted NBC and NBC contacted VW International, and two days later the check was in the mail,” she said.
Mesick’s refund was $6,000.
Local
“I’m terribly grateful,” Mesick said. “Because what’s right is right. And it shouldn’t take higher powers to get the job done. But it does. And thank you, thank you, thank you.”
Volkswagen’s corporate office declined to comment for this story. Boardwalk Volkswagen also declined to comment.
There isn’t a law requiring universal terms and conditions for extended warranties, so they vary. Be sure to read the fine print.
The California Department of Insurance offers this advice: ask about a prorated refund before buying these warranties. If you won’t get one, weight the value of that warranty against how long you plan to keep the car.
