California buyer not allowed to buy extended warranty out of state?

bimmerFanatic · #1 09-14-2012, 01:24 AM

I sent my keys to a BMW dealership in another state outside California after agreeing to purchase an original BMW extended warranty for a reduced price. They called me back (after charging my credit card) when they were trying to submit the warranty because their system (BMW NA?) was saying they couldn't sell one to California owners. The SA was genuinely surprised.

Anyone heard of this?

I have an address outside of California that I can use but I'm afraid if I use it, BMW NA may void my warranty since the car is in and serviced in CA.

Any thoughts?

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blktoptrvl · #2 09-14-2012, 02:54 AM

There is nothing in America that says you can't move whenever you want to. I would change the address and them use whatever dealer I want. I can't see why anyone would stop you?

TwinTurboGTR · #3 09-14-2012, 06:50 AM

It sounds about right, but I don't know why that would matter. It is the same as insurance. If you note down where you live, but live in a different place and have to make a claim, the adjuster may give you a headache. Now like with me, I live in a suburban town that is very small and low crime. Where I worked (In Newark); the agent would factor that in and the premium was set. But when I started my own firm and work was not in Colts Neck and Princeton, my premium went down. Sure mileage was a factor, but risk plays a big part.

I am sure its the same principle with the warranty. There is Variable A that is affecting Variable B and that is why they won't honor the warranty. But I concur, you the other address and be done with it.

brian5 · #4 09-14-2012, 07:11 AM

That's weird. I wonder if BMW only applies that rule to California? (that's assuming you've been given the right story)

I bought my BMW extended warranty from another state and have had no problem using it in CT.

TwinTurboGTR · #5 09-14-2012, 07:19 AM

CA has a bunch of funky rules. It wouldn;t surprise me they put a Prop 65 warning on the warranty and says that, "Purchasing this warranty from another state has been known to cause cancer in California."

bimmerFanatic · #6 09-14-2012, 04:21 PM

Thanks for your tips. Turns out there is a law prohibiting the out of state sale. The SA was surprised since that hadn't shown up before. Oh wellz, buying it from CA then. Grrr...

TwinTurboGTR · #7 09-14-2012, 04:30 PM

That blows!!!

brian5 · #8 09-14-2012, 04:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bimmerFanatic

Thanks for your tips. Turns out there is a law prohibiting the out of state sale. The SA was surprised since that hadn't shown up before. Oh wellz, buying it from CA then. Grrr...

Try outside of the Bay Area then -- maybe a more remote BMW dealer. You might get a better price.

JCL · #9 09-14-2012, 04:36 PM

Lots of warranty companies had to pull out of the California market because No matter what sellers call them, these are really insurance policies, governed by state laws that require insurance companies to hold funds to cover likely payouts, and warranty companies weren't doing this. They were working in a grey zone between warranty regulations and insurance regulations, and many just regularly folded up their tents and were leaving consumers hanging.

There is no law that says you can't move ie use another address, but there is also no law that says that policy would then be good in a new location. What's the point of buying insurance if you can't rely on being able to claim against it?

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