Are things moving a bit too fast with connected cars? Continue reading
Tag Archives: warranty liability
Whirlpool comes out smelling like a rose
Yesterday, a federal jury in Cleveland ruled for Whirlpool Corp. in a warranty-based class action involving allegedly defective front-loading washing machines. As discussed in an earlier post, the case had been up and down to the Supreme Court, and given the Court’s recent class action rulings, that was it was allowed to proceed to trial was rather unexpected. Continue reading
Filed under Court Decisions, Warranty
Consumer Reports to consumers: Choose risk or over peace of mind
In a September 6 piece, Why you should avoid home warranties, Consumer Reports again takes a shot at service contracts. Noting a recent complaint filed by New Jersey regulators against Choice Home Warranty for allegedly making it difficult to obtain benefits, CR “recommend[s] avoiding service contracts” because those “that cover homes and cars, for example, can cost hundreds of dollars.” But what if the car or home costs many thousands of dollars? Isn’t spending a few hundred bucks on a service contract worth it to minimize risk and secure peace of mind? “No,” says CR, “it makes much more sense to buy reliable products and maintain them as the manufacturer recommends.” Now it’s clear, just buy things that won’t malfunction or fail. Continue reading
Case Note: Court puts the brakes on implied warranty claims
“Merchantability” is one of those legal terms-of-art that defies precise definition. Courts ruling on implied warranty of merchantability claims generally frame the question as whether the product was “reasonably fit for its intended purpose.” But what any given jury will find to be “reasonable” is anyone’s guess. So better for the defendant that the case never get to the jury. I think Chrysler might agree. Continue reading
Are warranties withering? Will service contracts surge?
Warranties are withering, claims an Arizona State marketing professor. This, he says, bodes well for service contract industry profits, but not for consumers.
But in many product sectors warranty is expanding and recent studies show that consumers believe that service contracts deliver value. Continue reading
Filed under Customer Experience, Risk Management, Service Contract, Warranty
An Orwellian approach to legal writing
Responding to an earlier post, Plain and simple, Nick Fielden, a freelance copywriter from Perth, Australia, observes: “Perhaps when it comes to comprehension, we should be thinking less of simple versus complex, and more about clear versus obscure.” I don’t know that I’d put it in quite those terms, but before I reply further, let’s take a look at all Nick has to say: Continue reading
Filed under Best Practices, Customer Experience, PR & Branding, Service Contract, Warranty
Plain and simple
Want a better relationship with your customers? Want to spend less time and money dealing with frustrated or irate customers? Want more customers to walk out of the store with your extended warranty or service plan? There’s a sure fire way to make these things happen, plain and simple. Continue reading
Debating Warranty Arbitration
Robert J. Cloburn, CAIB, of Vancouver and Gregory Smith of Dark Room Perfection shared their views on a recent post, Arbitration wins another court battle. Here, I offer a few follow up thoughts. Continue reading
Arbitration wins another court battle
It is quickly moving beyond dispute that federal consumer protection law favors binding arbitration over litigation. A North Carolina federal trial court recently joined two federal appellate courts in ruling that the federal warranty law, the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, does not ban binding arbitration provisions in consumer product warranties. This is good news for consumer product manufacturers, and better news for consumers if more companies turn to binding arbitration.
But still, auto, boat and RV companies, primary targets under the MMWA, shy away from going the arbitration route. Let’s hope this changes. Continue reading
Really dude, pennies?
A dealer screws up, and the service contract company pays … at least on the PR front. A manager of a car dealership who “forgot” to write in that the service contract sold to a foreign student did not cover labor charges was ordered to pay a refund … he gave it to the customer in pennies. Continue reading
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