I am sure if any of you have a WG policy then you recieved this note, but I'll post it any way for those concerned. It is an e-mail I got last week:
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We are contacting you today regarding an
unfortunate situation that affects a portion of
Warranty Gold's customers.
National Warranty Insurance Risk Retention Group,
the administrator and insurer of your Warranty
Gold extended service contract, was recently
declared insolvent. National Warranty is
responsible for paying claims from monies
deposited by Warranty Gold on behalf of our
customers, and if those funds prove insufficient,
to pay all additional claims from the insurance
paid for by Warranty Gold. As you may already
know, a court has frozen National Warranty's
assets for liquidation, and this has resulted
in a delay of payment for repairs performed
under Warranty Gold service contracts purchased
prior to June 6, 2003.
This may not be the first you've heard about this
issue. If that is the case, please allow us to
apologize - you should have heard the news from
Warranty Gold first. For the past several weeks,
we have been focused on exploring all available
options, legal and otherwise, for sustaining the
value in your service contract and honoring
Warranty Gold's commitment to you.
Warranty Gold has a long history of faithfully
serving our customers, and that commitment will
not waiver as we seek to resolve this situation.
Please know that we are working for you. We are
determined to get the maximum contract value for
each contract, for each of our contract holders.
At Warranty Gold, we know our business is about
keeping promises. And we are making three
promises to you today:
(1) Warranty Gold will make you aware of your
options, so you can make the best decision
possible for how you wish to handle your
relationship with our company.
(2) Warranty Gold will communicate with you
regularly so you are informed about the
situation affecting your extended service
contract with our company. In fact, we
have launched
http://www.WarrantyNews.com
as a resource to keep you up-to-date and
to provide you options as our customer.
We encourage you to check the site regularly
as we will post new information there first.
(3) We are determined to recover National
Warranty funds we have already dedicated to
paying claims for our customers.
However, this is a complex issue and you should
know the reasons why:
* Two different courts have jurisdiction over
this case.
* One of the courts has frozen accounts
National Warranty holds in trust for paying
Warranty Gold customer claims. These are
funds Warranty Gold has already paid National
Warranty on your behalf for paying any claims
you may have. We are working to recover these
funds.
* Gaining access to these funds will be only
the first of several steps toward being able
to pay claims.
* Claims cannot be paid until the courts rule
on the liquidation of National Warranty.
It is important for you to know that Warranty
Gold remains in business. It is necessary for us
to stay in business in order to work for you and
be able to honor any repair claims that must be
resolved. We also remain in business to stand
behind our reputation and to provide the level
of service Warranty Gold is known for, today and
for years to come.
No doubt you are wondering how Warranty Gold
found itself in this situation. We can assure you
we conducted extensive research in our decision
to work with National Warranty Insurance Group to
receive and disburse funds, and to insure and
administer our customers' extended service
agreements. Nevertheless, circumstances beyond
our control have made National Warranty unable
to fulfill its commitment to Warranty Gold, our
customers, and the customers of companies like
ours across the country.
In fact, Warranty Gold and our customers are not
alone. National Warranty's insolvency has
impacted approximately one million extended
service contract customers, numerous companies
offering services similar to Warranty Gold, and
countless auto dealers nationwide.
Because of this situation, Warranty Gold is now
doing business with a new administrator and
insurer that pays claims from monies paid by
Warranty Gold on behalf of our customers who
purchased their extended service contracts after
June 6. That's why we can remain in business,
working for our customers as National Warranty
goes through liquidation. And that's why Warranty
Gold customers who purchased their extended
service contracts from us after June 6 are not
affected by this situation.
We understand that you chose Warranty Gold to do
business with, and you may or may not have known
about National Warranty's obligation to
administer and pay claims under the terms of your
contract. We take our responsibility to you as
our customer very seriously. That's why we are
doing everything possible to secure the funds
for paying customer claims.
This letter is the first in what will be an
ongoing communications effort to keep you
informed as this situation develops. You will
continue to receive regular updates regarding
our progress in the resolution of this issue.
In addition, Warranty Gold has established
http://www.WarrantyNews.com, a website we have
dedicated to providing the most current
information about the National Warranty
insolvency issue and information you will need to
make decisions as a Warranty Gold customer. This
website will provide the most up-to-date
information as you consider your options.
Over the coming months we will do everything in
our power to restore the value in your service
contract, and more importantly, to restore your
trust in Warranty Gold. We hope you will choose
to stay with us. We intend to honor our commitment
to you.
Thank you for your patience and your continued
support.
Sincerely,
Michael Kammerman
President and Chief Executive Officer
P. S.
http://www.WarrantyNews.com is live today,
and we will continue to update it whenever we
have news or information to share with you about
the National Warranty situation and your options
as our customer.
http://www.WarrantyNews.com
Please do not reply to this email.
Visit WarrantyNews.com for more information. We
have created a Contact Us section within this
website.