Should you buy an extended warranty for your car?

UNION CITY, NJ (WABC) -- The car was more than 10 years old with high miles, so a young Union City man bought the coverage just in case anything went wrong. But when he found his extended warranty was worthless, he called for 7 On Your Side.

The mystery Raul Galvez is trying to solve, is what happened to his car's extended warranty? He bought an '03 Passat from the Verona dealership, DCH Montclair Acura, last January.

They sold him on a two-year warranty for almost half the cost of the car, nearly $2,000.

But the used car was solid, so Raul decided to cancel the warranty. He sent the cancellation form to the dealer, according the contract, he was entitled to money back. When that didn't come, Raul made a smart move.

"A week later I wanted to follow up, not with the dealer, but with the warranty company," Galvez said.

That's when things got weird. "They (the warranty company) never received the paperwork it was never submitted to them," Galvez said.

1st Extended Service Corp searched but had no record Raul bought their coverage. So he went back to the dealership where he purchased the plan.

"The dealer somehow, someway, never really submitted the warranty," Galvez said.

So, Raul demanded a refund and was told no problem.

"They issued out a check supposedly, but there was a problem with the check," Galvez said.

That's right, the check never went out, so the lab tech reached out to 7 On Your Side, after we called out to DCH Montclair Acura.

"They went from vinegar to maple syrup," Galvez said.

The dealer said it made a "honest mistake" and refunded Raul. Overnight, a check for $2.014 was sent out, the cost of the extended warranty plus interest.

The dealer thanked 7 On Your Side and Mr. Galvez for bringing this to their attention and said it is reviewing the process to make sure this doesn't happen to customers in the future.

The big takeaway; When you buy a car don't get high-pressured into buying an extended warranty. Remember, you can negotiate down the price and shop around on your own. And ask yourself - is it worth it? A Consumer Reports survey found out it usually isn't. Most people never use extended warranties - or the price of the fix doesn't exceed the cost of the warranty. So think twice before buying.