How To Stop Warranty Calls
Michael Collado is a car buying expert and has been a professional automotive writer since 2009. He’s written about dealership sales, vehicle reviews and comparisons, and service and maintenance for over 100 national automotive dealerships. Previously, Collado was a copywriter at the ad agency TBWA/Chiat/Day where he worked on brand campaigns for Nissan, ABC Television, Sony PlayStation, and Energizer. His recognition in the ad industry includes awards from Communication Arts and The Clios.
Collado has a Bachelor’s degree from the University of South Florida, with a major in Psychology and a minor in Marketing.
The classic "I'm calling about your vehicle's extended warranty." message, you may or may not have gotten these calls yourself, but millions have.
Every year these types of scam calls cost victims thousands of dollars per incident.
We have researched the various ways that can help you identify a warranty call scammer and how you can avoid them.
Table of Contents
Why Do I Get Warranty Calls?
Warranty calls are one of the most effective scams out there today. Many people own vehicles, and they assume that their warranty is about to run out.
Also, warranties are a high-ticket item. Therefore, only one successful scam can net criminals thousands of dollars.
Finally, some people fall for these scam warranty calls each day. Criminals will continue to use effective scams.
How To Tell If A Warranty Call Is A Fraud?
When you get a scam warranty call, it may be a little tricky to figure out if the person is from a legitimate business. In some cases, the scammer may have some of your personal information, including the type of vehicle you drive.
Therefore, be on the lookout for the following red flags:
Don’t Recognize the Number
If you don’t recognize the phone number of the person who is calling you, then you should automatically assume that the call is from a scammer.
Some phone services will let you know if the call is coming from a verified number. Additionally, some cell phone services will tell you if the call is from a “likely scammer.”
Finally, if you get a call from a number that is restricted, then you should assume that it is a scammer.
Wants You to Take Action Immediately
All salespeople will want to close a sale right away. However, a scammer will go one step further. They may offer some sort of threat if you don’t take action right away.
For example, the scammer may say that your vehicle could be in some sort of violation if it is not carrying a warranty. If you ever feel pressured to make a decision when you are on the phone, then hang up.
Asks for Personal Info
A legitimate business will have all the information they need when they call you about a sale. Therefore, you should never give out any information to a caller.
For instance, you should avoid giving the caller any financial information or private data such as your social security number or your credit card number.
Robocall
Scammers can make thousands of calls a day thanks to something known as a robocaller. A robocaller is a piece of software that allows a scammer to call multiple phone numbers at one time. When someone answers the phone, the scammer will interact with that person right away.
How To Stop Extended Warranty Calls
Since a scam warranty call can lead to thousands of dollars in losses, it is important to know how to avoid getting these calls on your phone.
Here are some of the most effective ways to reduce or eliminate scam warranty callers.
Register for the Do Not Call list
You can put your phone number on the national Do Not Call list. This list is supposed to let telemarketers know that you do not accept sales calls. Scammers will not let that stop them.
However, putting your number in the do not call registry can help reduce the number of calls that you get per day.
Robocall App
You will be glad to know that there are robocall apps that you can use to help prevent you from getting inundated with these automatic calls.
One of the best Robocall apps available is the Robo Call Blocker which is free and available for Android phones.
Block Caller
Finally, you should block the phone number of any scammer or aggressive telemarket that calls you. After you hang up on the person, be sure to use the block call function on your smartphone.
Inform Caller to Remove You From Their List
Finally, you can tell the caller to remove you from their list and not call you again. If the person does call you again, then you can take legal action
Do You Need An Extended Warranty?
You may want to get an extended warranty if you intend to own your vehicle far after the original warranty has expired. On average, people are keeping their vehicles for about 11 years, and the average new vehicle warranty is five years.
Therefore, an extended warranty may make sense for some drivers. You can compare the top extended car warranties here.
