Shortly after Greger Jönsson had purchased a used car, he received an offer to purchase a vehicle warranty for which, according to the dispatch, his car qualified.
But when the car broke down, the faults on his Opel could not be replaced, because according to the company they were known faults on that particular car model.
The Swedish guarantee company
It happens after your registration with ARN
The Swedish guarantee company on the criticism: “We follow the advice when it is relevant”
“We have reviewed the matter carefully and would like to clarify that our general terms and conditions clearly state that the guarantee does not cover foreseeable damages. In this case, the damage is classified as a foreseeable damage because it is a known and common fault of the specific car model,” the company writes in its response to ARN.
Customers have been refused with reference to, among other things, wear and tear, not complete service history and that the faults are known for a certain car model. This is shown by SVT’s review of about 10 notifications about the Swedish Guarantee Company to ARN. Photo: Ulrica Abrahamsson / SVT
Do not want to be interviewed
The Swedish Guarantee Company, which does not want to be interviewed, writes in an email to SVT that:
“We understand that some customers may feel frustrated when they encounter what they perceive to be many exclusions in our warranty product. However, these exceptions are there so that we can offer an affordable product that is financially sustainable over time.”
See SVT’s attempt to get an answer from the guarantee company’s CEO
The fault on Greger Jönsson’s car is estimated to cost SEK 82,000 to repair. According to the vehicle warranty, SEK 35,000 was the maximum amount to be paid out, and both Greger Jönsson and ARN believe that he is entitled to that money.
Since he depends on a car to get to work in Hyltebruk, he saw no other way out than to sell the car as a spare car.
– I was refused the day after I sold the car and now they claim that I have committed a breach of contract and are threatening to take me to court, says Greger Jönsson.
Rejected due to normal wear and tear
Goran Vujovic from Jönköping has similar experience with the company. When he was told that the cardan shaft on his car needed to be replaced, he first had to wait for five months – and then had his claim rejected.
Svenska Garantibolaget considers that it is the result of normal wear and tear and is therefore not replaced:
“Our warranty framework is designed to cover propshaft repairs, but only if the damage is not a result of normal wear and tear. In this case, based on our expertise and experience, the play in the cardan shaft is a consequence of normal wear and tear”.
– There is not a single part in the car that does not wear out when you drive it, so the warranty becomes worthless, says Goran Vujovic, who also reported the company to the General Complaints Board.
Javascript must be enabled to play video
“I’m not the only one affected, I’m convinced of that,” says Goran Vujovic in Jönköping. Photo: Ulrica Abrahamsson / SVT
Notifications to ARN and the Swedish Consumer Agency
SVT has gone through about 10 notifications to the AIlmänna complaints board about the Swedish Guarantee Company. Four cases have been settled, of which ARN gives the customer the right in all cases. Despite that, the company has resisted paying out the compensation ARN recommended.
In one of the cases, the parties have reached an agreement on part of the sum, which was made after SVT began to audit the company.
In the correspondence between the company and the complaining customers, the company writes several times “our insurance”. But according to ARN and the Swedish Consumer Agency, it is not insurance and the company is registered as a company dealing with “other support services for financial services except insurance and pension fund operations”. They are therefore not subject to the Insurance Contracts Act, as insurance companies are.
The company has also been reported to the Swedish Consumer Agency about 40 times for misleading marketing. The authority has repeatedly called on the company to change its mailings as it is not clear enough that it is an offer, according to the Swedish Consumer Agency.
The vehicle warranty offer
The warranty offer is sent out to people who bought a used car. The mailing states that when the car was new it had a new car warranty but that it is no longer valid. The car owner is instead offered a vehicle warranty by the company for an annual cost. The car is already qualified according to the dispatch and the offer lists thirteen possible defects that it covers.
But in the fine print there are conditions which mean that compensation is not paid out. Among other things, it states that wear and tear is not compensated. In an email response to SVT, the company writes that it applies to certain components such as tires, fuses and the like, but reports to the General Complaints Board show that customers have been rejected for wear on parts such as cardan shafts and flywheels.