Warranty News Headlines
January 1, 2004 to today
- Home Depot to sell appliances over the Web, but extended warranties will be sold via follow-up phone calls to the customer.InformationWeek, December 31, 2004
- Samsung to offer a Zero-Pixel-Defect warranty for LCD monitors, replacing units for free if customer finds a single bad pixel within six months of purchase.
Yonhap News Service, December 30, 2004- Platinum Warranty Corp. to make a play for the Hispanic marketplace, opening http://www.garantiaauto.com Web site.
Hispanic PR Wire, December 29, 2004- Big Dog Motorcycles ranked as the number one motorcycle manufacturer by dealers surveyed by DealerNews magazine.
Press Release, December 28, 2004- ServiceBench Inc. appoints Vincent Zumbo to be its new Chief Financial Officer.
Press Release, December 28, 2004- Sleepy's Inc. and 1-800-Sleepy's Inc. agree to pay $750,000 to settle lawsuit brought by the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs.
Associated Press, December 23, 2004- Maxtor increases hard disk drive warranties to five years.
ChannelTimes, December 23, 2004- The insolvency of Powerhouse causes PowerPlan Company Ltd. to fail, will pay only part of appliance extended warranty claims, publishes list of capped repair rates.
Letter from Administrator, December 22, 2004- The warranty windfall: Service contracts are cash cows, but retailers Best Buy and Circuit City are mum about their importance.
Business Week, December 20, 2004- When service contracts make sense: Consumer Reports lists treadmills, elliptical trainers, plasma TVs, and laptop PCs as likely candidates.
Business Week, December 20, 2004- Consumer Reports calls the Mercedes-Benz S-Class the least reliable sedan available in the U.S., finds serious problems with computers, electrical systems, and power equipment.
Forbes, December 20, 2004- The warranty windfall for Besy Buy & Circuit City.
Bloomberg Business Week, December 19, 2004- Pirelli Tire North America Inc. is dropping road hazard protection from passenger car and light truck tire warranties in Canada, effective Jan. 1.
Modern Tire Dealer, December 15, 2004- Fidelity National Financial Inc. repurchases 2.5 million shares of common stock issued earlier in 2004 to investors in Aurum Technology Inc., a company it acquired in March.
Press Release, December 14, 2004- Sears, Roebuck and Co. launches a ServiceBench-enabled Web site for automated online warranty claims activities and the related claims recovery process for more than 10,000 repair technicians.
Press Release, December 13, 2004- Acer lengthens the warranty on LCD monitors to three years in Saudi Arabia.
Corporate Publishing International, December 13, 2004- Hybrid auto sales accelerate; customers are reassured by long warranties on batteries; LA, DC, and Bay Area lead U.S. sales.
Oakland Tribune, December 12, 2004- Ford Motor Co. recalls 400,000 Escape SUVs, spokeswoman says accelerator defect was discovered through field reports and warranty information.
Mlive, December 10, 2004- DaimlerChrysler recalls 600,000 Dodge Durango SUVs and Dakota pickup trucks, lengthens the warranty for 400,000 others, citing defects in ball joints.
Associated Press, December 10, 2004- Veteran mechanic says Shell or Mobil gasoline won't clog fuel injectors; backs claim with a warranty on fuel injector cleanings or replacements.
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, December 10, 2004- DaimlerChrysler Canada trims powertrain coverage on Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge models to five years/100,000 kilometers from the seven-year/115,000-km warranty offered in 2003 and 2004.
CanWest News Service, December 10, 2004- Bridgestone/Firestone Canada Inc. and Michelin North America (Canada) Inc. both say they're dropping road hazard protection from their passenger car and light truck tire warranties, effective Jan. 1. (b)
Edmonton Journal, December 10, 2004- Goodyear Canada Inc. is dropping road hazard protection from passenger car and light truck tire warranties, effective Jan. 1.
Modern Tire Dealer, December 9, 2004- General manager of IBM's Personal Systems Group and future CEO of China's Lenovo Group says IBM Global Services to continue providing warranty work for PCs.
CNET News.com, December 9, 2004- Apple Computer cannot currently sell extended warranties to consumers in Wyoming until the state approves company's application to sell AppleCare Protection Plan there.
Apple Insider, December 9, 2004- Seagate hard drives manufactured as components intended for OEMs are not covered by five-year warranty when units are diverted to retail channel, as CDW customer finds.
The Inquirer, December 9, 2004- ACNielsen says Seagate's market share in India jumped to 72.4% in third quarter following introduction of five-year warranties.
Channel Times, December 9, 2004- IBM sells PC business to China's Lenovo for $1.75 billion.
Reuters, December 8, 2004- China's Lenovo Group reveals data about growing warranty costs for IBM's PC business, says claims consumed 6.1% of PC revenue in 2003 and 7% in the first six months of 2004.
IDG News Service, December 8, 2004- Lenovo Group says IBM Global Services will be its preferred providers for warranty and maintenance services.
Press Release, December 8, 2004- Hewlett-Packard opens service center in Nigeria for PCs, printers and peripherals.
Lagos Vanguard, December 8, 2004- Consumer Reports says 10 of the 11 least-reliable vehicles on the road are European luxury models, and the most common problems found are in the electronic systems.
Gannett News Service, December 8, 2004- Effective Jan. 1, Barclaycard UK to discontinue automatic extensions of warranties for merchandise bought with its credit cards. Exit linked to onset of new Financial Services Authority regulations covering insurance.
The Scotsman, December 7, 2004- AMR Research says auto manufacturers embracing Early Warning Systems can save billions by reducing the time between determining a defect and applying the corrective action.
Press Release, December 7, 2004- MBA Holdings and the National Motorcycle Dealers Association to market and sell motorcycle vehicle service contracts administered by Aon Corp.
Rubber Magazine, December 6, 2004- Navistar International Corp. predicts record fourth quarter earnings, improved margins as 2003 warranty problems with 6-liter V8 engines recede into history and truck sales soar.
Press Release, December 6, 2004- CEO of Platinum Warranty Corp. interviewed on Terry Bradshaw's Winner's Circle program, video posted for online download.
Web Site Video (WMV format), December 6, 2004- Armored jeeps used by Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan develop cracks in the floor, warranty claims against DaimlerChrysler expected.
Canada Press, December 5, 2004- Gulf Warranties, 66% owned by the Bahrain-based Arab Insurance Group, turns ten years old and launches a business service division.
Times of Oman, December 5, 2004- Epson launches Aculaser C1100 color laser printers in Singapore with special promotional two-year on-site warranty until year's end; units purchased after Jan. 1 get only one year.
Business Times, December 4, 2004- Joint venture of Faber SpA and Heatkraft introduces lifetime warranties on kitchen chimneys, claims to be the first and the only appliances company in India to do so.
Rediff.com, December 3, 2004- Bridgestone/Firestone Canada Inc. and Michelin North America (Canada) Inc. both say they're dropping road hazard protection from their passenger car and light truck tire warranties, effective Jan. 1.
CanWest News Service, December 3, 2004- Missouri's Rapid Response Team will help about 100 employees of Aon Innovative Solutions Inc. who will lose their jobs when the Chesterfield, MO facility closes in January.
St. Louis Business Journal, December 2, 2004- Carleton Inc. and the StoneEagle Group work together on electronic signature solutions for auto dealers.
Press Release, December 2, 2004- 3Com's warranty program now lets customers order replacements in advance for SuperStack and OfficeConnect product lines, speeding shipments to next day in most cases.
Press Release, December 1, 2004- Separations, Blow-outs, and Fallout: A TREADise on the Regulatory Aftermath of the Ford-Firestone Tire Recall, by Kevin M. McDonald, Volkswagen of America Inc.
John Marshall Law Review, Vol. 37, p. 1073, 2004, December 1, 2004- IBM Global Services broadens its on-site warranty service to cover all of New Zealand, and not just the metropolitan areas previously covered.
New Zealand Reseller News, December 1, 2004November 2004- U.S. automakers recall 25 million vehicles in 2004, surpassing record set in 2000, NHTSA counts 462 individual recalls, TREAD Act cited.
Associated Press, November 30, 2004- HP launches a PC Security initiative to protect consumers from viruses and spyware; Web site augmented by online training, email and instant messaging responses, and security software discounts.
Press Release, November 30, 2004- Beginning Jan. 15, 2005, dealers who are not registered with the UK's Financial Standards Authority or as an agent of an approved insurer will be prevented from selling insurance related products in the UK such as mechanical breakdown warranties.
New Car Net, November 30, 2004- 4C Solutions Inc. licenses iWarranty software to International Truck Corp. to help manage their extended warranty and service contract activities.
Press Release, November 30, 2004- Appraisal Institute researchers find that home warranties do not impact the price of homes sold with them.
RedNova, November 28, 2004- Business First newspaper ranks Service Net Solutions LLC in its "Fast 50," list based on revenue growth rates during the past three years.
Press Release, November 23, 2004- Attensity Corp. announces the beta availability of Attensity Warranty Advanced Edition, includes decision support, reporting, dashboard and alert capabilities.
Press Release, November 22, 2004- Greaves Cotton Ltd. and the Bank of India jointly offer farm equipment with discounted financing rates and lengthened warranties for borrowers.
Sify Ltd., November 22, 2004- ServiceBench Inc. signs LG Electronics Inc. for warranty management and service dispatch functions.
Press Release, November 22, 2004- LG Electronics begins production of a 71-inch plasma screen but has yet to decide upon its warranty period.
Korea Times, November 22, 2004- UK's Department of Trade and Industry delays new extended warranty rules from taking effect until April at the earliest, giving retailers an early Christmas present.
BBC News, November 19, 2004- Best Buy Co. Inc., Circuit City Stores Inc., CompUSA Inc., and Dell Inc. dispatch staff to do house calls, sometimes under warranty.
Associated Press, November 18, 2004- J.M. Dutton and Associates raises rating on Warrantech to "speculative buy" in new report.
Research Report, November 18, 2004 (PDF file)- Maxtor lengthens desktop and enterprise hard disk drive warranty periods.
The Register, November 18, 2004- Mitsubishi begins offering transferable 10-year warranties in Canada, better than Hyundai.
Montreal Gazette, November 17, 2004- Logitech India lengthens the warranty on its keyboards, optical mice, desktops and webcams to either two or three years.
Channel Times, November 17, 2004- Pioneer offers five-year warranties on two plasma screens in Australia and says unit's half life is now up to 60,000 hours.
Australian IT, November 16, 2004- W3 Solutions Inc. to administer a manufacturer's warranty and service plan in Canada for TVs made in China by the Konka Group Inc.
Press Release, November 16, 2004- Dell Inc. admits a "small percentage" of its Inspiron 5100 notebooks have an overheating problem caused by dust build-up on the heat sink, gives complaining customer in the UK a warranty concession.
Personal Computer World, November 16, 2004- Visioneer Inc. begins selling extended warranties for its line of scanners.
Press Release, November 16, 2004- Confidential documents from American International Group surface through a Warrantech lawsuit, suggesting AIG has lost $500 million or more on auto extended warranties that underpriced the risk.
USA Today, November 15, 2004- Cromwell High School rents nearby artificial turf field for Thanksgiving Day home game, but field can't be used in the event of snow because plowing it might void the warranty.
New Britain Herald, November 15, 2004- Samsung Australia covers select SyncMaster monitors with next business day replacement warranty.
Digital Media News, November 12, 2004- Chevrolet backs Cobalt and Aveo models with five-year/60,000-mile Powertrain Promise warranty in response to success of Hyundai, Kia, Suzuki, and Mitsubishi with lengthy warranties.
Advertising Age, November 12, 2004- BMO Wholesale Scooters, aka Bargain Mail Order, draws 99 complaints to Better Business Bureau for failure to honor warranty claims on gas powered scooters.
Louisville Courier-Journal, November 12, 2004- Porta-Bote International has sold 50,000 fold-up boats covered by 10-year warranties, but has never processed a warranty claim in 30 years.
Business Week, November 11, 2004- Auditing firms say 30% of companies may miss Sarbanes-Oxley Section 404 compliance deadline.
CIO Magazine, November 10, 2004- Australian businessman buys new Lexus to qualify for local dealership's three-day golf trip.
AutoWeb, November 10, 2004- Black granite Earth globe perched in front of the Science Museum of Virginia cracks along its equator, owners to pursue warranty claim against its German manufacturer.
Richmond Times-Dispatch, November 10, 2004- Hewlett-Packard says single vendor assembly and all-in-one warranties for high performance computing clusters are better for the customer than buying parts at a discount and self-assembling clusters.
Computer Business Review, November 9, 2004- Australian school gets four year warranty promises from IBM, Apple, ASI, and Optima.
News Interactive, November 9, 2004- General Motors says it has improved reliability by 40 percent during the past three years and cut warranty costs by 23 percent.
Lansing State Journal, November 9, 2004- European automakers fare the worst in Consumer Reports magazine's survey of vehicle reliability, with Asian brands dominating and Detroit automakers scoring mixed results.
Detroit News, November 9, 2004- Mitsubishi Motors Corp. now expects net loss in year ending March 31 to top ¥240 billion (US$2.25 billion), larger than was previously forecast, sees sales down in Japan and North America but up elsewhere.
Auto Asia, November 8, 2004- Maxtor increases hard disk drive warranty period to five years for distribution channel.
Strategiy.com, November 8, 2004 - Samsung to offer a Zero-Pixel-Defect warranty for LCD monitors, replacing units for free if customer finds a single bad pixel within six months of purchase.
December 2004