Class action lawsuit against Fiat Chrysler: Lifetime warranty is unfair

UPDATE: On December 15, 2020, a federal judge declined to dismiss a class action lawsuit accusing Fiat and Chrysler Motor Company of violating a lifetime warranty it offers to consumers.

Vehicle owners have filed a class action lawsuit against Fiat Chrysler, claiming the automaker is violating its lifetime warranty.

The plaintiffs, including 27 motorists from 22 states, allege that Fiat Chrysler is failing to honor its lifetime warranty on 2006 through 2009 Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep vehicles sold and delivered on or after July 26, 2007.

One of the plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit against Fiat Chrysler is Paul Grundy, a Michigan resident. Grundy says he purchased a new 2009 Dodge Journey that Fiat Chrysler said came with a lifetime warranty.

In December 2019, Grundy claims he took his vehicle to the dealership to have the vehicle’s engine components diagnosed and repaired. He says Fiat Chrysler refused to make the repairs to the vehicle, arguing that the lifetime warranty was voided because the vehicle had not undergone an engine inspection as required by the warranty’s inspection clause.

Grundy states that he suffered economic loss as a result of Fiat Chrysler’s breach of its lifetime warranty obligations, including the cost of parts and labor necessary to repair his vehicle.

In their lifetime warranty class action lawsuit, plaintiffs allege that Fiat Chrysler does not honor the lifetime warranty because the warranty includes a provision requiring vehicles to undergo a “powertrain inspection” within 60 days of each fifth anniversary of in-service use.

In addition, the vehicle owners claim that Fiat Chrysler has reneged on its obligations to repair the vehicles altogether by “revoking” the lifetime warranties. As a result, the plaintiffs say, they will have to incur additional costs to repair powertrain components in their vehicles in the future.

The drivers claim that they were never adequately informed of the existence of the inspection clause in the lifetime warranty when they purchased their vehicles and that the commencement clause is unconscionable.

In July 2007, Fiat Chrysler announced that it would offer a lifetime warranty on 88 percent of its fleet models, the plaintiffs claim.

According to drivers, Fiat Chrysler sold hundreds of thousands of vehicles between 2007 and 2009 by offering vehicle owners lifetime warranties.

“Bulldogged by the financial promises made in its lifetime warranty offer, FCA now routinely voids the lifetime warranty because vehicle owners were unaware that they were required to have their powertrain inspected within this arbitrarily narrow window of time,” Fiat Chrysler’s lifetime warranty class action lawsuit states.

The plaintiffs claim they were not informed of the specific terms of the lifetime warranty, particularly the inspection clause. They say the terms of the lifetime warranty were not included in the warranty manuals provided to all buyers of the 2006-2009 class vehicles.

The terms of the inspection clause were included in the Class 2009 vehicles, but they are in fine print and indistinguishable from the surrounding text, drivers explain. The inspection clause, they say, is atypical, serves no commercial purpose and is one-sided.

The lifetime warranty was the primary consideration of the alleged class members when purchasing the vehicles, and Fiat Chrysler allegedly knew this.

The plaintiffs claim that Fiat Chrysler enticed them to purchase their vehicles with the promise of a lifetime warranty, but then failed to inform them of the conditions that would void the warranty.

The legal and factual issues in this class action include: 1) whether Fiat Chrysler breached the terms of the lifetime warranty by denying warranty claims; 2) whether plaintiffs were given adequate notice of the inspection provision; 3) whether the inspection provision is unconscionable; and 4) whether class members are entitled to equitable, legal, or injunctive relief.

The drivers state that Fiat Chrysler expressly assured them when they purchased their vehicles that the Class vehicles would come with a lifetime warranty.

As part of the warranty, Fiat Chrysler promised to cover the cost of any parts needed to repair the powertrain of their vehicles that were deemed defective.

“FCA breached its lifetime warranty by refusing to pay for the repair of defects in workmanship and/or materials in drivetrain parts and components of the affected vehicles,” the Fiat Chrysler limited warranty class action lawsuit states.

Due to Fiat Chrysler’s breach of contract, the plaintiffs claim that they have suffered damages in an amount to be proven in court, which shall include all claims for damages as well as incidental and consequential damages.

Do you own a Fiat Chrysler vehicle with a lifetime warranty that has been declared null or void? Leave a message in the comments section below.

The plaintiffs are represented by E. Powell Miller, Sharon Almonrode, Emily E. Hughes, Dennis A. Lienhardt and William Kalas of The Miller Law Firm PC and Richard D. McCune, David C. Wright, Steven A. Haskins and Mark I. Richards of McCune Wright Arevalo LLP.

The Class action lawsuit over Fiat Chrysler’s lifetime warranty Is Grundy et al. v. FCA US LLCCase No. 2:20-cv-11231, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.