Cris Lozano in San Jose asked Envision Honda in Milpitas to change his Honda Civic’s oil and rotate the tires.
“Simple things,” he said. “Basic things I knew I had paid extra to cover.”
Cris says the service department billed him about $140. He backed out because he expected his Honda Care service plan to cover the full cost.
“They said, ‘Oh, we’ll look into it,'” Lozano said. “And then they said they didn’t see anything, they didn’t find anything in the system.”
Cris said he showed Envision Honda his own contract from the day he sold him the Civic. It shows he paid $1,995 for the Honda [Care] sentinel A Honda Care brochure says the Sentinel plan covers things like oil changes, tire maintenance and more.
Here’s the problem: “They said it never activated,” Lozano said. “And that they didn’t see it in the system. So they couldn’t honor it.”
What we have here is an activation failure
Whose job was it to activate it? The distributor, Envision. Cris wanted to cancel and get her two grands back. He says he submitted a cancellation form. Six months later: nothing.
“I have been silent,” he said.
This is not Cris’s first problem with Envision Honda. In 2022, a few months after Cris bought the same Civic, her paper tags expired. Cris says Envision didn’t register the car and stopped responding to her.
“Who’s the next email I sent? To you,” he said at the time. “And then all of a sudden, within eight days…my labels ended up in the mailbox!”
Cris contacted NBC Bay Area Responds again, about their service plan.
We reached out to Envision Honda and Honda corporate.
Honda and dealer take action
Honda headquarters told us that Cris’s problems were not “representative of a typical experience.”
Honda said dealers should activate service contracts within 48 hours of selling a car. Then, two to four weeks later, buyers should receive their contract in the mail.
None of these things happened to Cris. Because?
An Envision representative noted a management swap. Said Cris, “he bought a vehicle the day after we bought Honda Milpitas.” He noted all the “new processes and people.”
All fixed (with a bonus)
Envision said it took action for Cris as soon as NBC Bay Area Responds called Honda corporate in February. Envision refunded him $1,995, plus an inconvenience bonus.
“Another $100,” Lozao said with a laugh. “I finally won, but I still feel like I’m so frustrated. I shouldn’t have gone through all this…twice!”
Service contracts and extended warranties can be lucrative for car dealers.
100% margin?
An economics professor at Auburn University in Montgomery wrote of an “average markup of 100 percent.”
So it’s no surprise that some car salesmen can be strong, pushing a service contract.
A car dealership advisor is not shy. Its website tells dealers, “There are countless ways your dealership could increase their profitability. One of the easiest is to simply offer vehicle service contracts to your customers.”
If you fall under pressure from a car salesman, here’s good news: you can change your mind if you bought a service contract and regret it.
You can cancel and get your money back. It is the Law.
“California law gives you the absolute right to cancel a vehicle service contract for any reason,” said Assistant Insurance Commissioner Michael Soller. “We call it a ‘free look’ period.”
Sóller says you get all your money back, minus any claims you’ve made, if you cancel during the “free look” period. For new cars, it is 60 days after receiving the contract; 30 days for used cars.
But wait! There’s more!
“Even if you exceed that period, you can still get some of your money back,” Soller said.
After the “free look” you can still cancel and possibly get a partial refund. Soller said the seller might prorate your reimbursement by time or miles. They may also charge a fee, but no more than $25.
The exact amount you will receive should be in your contract. “The contract is the definitive guide,” said Sóller.
If you buy an “extended warranty”, “service contract”, “protection plan” or whatever they call it, make sure you get your contract. If you don’t, follow up. Honda, for example, told us that Honda Care buyers who don’t receive anything in the mail within 30 days of buying a car should get in touch.
Problem with extended warranty? Open a state investigation
If you’re spinning your wheels with a service contract, you can ask the California Department of Insurance to investigate.
The number is 1-800-927-4357. Or visit their website.
