Portfolio Protection Vehicles & Services

While on Spring Break in San Antonio, Texas, I had a flat tire on a Sunday. I don't know why the garage was open, but they said my tire was ruined and they'd have to replace it. They found a replacement for this rare tire on a crossover SUV, and I was on my way within 2 hours. But they said they saw my Portfolio card in my car and gave me the 800 number to call. I submitted my receipt for around $250 online, got expert friendly help from the Portfolio lady, and my check in less than 2 weeks to reimburse me 100%. Not many warranty places actually help you get your reimbursement check. Best warranty service I've ever experienced.

I had to take my 2011 Ford Flex in for repairs. No problem, I thought, it's still under the extended warranty from Portfolio/First Extended Service Corp. Then I find out that even though I have the "Plan B" coverage, which is the "Plan P" and "Plan A" combined (or basically everything) they don't cover fuel pumps and I'm on the hook for over $1100. Thankfully I have an outstanding service rep at Santa Margarita Ford who called Portfolio and argued on my behalf and they agreed to reconsider and cover the repair. Portfolio then tagged me with a $100 deductible.

On my contract in box 2 "Check Deductible Amount" the item checked is Other and no amount is written in. This was intended to mean zero. Blank, null, empty, zero all pretty much mean the same in my book. Lo and behold in small print at the bottom of the contract is the line "A $100 Deductible will apply unless otherwise indicated in Box 2." The way I see it, checking the Other box does mean that something is "otherwise indicated", but not Portfolio. No, they want to squeeze you for every penny they can and get away with not paying for any repairs they can. This company is in the business of screwing consumers. Their entire business model is based on the premise of pay only when absolutely necessary and make that as difficult as possible. I'll never get another warranty from them.

I bought the extended warranty for $2250 at the dealership. 2 years later, I thought it would come in handy. WAS I WRONG. Car was towed 8/29/16 to the Pep Boys repair shop. On 9/7/16 Pep Boys called me to inform me that they could not get in contact with Portfolio Protection/First Extended Corp to authorize the work. They were concerned because the part was needing to be ordered. It was nice to know Pep Boys cared I had been without my car for a week. I told them I would see if I could make any progress - I called the warranty company only to be on hold for 15 min. The customer service guy was named Mike - I think. He was beyond rude. Did ZERO to help me. I asked if he could please have someone call Pep Boys since they obviously couldn't get through by pressing #1 for repair shops. He informed me they were an Inbound call center not an Outbound and it was Pep Boys job to call them.

I called Pep Boys and told them what I experienced. I told them to order the part and worse case scenario I would pay for it. I then sent an email to Portfolio Protection/First Extended notifying them of what happened. I've yet to this day get a response. 9/8/16 I call the warranty company again. This time I waited for 18 minutes before speaking to Christian. He was very nice and informed me the wait times were higher than usual and that Pep Boys were like me experiencing long wait times and maybe didn't have time to hold. He apologized to me for the experience I encountered with his co-worker the day before. He also asked what was the diagnosis on my car and said it would be covered. He told me to have Pep Boys call back in and instead of pressing the option for repair shops to press 2 for contract holders and ask for him. He would get them to an adjuster if one was available or get one scheduled.

9/12/16 Pep Boys called to ask when I was picking my car up. They never were able to get in contact with anyone. They told me they had 45 min hold times each time they called - sometimes less, sometimes more. 9/13/16 - I called the warranty company before picking my car up today. After waiting 22 minutes on hold I spoke to another horrible rep.

He informed me since the work was done, he and I had no business to discuss. He seemed to get agitated when I informed him of my conversation with Christian a few days prior. He must of gotten a promotion while we were on the phone because all of a sudden his title changed to "Adjuster" and I was out of luck. He REFUSED to transfer me to anyone above him. Said other shops get through all day and mine lied. He gave me a Bye Bye and hung up on me!!! I called the corporate 800 number only for a girl to transfer me right back to the customer service claims line. I picked up my car for $478. It should of only cost my deductible of $100. This company is a complete joke. I'm in the process of canceling the contract. They need to be reprimanded.

So I bought my used 2011 Honda Civic from my local Chevrolet dealership here in Oklahoma City. When I purchased the vehicle, I went ahead and bought the extended warranty on the vehicle from Portfolio (First Extended Service Corporation) just in case something happened. Well with my luck, it did. Brought the car to my local Honda dealership and they diagnose that the bottom end of my motor is knocking so they will need to replace it. I dropped my Honda off at the dealership on June 20th, 2015 knowing they won't be able to diagnose it till Monday.

After the diagnoses, Honda got back to me real quick to tell me that I need to replace my motor. They contacted First Extended to get an approval to proceed with the repair. The adjuster didn't come show up till June 26th. Due to him showing up on a Friday, didn't hear anything back until July 1st. Then First Extended failed to inform my Honda rep that I needed to show proof of maintenance before they can proceed. Luckily I keep all of that. So I faxed everything to them on July 3rd. Well, due to the holiday that weekend, I didn't hear back until July 7th stating that they approved the repair and that they have order a new used motor. They told my Honda rep that the motor should be arriving at their facility by the end of July 10th. Guess what, it wasn't there.

So the following week I called and called to find out what's the hold up. Everyone kept giving me the run around so I didn't know what was going on. Finally the motor shows up on the 17th but Honda couldn't start work until the following week. I found out the reason why it took so long to receive my engine was because whomever that processed the order had it shipped to the wrong facility and state. So I didn't receive my car back until the July 23rd. Literally, my car was at the shop for a whole month. They only approved me up to $180 for a car rental. That's only a week's worth that I had a car to get to work and stuff. And to top it off, it's been 2 months now since the claim was open and I haven't been reimburse yet for my car rental. This is by far the worst customer service I have ever dealt with. Never again would I buy warranty from this company nor will I ever recommend them to anyone.

I have the hi-tech service agreement from portfolio. I have read all the fine print and understand that the service agreement is with the company from which I purchased my vehicle from. National Automotive Group of Jacksonville, NC is denying a claim for a leaking exhaust manifold because the warranty doesn't cover bolts that are broken. But the warranty does cover the manifold and all seals and gaskets of covered parts, which in turn would cover the repair minus the bolts which would need to be taken out to repair the gaskets anyway. I would be willing to pay the service department inflated price for the hardware if they would cover the repair as the warranty states they should. Overall I believe the warranty is waste of consumer money.

My wife, Sterling **, purchased this warranty through the dealer, Equity Auto Center in Tempe, Arizona on 11/03/2012. The price of this product was approximately $1552.00. The salesman said that this particular extended warranty was the best you can get, "top of the line." The salesman presented this warranty as a "peace of mind" for a young college girl on a limited income. The salesman and the company brochure stated the following: "YOU WILL DRIVE WITH CONFIDENCE AND SECURITY WHEN YOU CHOOSE THIS EXTENDED SERVICE AGREEMENT." She was lead to believe that she would be covered for any expensive repair including high tech electrical problems. They also stated that they would provide roadside assistance and towing to the nearest repair facility.

We called for help on 06/18/2014. The roadside assistance they offered was $50.00 off a $400.00 tow bill. The Ford dealer diagnosed the problem as a transmission control module (TCM), a common problem. Ford in Page, Arizona gave us an estimate of approximately $1100.00. Portfolio denied the claim stating that the specific part was not mentioned in the contract. They offered no assistance whatsoever. I talked to a supervisor named Tony, who said that they can only pay for items specifically mentioned in the contract.

My issue is that the salesman and the company literature portray this product as something that will give you "confidence and security" knowing that you are covered. I can respect the fact that the contract does not specifically mention the TCM, but they led a young, naive woman to believe that she was covered. The sales presentation and the company literature are definitely deceptive. Neither of them have any qualms about taking advantage of unsuspecting consumers. I am completely dissatisfied with this company and do not recommend it to anyone!

I purchase the highest plan (Plan F) coverage for my Toyota when I bought it from the dealership (Dorsch Ford Lincoln Kia of Green Bay). Couple months down the road (4/3/14), one of the level sensors went bad. I called Portfolio aka First Extended Service on 4/3/14 about warranty on my Toyota. First Extended told me to bring back where I purchase the SUV from so they can diagnose it. I drop off my SUV to the dealership where I purchased from, dealership called and said First Extended will not cover the parts or service, it needs to be repaired. I called First Extended and talk to one of the reps, and he told me they will NOT cover the sensor.

I told him that the parts was listed as covered in the plan and also listed in their brochure. He keep cutting me off and said no only NON-WEARABLE parts are covered. That's bull ** I told him. So just told him to refund my money back but he said they won't because it's in the contract. It's a waste of money, time and scam that will never cover anything period. Also blame the dealership on selling these crap extended warranty to us consumers too. Damn dealership charged me $200 even when I told them what was wrong part need repair with the SUV. Dealer said they needed to diagnose what was wrong with it. I guess rip off dealership + rip off extended warranty = rip you off.

2006 325xi under an extended "Plan F Hi-Tech Coverage" warranty with Portfolio/Virginia Surety. On January 22, 2013, I started my car and it immediately started shaking. The "service engine soon" light came on. I took it straight to Autobahn DFW dealership of Fort Worth, TX. They repaired it the same day. The problem was an ignition coil, which they replaced. The dealer called in to Portfolio and was told this problem was not covered under warranty, so I paid $364.91 out of pocket to get my car back. I called Portfolio at 1 -800-527-3426 twice to try to get this resolved and speaking with a manager the second time. I explained that an ignition module is listed as covered under my warranty and when you look up that term on the internet, it says the ignition module is an interchangeable term with ignition coil. I sent them proof of what I was referring to. They still denied my claim and were very unwilling to cooperate or come to a resolution.