— American Vehicle Protection Corp has been sued by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in a lawsuit that alleges the company and related defendants made false claims about extended car warranties.
According to the government, American Vehicle Protection Corp, My Protection Plan Inc. and related individuals illegally called hundreds of thousands of consumers to sell car warranties at a cost of $2,800 to $3,400.
The FTC alleges the car warranty calls brought in more than $6 million in the past four years from consumers who believed the extended car warranties were associated directly with automakers.
Florida-based American Vehicle Protection (AVP) Corp allegedly used deceptive telemarketing schemes to represent the warranty calls were made on behalf of dealers or car manufacturers.
“AVP blasted consumers with illegal calls and made bogus claims about bumper-to-bumper warranties. The truth is that the warranties didn’t come from the manufacturer, didn’t cover the repairs people needed, and weren’t sold legally. We are holding AVP accountable.” — FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection
The FTC car warranty scam lawsuit alleges calls were placed to consumers who were on the Do Not Call Registry and callers made false statements about “bumper-to-bumper” or “full vehicle” car warranty coverage.
The alleged car warranty scam calls also made consumers think they could get full refunds of their down payments or full payments within 30 days of buying the warranties if they were not happy.
According to the car warranty scam lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for Southern District of Florida, the case includes these defendants.
- American Vehicle Protection Corp.
- CG3 Solutions Inc., d/b/a My Protection Plan Inc.
- Tony Allen Gonzalez, individually and as an owner, officer, and/or manager of American Vehicle Protection Corp., CG3 Solutions Inc., and Tony Gonzalez Consulting Group, Inc., d/b/a The Gonzalez Group
- Charles Gonzales, individually and as an owner, officer, and/or manager of American Vehicle Protection Inc. and CG3 Solutions Inc.
- Kole Consulting Group, Inc.
- Daniel Kole, individually and as an owner, officer, and/or manager of American Vehicle Protection Corp. and Kole Consulting Group, Inc.
Although the FTC believes the defendants violated the FTC Act and the Telemarketing Sales Rule, the case will be decided by the court.
