Transferring an ESP Premium Warranty at 57K

[Pittpa]

I am buying a Subaru. I have ESP Premium wraparound with $0 deductible. 8 year/100k miles, so 2 years left and 43k miles left.
While negotiating a trade, the Subaru dealer told me the they can't transfer the ESP to a buyer ostensibly because they can't take possession of the ESP to be the transferring party.
i also took it to a Ford dealer to see what they would pay. They told me the ESP is not transferable.
My ESP agreement has this paragraph:

It looks to me like I can transfer it even if the Subaru dealer sells it, and I have 180 days to do so.
What gives with the dealer telling me it can't be transferred? Note, I bought the ESP from Flood Ford in RI and this is a local Pittsburgh dealer.

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[Chrizzle]

why not just cancel it and get a pro rated refund back for the unused portion?

 

[Pittpa]

My understanding of the contract is that if I’ve used it, I can no longer get a refund. And I have used it.

 

[Skye]

Disclosures: I am not a lawyer. I have not attempted to transfer a vehicle warranty before.

I'll try to give a general feel why I think any dealer would not want to receive the warranty.

To make the transfer happen, you have to sign a letter with your address and other information, the info that currently aligns with the existing warranty. The receiver has to do same, committing them to that contract and anything that goes with it. Then, they have to file it and later take receipt of the new contract. That's not something a salesperson is going to want to do.

If the salesperson did sign for it, now, they have to do the same to the next owner, whomever that's going to be. A-to-B and B-to-C.

From the perspective of the dealers, it's the hassle factor. That car could be sitting there for 10 hours, only be flipped. Or it might be sitting on the lot for over a month. The salesperson might be there this week and gone the next.

It's great you'd like to pass it on. In a private sale, the warranty could have value. To the dealer, I think no. And who knows, maybe they'd like to sell them their own warranty, to increase their margin on the re-sale.

Edit,

I have a warranty and have been reading the refund section. Everyone's contract may be different.

If I attempt to cancel with 30 days of signing, and, there has not been a claim, I get a full refund.

If I attempt to cancel afterwards, and/or there has been a claim, the remaining warranty will be pro-rated and a $75 cancellation fee imposed, I get back what's left. Depending on amounts paid and time left, that could be hundreds of dollars.

Given the receiving dealer feedback, if you can net anything at all, attempting to cancel seems the best route to take.

YMMV.

12. CANCELLATION AND REFUND
(A) YOUR RIGHT TO CANCEL THIS AGREEMENT AND RECEIVE A
REFUND:

You may cancel this Agreement at any time and for any reason and
You will be entitled to a refund from Us, described below.

(1) If We or the Selling Dealer receive a written cancellation request,
on or before the 30th day from the Signature Date and no claim has
been filed under this Agreement, this Agreement will be void, and
You will be entitled to a refund equal to the full Purchase Price You
paid for this Agreement. This right is not transferable and is limited
to the original contract holder.

(2) If We or the Selling Dealer receive
a written cancellation request, including a copy of Your Application,
proof of payment and statement of the odometer reading, after the
30th day from the Signature Date or if a claim has been filed at any
time during the term of this Agreement, We will divide the Purchase
Price You paid for the Agreement by the number of miles or months
of coverage provided by this Agreement, whichever is greater. We
will multiply this dollar amount by the remaining unused miles or
months, whichever is less, and refund this amount (“Pro Rata basis”
or “pro rata”) to You or Your lender, minus a $75 cancellation fee.

Edit, (again),

More liabilities for the receiving dealer.

5F. COVERED ITEMS -
“Powertrain Wrap Coverage”
If You elected Powertrain Wrap Coverage, You have new
PremiumCARE coverage for all components except components
covered under PowertrainCARE. Powertrain Wrap Coverage applies
only to the original Service Contract Holder for the selected coverage
and is not transferable to any subsequent vehicle owner.

1A. TRANSFERABILITY: You may transfer this Agreement, subject to
a $75 transfer fee. You or the transferee of this Agreement must
initiate the transfer process by providing the following items to any
Ford or Lincoln dealership or to Us at P.O. Box 6045, Dearborn,
Michigan 48121 within 180 days of the vehicle sale:
(i) a letter, signed by You, transferring this Agreement to the
transferee; (ii) a statement of the mileage on the Vehicle at the time
of transfer; and (iii) the name and address of the transferee.

 

[Pittpa]

Yeah, that’s all good info… I did read all the other provisions regarding transfer refund. But currently the one I provided is the only one one that’s relevant at this time. You make a lot of good points.

 

[Pittpa]

The Subaru dealer is insisting that I can’t transfer the contract outside a direct private party sale, per their business mgr who worked financing at Ford. . I did not see any wording to this effect in the contract.

 

[cerbomark]

I DIDN T READ THRU ALL THE POSTS BUT THESE WARRANTIES do not tranfer if it goes to a dealer.
I have 2 subaru s too!

I had a CPO Porsche warranty and they told me the same thing when I traded it in, that they can t transfer to new owner. If I sold it privately then it could be transferred. I assume that s standard , but I m guessing.

 

[Pittpa]

I DIDN T READ THRU ALL THE POSTS BUT THESE WARRANTIES do not tranfer if it goes to a dealer.
I have 2 subaru s too!

I had a CPO Porsche warranty and they told me the same thing when I traded it in, that they can t transfer to new owner. If I sold it privately then it could be transferred. I assume that s standard , but I m guessing.

I just went to Ford Protect website and found this.

https://fordprotect.ford.com/extended-service-plan

 

[cerbomark]

transferable maybe but maybe dealer trade transfer not applicable? call the toll free number and ask.

 

[cerbomark]

The warranty gets transferred from the old owner to the new owner with a process between the two. Seems a dealer can t or won t be involved, which means the process can t take place. The selling dealer is prohibited from giving your info to the new owner and those things need to be done to meet the transfer qualifications. If you think about it, you could sell your car to the dealer, go home and fill out a form to be reimbursed from Ford for the unused portion. The dealer would never know until it was too late. (even if in your case a reimbursement may not be applicable).

Ford is very strict with these tranfers. I bought a used Mustang , I was third owner. second owner never did paperwork to transfer the extended warranty . went to my local dealer ,Ford, for help. they said if I had the original owner sign and forward paperwork to them they would try and get it jumped over to me. I spoke with first owner and he said "OK". Then he went dark. I assumed he said to him self, "I can file a form and get the money back myself".

 

[S550HPP]

I did buy a used FORD from dealer a while back and the extended warranty transferred maybe things have changed. Just call the warranty line don't rely on dealer people most are incompetent

 

[Pittpa]

I did buy a used FORD from dealer a while back and the extended warranty transferred maybe things have changed. Just call the warranty line don't rely on dealer people most are incompetent

Good advice. I just saw the phone number on the webpage.

 

[DansFLHTI]

Back in 2012 I bought a used 2010 Ford Ranger from a Ford dealership in Canada. The first time I took it in to the dealer for an oil change, the service advisor told me it had ESP and there would be no charge for service for 5yrs and an extended warranty for the same time period. There was no mention of this ESP when I bought the truck, no paperwork to sign and no transfer fee.. It was a pleasant surprise.

 

[cerbomark]

Good advice. I just saw the phone number on the webpage.

let us know.

 

[Pittpa]

let us know.

I called Ford Protect and was advised that is is absolutely transferable upon receipt of the transfer letter signed by me and submitted by the buyer or me with a check for the transfer amount. His computer shows it is $75, while my contract shows it to be $40. He could not explain the discrepancy.
He said a second option is to transfer it at a Ford dealer. Obviously not possible if the dealer says the ESP is not transferable.
EDIT: They did confirm that selling through a Ford or non-Ford dealer makes no difference. The $40 transfer fee applies to Florida. There are multiple paragraphs numbered 11a and titled "Transferability". $75 is correct for my contract.

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