Vehicle Warranty Sales Pitch

I recently purchased a certified used car with a manufacturer's warranty. The other day in the mail, I received a little, yellow postcard with an urgent message, "WARRANTY NOTIFICATION, IMPORTANT VEHICLE WARRANTY INFORMATION," It had my name, address, an "owner identification number", vehicle make, with a toll-free number to call (1-888-898-8778). It seemed like a legitimate notification, perhaps relating to a recall notice or something similar. What I did not notice was the return address printed in small type: Great Atlantic Warranty, Inc., 101 North Riverside Drive, Suite 210, Pompano Beach, FL 33062. So I picked up the phone and spoke to a woman who was less than courteous who told me, "You're driving without a warranty." I said, "Uhm, but I already have a warranty." She continued to argue with me that I needed to renew my warranty which doesn't expire until next year. After going back and forth I eventually figured out that this wasn't my car manufacturer, but another cheese-ball company trying to get me to buy their warranty. How did they get my information? Obviously, from my friendly neighborhood dealership my state's Department of Transportation. Thanks guys for keeping my information private.

When I called back to request that my information be removed, a man answered the phone and when I requested that he remove my personal information and not share it with any third party, he cut me off mid-sentence, and then hung up. So I called back and got the same guy. I asked him why I was disconnected and he said, "Uh, we must have gotten disconnected." Hhmm. These folks are really professional. The next time I get one of these in the mail, I'll check the return address more thoroughly.

UPDATE (7/6/06) - This post has turned into a useful thread of comments by a lot of great users who have posted additional updated information about these shady vehicle warranty companies. I recently moved and changed the address on my registered vehicles. I received another card from a similar company. When I called to have my name and address removed, the rep said, "Okay, thanks for calling," and hung up on me, without even asking for my information. I called back and got a different rep and was able to have him remove my information. See the helpful comments below from other folks.

UPDATE (10/18/06) - I received a notice from Dealer Services, 100 Mall Parkway, Wentzville, MO 63385 (800-607-5426) with a "final notice" that I had 72 hours to extend the factory warranty coverage on my vehicle which is already covered by a Honda warranty. They had an opt-out line (800-699-7710) shown at the bottom of the letter where you can request to be removed from their mailing list.