My wife purchased a 1999 Chev. Monte Carlo in and at the time purchased an extended warranty from the dealer, which used Heritage Warranty Insurance.
We had never had any issues with the vehicle until November when during a routine oil change, the mechanic noticed that the intake gasket was leaking. He indicated that it is a common problem for GM vehicles, and that it needed to be fixed, otherwise it could lead to a leaking head. The repair shop contacted Heritage Warranty to file the claim, and the repairs were approved.
In the process repairing the intake gasket, the mechanic noticed that the head was already leaking. The manager of the shop informed Heritage Warranty of the leaking head, and was told that an inspector would be sent out on Tuesday (this was Saturday when the initial repairs were taking place).
The manager of the repair shop called me and told me not to worry that he deals with inspectors all of the time, and knows what they are looking for when it comes to a leaking head.
On Tuesday, the manager called me in utter amazement. He said that the typical inspection for a leaking head takes no less than 25-30 minutes, with the first step being using a straight-edge on the head to see if it is warped. The repair shop manager said that he and the mechanic were with the inspector the entire time he was there, and that he DIDN'T EVEN HAVE A STRAIGHT-EDGE WITH HIM! The inspector was there for only a total of 7 minutes. When the shop manager questioned him about not using a straight-edge, the inspector responded that is was obvious that the head was leaking, and it wasn't necessary.
Three days later (so much for their claiming to make a decision within 48 hours), Heritage denied the claim, stating that in fact the head was not leaking, and that the repair shop had not proven that the leak existed. Both the repair shop manager and I talked to Heritage to tell them that a proper inspection had not been done, and that we would like another inspector to be sent out, but Heritage said their decision was made. I even offered to pay the cost of sending out another inspector, but Heritage declined.
When I informed the employee at Heritage that both the mechanic and shop manager said the inspector didn't have a straight-edge with him to determine if the head was warped, the employee called me a liar, and said that he was looking at a picture that the inspector took of the head with a straight-edge on it. I was willing to concede that maybe the repair shop guys gave me some bad information, so I asked to see a copy of the inspector's report and the pictures the inspector took. Heritage claimed that I was not entitled to see the report, since it was done by a third party, and that I would need an attorney to contact them to get it.
I spoke with an attorney about the incident and whether or not because the report was done by a third party I was not entitled to get a copy. He indicated that there is no such law, and proceeded to call the legal department at Heritage to attempt to resolve the issue. He was just immediately forwarded to voice mail, where he left a message, which was never returned.
Several weeks later, I was so frustrated that they hadn't called my attorney back that I attempted to speak with the legal department. I too was just sent to voicemail boxes, and left a number of messages over the course of several days. Finally, I received a call back from a para-leagal who was quite helpful.
The paralegal faxed, and emailed me a copy of the inspector's report, as well as all of the pictures. Not suprisingly, there was no picture of the head with a straight-edge on it.
I have contacted the Nebraska Better Business Bureau in an attempt to resolve this issue, but Heritage has responded to the BBB by insisting that the head was not leaking. They have provided no response to the repeated requests that I and the BBB have made as to where this "mystery" picture of the head with a straight-edge on it is.
Brenda
Flower Mound, Texas
U.S.A.
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