Got burned by a third-party warranty company at a used lot in Phoenix

I bought a used car from a small lot near Phoenix last year and they pushed this third-party warranty hard. Said it covered everything. First claim for a busted alternator and they denied it because of some fine print about "pre-existing wear." Cost me $450 out of pocket to fix it. Now I only deal with manufacturer-backed warranties or nothing at all. Has anyone else had a warranty company pull something like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

charlie_allen8d ago

Dang, that's rough. @adam_hernandez nailed it with the "paperweight" comment - my buddy had one of those warranties deny a cracked radiator because they said the car had "aftermarket floor mats" and that voided the coverage somehow. I still can't figure out the logic there, but warranty companies find the weirdest loopholes.

adam_hernandez8d ago

Wait, so the warranty covered "everything" except the first thing that actually broke? That sounds about right for those third party paperweights they push on used lots. I had one that denied a transmission repair because my oil change was 300 miles late. They used that to claim "neglected maintenance" even though oil changes have nothing to do with a transmission. Learned my lesson the hard way too - now I just skip the warranty and save the money for actual repairs. That $450 alternator hurts but at least you didn't pay for three years of worthless coverage first.