If you bought an extended Warrenty From Gateway, it's gone.

Maniacal

the green Napoleon
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TL;DR - If you wasted your money on an extended warrenty from Gateway (who sold the database to MPC and MPC has to deal with the extended warrenties now), you are SCREWED as MPC is bankrupt.

From another forum;
[quote Nairagorn]
So a coworker of mine has a client with a burned out laptop screen inverter (makes the screen not light up). Pretty easy fix, whatever. The thing is this client had purchased an extended warranty through Gateway... cost like $300 or so. Some time ago Gateway sold their extended warranty division to a company called MPC. MPC has just filed for bankruptcy. The following is a pair of service calls made by my coworker (we'll call him Bob) trying to get warranty support. Names have been changed to protect the presumed-innocent-until-proven-guilty.

05 Jan 2009 12:27:29 PM. . . . Connected to the server via Web Chat. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:27:29 PM. . . . bob has been assigned to the Gateway Support queue.. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:27:30 PM. . . . bob was added to the incident named bob by Sherry_GWAE183. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:27:30 PM. . . . Sherry_GWAE183 created an incident named bob.. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:27:36 PM. . . . Sherry_GWAE183 says: Welcome to Gateway Chat. My name and badge number are Sherry_GWAE183. I am looking at your account and the information you submitted. I will begin troubleshooting with you in just a moment.. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:28:34 PM. . . . bob says: you wont find anything with that information. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:28:36 PM. . . . bob says: listen. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:28:53 PM. . . . bob says: we bought this laptop directly from gateway last year. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:29:01 PM. . . . bob says: and the 3 year extended warranty. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:29:06 PM. . . . Sherry_GWAE183 says: Please provide the serial number of your system.. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:29:16 PM. . . . bob says: but gateway sold the warranty to MPC, which is now bankrupt. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:29:37 PM. . . . bob says: i CANT deal with MPC because they dont exist anymore... please do not tell me to go to mpc, they are not there.. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:29:47 PM. . . . Sherry_GWAE183 says:

While MPC has filed for Chapter 11 protection so that they may reorganize, they are still obligated to provide support for the products they sold and acquired as part of their purchase of the Gateway Professional Business. Your warranty and support is still from MPC. You will need to contact MPC for support.. . The. . best way to get information from MPC regarding their product is to email their request to: WarrantyInfo@MPCCorp.com. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:29:50 PM. . . . bob says: the serial number is xxxxxxxxx and the backlight is burned out. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:30:14 PM. . . . bob says: THEIR EMAIL DEPARTMENT WAS LAID OFF emails go unresponded to. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:30:27 PM. . . . bob says: the phone number is a recording that says bankruptcy and hangs up on you. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:30:53 PM. . . . Sherry_GWAE183 says: Please hold while I check this. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:33:51 PM. . . . Sherry_GWAE183 says: bob, you will need to call this number for support: 1-800-846-2000

05 Jan 2009 12:34:13 PM. . . . bob says: and who is that. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:35:45 PM. . . . bob says: ok guess what, that phone number is the same support number i've been calling for gateway. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:35:55 PM. . . . bob says: when i enter my serial number, the recording tells me to hang up and call mpc. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:36:02 PM. . . . bob says: MPC DOES NOT EXIST.. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:36:03 PM. . . . bob says: whats next. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:36:55 PM. . . . bob says: the number you gave me is the same as 800-846-2301, the same recording. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:37:39 PM. . . . Sherry_GWAE183 says: This system is still under MPC in our database so we cannot support it.. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:38:01 PM. . . . bob says: ok but mpc doesnt exist and we paid money to gateway to support this machine. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:38:19 PM. . . . bob says: can you move it in the database from mpc back to gateway then?. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:38:24 PM. . . . Sherry_GWAE183 says: No. The support is with MPC. This system is not connected with Gateway anymore. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:38:30 PM. . . . Sherry_GWAE183 says: The. . best way to get information from MPC regarding their product is to email their request to: WarrantyInfo@MPCCorp.com. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:38:41 PM. . . . bob says: THEIR EMAIL DEPARTMENT WAS LAID OFF emails go unresponded to

05 Jan 2009 12:39:29 PM. . . . bob says: they do NOT provide any support, they do not answer any communications. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:41:00 PM. . . . bob says: you do understand what i'm saying right?. . we paid money to gateway for support, gateway sold that warranty to mpc, and mpc no longer exists.. . where does that leave us, your customer (we are not mpc's customer). . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:41:51 PM. . . . Sherry_GWAE183 says: I apologize but we cannot support this system since it's not in our database. Contact MPC for support. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:41:58 PM. . . . Sherry_GWAE183 says: While MPC has filed for Chapter 11 protection so that they may reorganize, they are still obligated to provide support for the products they sold and acquired as part of their purchase of the Gateway Professional Business. Your warranty and support is still from MPC. You will need to contact MPC for support.. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:42:11 PM. . . . bob says: how can i contact mpc if they have only a phone recording, and the emails go unanswered?. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:43:06 PM. . . . bob says: so, your company, GATEWAY, is basically telling us we're out of luck and unsupported... after gateway took our money for an extended warranty plan?. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:44:20 PM. . . . bob says: is there a supervisor i can speak with please?. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:45:58 PM. . . . bob says: are you still with me or did you give up?. . . .

05 Jan 2009 12:47:11 PM. . . . bob says: you know i'm going to post this ALL OVER THE INTERNET, with your rep id, Sherry_GWAE183. . right?. . how will that look when your CEO and managers see that?

And the second spat (Bob's a fairly high strung individual, and a bit of a masochist):

05 Jan 2009 12:50:19. . >Connected to the server via Web Chat

05 Jan 2009 12:50:19. . >bob has been assigned to the Gateway Support queue.

05 Jan 2009 12:50:21. . >bob was added to the incident named bob by Scott_GWAE120

05 Jan 2009 12:50:21. . >Scott_GWAE120 created an incident named bob.

05 Jan 2009 12:50:25. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: Welcome to Gateway Chat. My name and badge number are Scott_GWAE120. I am looking at your account and the information you submitted. I will begin troubleshooting with you in just a moment.

05 Jan 2009 12:50:40. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: Hello bob

05 Jan 2009 12:51:03. . >bob says: hi scott, i need help with an extended warranty we purchased.. . we paid money to gateway for this.. . gateway sold it to MPC.. . mpc is bankrupt and doesnt answer the phone or respond to email.. . can you PLEASE help me?

05 Jan 2009 12:51:49. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: While MPC has filed for Chapter 11 protection so that they may reorganize, they are still obligated to provide support for the products they sold and acquired as part of their purchase of the Gateway Professional Business. Your warranty and support is still from MPC. You will need to contact MPC for support."

MPC Technical Support/Customer Service: 1-877-485-1464

05 Jan 2009 12:52:02. . >bob says: the serial number is xxxxxxxxx.. . before you copy/paste the mpc info re-read this: mpc is bankrupt and doesnt answer the phone or respond to email. can you PLEASE help me?

05 Jan 2009 12:52:24. . >bob says: they dont answer their phone lines anymore and their email goes unanswered for weeks - email department was laid off

05 Jan 2009 12:53:08. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: I see.

05 Jan 2009 12:53:17. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: Please hold while I check on my resources.

05 Jan 2009 12:54:27. . >bob says: i cant call gateway tech support because the automated system wont let me get anywhere without a serial number, and as soon as i type it, the recording tells me to call mpc and then hangs up

05 Jan 2009 12:54:50. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: I do apologize but we do not have account information regarding your system model. Much better to please contact MPC to further assist you.

05 Jan 2009 12:55:19. . >bob says: it's not better because they do not respond to any communications... phone, fax, email, smoke signals... nothing

05 Jan 2009 12:55:24. . >bob says: i can give you all the model info you need

05 Jan 2009 12:55:55. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: Yes but in as much as I wanted to help you. I do apologize but we do not have account information regarding your system model.

05 Jan 2009 12:55:57. . >bob says: mpc is not able to be contacted - lets forget about them for now and fix this gateway branded machine, for which we paid money to gateway for the gateway extended warranty

05 Jan 2009 12:56:06. . >bob says: i'll give you the account information and model

05 Jan 2009 12:56:41. . >bob says: its an M465-E, and the backlight is burned out

05 Jan 2009 12:57:38. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: I see.

05 Jan 2009 12:57:43. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: Thanks for the information.

05 Jan 2009 12:58:34. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: In as much as I wanted to process a repair for your system. MPC is the one who handles the warrranty repair for your computer. Much better to please do. . contact them again to further assist you.

05 Jan 2009 12:59:02. . >bob says: it isnt better to contact mpc because they have no working phone number or email, the company simply doesnt exist

05 Jan 2009 12:59:20. . >bob says: my only option is with gateway - to which we paid money for the extra extended warranty

05 Jan 2009 01:02:39. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: I do apologize for the inconvenience this might have cause you. However, MPC will be the one will who will process an RMA for your system. I do recommend to plese do contct them again.

05 Jan 2009 01:02:58. . >bob says: i have tried, i'm trying right now, there is no way to contact them

05 Jan 2009 01:03:01. . >bob says: there is no mpc

05 Jan 2009 01:04:25. . >bob says: have you tried calling their number?. . you see what i mean, right?. . what are we supposed to do in this position now?. . we paid extra money on top of the cost of the machine, for an extended warranty... we paid that money to gateway.

05 Jan 2009 01:05:55. . >bob says: scott, what do you think?

05 Jan 2009 01:06:10. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: I understand. Can you please contact our phone support and ask them to process an RMA for your system.

05 Jan 2009 01:06:15. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: DirectService and support for Gateway products purchased directly from Gateway 1-800-846-2301

05 Jan 2009 01:06:17. . >bob says: i cant contact your phone support because it's a recording that requires a serial number, when i put in our serial number it tells us to call mpc and hangs up

05 Jan 2009 01:06:53. . >bob says: what would be the next step?

05 Jan 2009 01:07:33. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: While MPC has filed for Chapter 11 protection so that they may reorganize, they are still obligated to provide support for the products they sold and acquired as part of their purchase of the Gateway Professional Business. Your warranty and support is still from MPC. You will need to contact MPC for support.

05 Jan 2009 01:07:40. . >bob says: right, you've already pasted that

05 Jan 2009 01:07:52. . >bob says: they dont answer their phones or email

05 Jan 2009 01:08:01. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: The best way to get information from MPC regarding their product is to email their request to:

WarrantyInfo@MPCCorp.com

05 Jan 2009 01:08:17. . >bob says: that too - they dont answer email, i've tried for weeks

05 Jan 2009 01:08:35. . >bob says: there has to be something that can be done, scott

05 Jan 2009 01:08:45. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: Yes I understand.

05 Jan 2009 01:09:07. . >bob says: what is that 'something'

05 Jan 2009 01:09:52. . >bob says: for now, lets just forget about MPC - they dont exist.. . it's a gateway laptop, and we paid money to gateway - how do we get it fixed

05 Jan 2009 01:11:00. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: But MPC is the one will handle your issue.I do apologize for the inconvenience this might have caused you. Please try to contact them again to further assist you.

05 Jan 2009 01:11:36. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: If only we have the capabilities to process an RMA for your system.

05 Jan 2009 01:11:38. . >bob says: scott....... . i understand you guys sold the database to them... but they are out of business and not able to be contacted

05 Jan 2009 01:11:49. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: I will process an RMA for your system.

05 Jan 2009 01:11:57. . >bob says: you will!?? great!

05 Jan 2009 01:12:50. . >bob says: ok so lets process it

05 Jan 2009 01:13:39. . >Scott_GWAE120 says: If only we have the capabilities to process an RMA for your system, I will be glad to process an RMA for your system. Much better to please contact again MPC to further assist you.

05 Jan 2009 01:14:06. . >bob says: scott... i'm disappointed.. . the reason mpc went out of business is because they didnt realize what junk gateway sold and they couldnt keep up

05 Jan 2009 01:14:09. . >bob says: thanks for nothing.

Awesome. Simply awesome. If a private individual did something like this they'd be sued into oblivion. Just had to share.

Also, in case anyone didn't know, extended warranties are a rip off of epic proportions.
[/quote]
 
Interesting. Gateway should still be liable for support regardless of if they sold their warranties, unless their customers signed off on that possibility when they bought their products or agreed to the sale of their support to a third party.

Of course practically speaking that observation is worthless to most people.
 
If you paid for the warranty to GATEWAY, not to MPC, GATEWAY is still responsible for it. Regards to Bob, after the second exchange I would have EECB'd Gateway and posted this on the consumerist (unless its already up there).
 
But illram is right, if the customer voluntarily signed Gateway off of liability then Gateway might be off the hook. But if Gateway didn't really do that, or did it shiftily, then there might at least be a class action suit out of this.
 
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