Global Warranty Group and Cindy Riggs : They openly STEAL from you and have no shame in doing so : St. James, NY, USA Nationwide

Type of Service

The Global Warranty Group is a company that provides insurance coverage to your smart phone.  I bought this coverage for my VERIZON iPhone 5.  They cover all types of damages to ones smartphone including stolen devices.  This service costs $400 + tax.

My Experience and the Injustice Incurred by GWG

I dropped my phone and the screen severely cracked on February 16, 2014.  The same evening I filed a claim and paid a $189.00 deductible from my debit card.  I was told that they had no more black iPhone 5's in stock and was asked if I would acceot a check for $550.  I agreed and was told that I would be issued a check within 4-7 days.  After a week of having a cracked screen and many cuts later, I still had not heard from the company.  I went online to www.trackaclaim.com and entered the information they provided me and saw that they were still processing the claim. I contacted them by phone directly and was told the following:

1. They were sorry that I still had no recieved the money they promised me.
2. My claim would be sent to their Escalations Department (apparently a specialized accounting department for emergencies) for expedited processing.
3. If my damaged phone was not recieved within 30 days from the day I filed a claim (March 16, 2014) they would charge my debit card $699.99. 
4. I could go online to the trackaclaim.com website and print a UPS pre-paid mailing label to send my phone to them.

Let's look at #3 again.  I am a graduate student just barely getting by on the pittance I make now at my part time job and putting myself through a masters program.  I literally did not have the money to buy a brand new smart phone without the $550 they promised they would send me.  This company had not yet issued me the money they promised me and were not sure when they would do so yet they wanted me to send them my phone.  Sure, my phone's screen was cracked but it was still functional enough to serve as a phone.

On March 8, 2014 I called them again to see where they were RE: issuing me the $550 check.  I was told that they had no information, they would once more send my claim to the Escalations Department, and they were sorry.

I emailed them to see if threatening my attorney would work and this was the response I recieved from Cindy Riggs, a representative of the company.  This is what she said to me about my inquiry:

We are working to obtain the status/ETA on your check. When it has been confirmed that your check has been issued you will be provided a check # and the date. We understand the frustration in this delay and we will do everything we can to assist in getting this issue resolved. We apologize for the inconvenience. Your claim will be monitored on a daily basis until we get confirmation that your check has been sent.Your patience is appreciated. Thank you

Cindy Riggs|Escalation Representative

500 Middle Country Road | St. James, New York 11780

631.750.0300 | fax 877.220.8501 

This email is intended only for the person(s) to whom it is addressed and/or otherwise authorized personnel. The information contained herein and attached is confidential and the property of Global Warranty Group, LLC. If you are not the intended recipient, please be advised that viewing this message and any attachments, as well as copying, forwarding, printing, and disseminating any information related to this email is prohibited, and that you should not take any action based on the content of this email and/or its attachments. If you received this message in error, please contact the sender and destroy all copies of this email and any attachment. Global Warranty Group, LLC accepts no liability for any damage caused by any virus transmitted by or contained in this email and attachments. No liability is accepted for any consequences arising from this email.

 

On March 16, 2014, $699.99 was deducted from my checking account "automatically" because I still had not returned my phone.  I was not going to send my phone to them without them issuing me the $550 check they promised me.

It is not June 5, 2014 and I still have not recieved the $550 check.  I was told that I would recieve a retroactive reimbursement for the $699.99 when I return my phone.  Since then I have filed a Fraud Claim with Bank of America at which point issued me a credit for $699.99.  I desperately needed that money for living expenses.  After three weeks, Bank of America found that there was in fact no fraudulent activity on the merchant's behalf and took back it's credit of $699.99 from my account.  Needless to say there was not enough money in my account so I was slapped with an additional $105 overdraft fee. 

In total I spend $189.00 on the deductible, $699.99 for a phone/reimbursement they NEVER sent me, and $105.00 on an overdraft fee.  A TOTAL OF $893.00! This has been an absolute nightmare.  If I was ina  better place in my life and had a career like the one I am working tirelessly toward I would not be so upset but for a company to treat ANYONE like this is criminal.  This is corporate theft to the utmost degree.  It will only take action on the part of other consumers for behavior like this to change.  I urge people to think twice before purchasing insurance on their smartphones.  I replaced the screen/digitizer on my phone for $45.00 by getting the part off of Amazon and it only took 10 minutes of my time to do so.  These companies will rob you blind for something that you have the power to fix, even if youre not tech savvy like me.