Opinion ID: 619286
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Secret Warranty Law Claims

Text: California’s Secret Warranty Law provides that: [a] manufacturer shall, within 90 days of the adoption of an adjustment program, subject to priority for safety or emission-related recalls, notify by first-class mail all owners or lessees of motor vehicles eligible under the program of the condition giving rise to and the principal terms and conditions of the program. Cal. Civ. Code § 1795.92(a). An “adjustment program” is defined as follows: any program or policy that expands or extends the consumer’s warranty beyond its stated limit or under which a manufacturer offers to pay for all or any part of the cost of repairing, or to reimburse consumers for all or any part of the cost of repairing, any condition that may substantially affect vehicle durability, reliability, or performance, other than service provided under a safety or emission-related recall campaign. -6- Cal. Civ. Code § 1795.90(d). The law further provides that an adjustment program “does not include ad hoc adjustments made by a manufacturer on a case-by-case basis.” Id. We agree with the district court that plaintiffs failed to offer sufficient evidence to support a finding that Ford’s After-Warranty Assistance program fell within the statutory exception for “ad hoc” adjustments. Plaintiffs’ allegation that the program was an “adjustment program,” as applied to ignition locks in the Focus, boiled down to the fact that Ford had replaced more than 16,000 Focus ignition locks under the program by the end of 2008. According to plaintiffs, the sheer number of repairs indicated that this was more than an “ad hoc” policy. However, Ford’s internal materials emphasized that repair decisions were to be made on a case-by-case basis, did not reference ignition locks specifically, and offered only vague guidelines, such as whether there was a potential for a customer relations impact. Plaintiffs did not carry their burden in showing that there was a genuine issue of material fact as to whether Ford’s program was in violation of the Secret Warranty Law.