Any readers experiencing these 'expired auto warrranty' solicitations?

Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson took action in August barring National Auto Warranty Services, Inc., d/b/a Dealer Services (“NAWS”), and National Dealer’s Warranty, Inc. (“NDW”) from using misrepresentations and other questionable marketing tactics to sell motor vehicle service contracts in Minnesota. Under the court-approved Assurances the companies must pay civil fines totaling at least $85,000 and change their direct mail and telemarketing practices significantly.

“Minnesotans who receive mailings indicating that their vehicle’s warranty expired, is about to expire, or that their vehicle is subject to a manufacturer recall may feel intimidated into calling and then be sold a product that they don’t want or need,” said Swanson. “I encourage consumers to be on guard against deceptive motor vehicle service contract offers.”

NAWS and NDW led consumers to believe that the manufacturer or dealer of the consumer’s automobile sent the solicitations. In fact, NAWS and NDW are unrelated to any vehicle manufacturer or dealer. The solicitations included urgent language that caused consumers to believe they had to act immediately or lose their warranty coverage, even though many still had years remaining on their existing warranty and the company marketing the product had no actual knowledge when the consumer’s true warranty was scheduled to expire. Mailings used urgent language that included bold-faced writing proclaiming ‘IMPORTANT SAFETY RECALL INFORMATION’ or ‘Final Notice - Expiring Auto Warranty.’ Consumers also complained that they received automated telephone calls and other harassing telemarketing calls from NAWS and NDW.