A merchant can offer you additional warranty coverage for purchase. In the event of a vehicle defect, the additional coverage provides for its repair or replacement, or a refund. In general, there are 2 types of additional warranty coverage:

• Extended warranty. This type of warranty extends the duration of the warranty that is offered free of charge by the merchant or the manufacturer. This type of warranty is honoured either by the merchant that sold the vehicle to you or the vehicle’s manufacturer.
• “Insurance” type warranty. This coverage is added to the warranty that is offered free of charge by the merchant or the manufacturer. It is usually honoured by a third party.

These warranties can cover, for example, all the vehicle components for 4 years or 100,000 km after the end of the basic 3-year warranty or 60,000 km.

Warranty contract

The duration and coverage are defined in a contract. It should contain information about:

• what is covered by the warranty and what is excluded from coverage (parts and labour);
• the terms for having the warranty honoured.

Filing a warranty claim

Consult your contract for the procedure to file a warranty claim. Do not hesitate to contact the company providing the warranty for clarifications or further information.

When repairs are required, have the garage indicate in the work order that the repairs are to be performed under warranty when you drop off your vehicle.

How to have an additional warranty enforced

You must contact the merchant, manufacturer or any other person responsible for the additional warranty and follow these steps:

1. Ask them to repair the item, have it repaired, or authorize you to have it repaired. You must demonstrate that:
   • the item has a defect that is covered by the additional warranty;
   • you respected the terms of the contract.
2. If your request is denied, try to come to an agreement. The Negotiating With a Merchant page explains the procedure to follow.
3. If the negotiation fails, you can send a formal notice to the merchant, manufacturer or person responsible for the warranty. The Sending a Formal Notice page provides details on this subject.
4. If the request expressed in the formal notice does not bring about the desired results or remains unanswered, you can turn to the courts. The Filing a Complaint With the Small Claims Court provides further details.

Closure or bankruptcy of the company providing the warranty

If you have purchased an "insurance" type warranty that the company can no longer honour, you have recourse options.

Merchants offering additional warranty coverage are required to pay a guarantee deposit to the Office de la protection du consommateur in order to operate. This money can be used to compensate you if merchants fail to comply with their obligations.

You can contact the OPC to find out how to file a claim.

Cancelling an additional warranty

You have 10 days following the purchase of an additional warranty to cancel it without any fees or penalties.

To cancel an additional warranty, you must send a written notice to the merchant within the 10-day deadline. It is cancelled as soon as you send this notice. If you had already paid for this warranty, the merchant must reimburse you as soon as possible.

The 10-day deadline begins the day after the date on which you purchased the additional warranty. If the 10th day falls on a weekend or statutory holiday, the deadline is extended to the next business day.

This right of cancellation does not apply to an additional warranty contract entered into with an insurer authorized by the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF). The AMF’s Register of firms and individuals authorized to practice lets you check whether you did business with such an insurer. Information on cancelling this type of contract is available on the AMF website.