Warranty Administration – Change in Product Field Action Customer Reimbursement Procedure (U.S. Dealers Only) – GM Passenger Cars and Trucks

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Bulletin No.: 11-00-89-004B
Date: November 2016

This Bulletin has been revised to add the 2016-2017 Model Years including transaction submission instructions. Please discard Corporate Bulletin Number 11-00-89-004A.

The GM Product Field Action Customer Reimbursement Request Form (CRRF) has been revised. Specifically, a section has been added for dealer use at the bottom of the form. A copy of this form is located on the GM GlobalConnect website under the Service Workbench Tab in Service Forms and can be reproduced locally as required.

When applicable, a CRRF will be mailed with each product field action customer notification letter. The letter will instruct the customer to complete the form and submit it along with the required documentation to their local dealer for processing.

Upon receipt of the CRRF and supporting documents, Federal law requires processing of the reimbursement request and a response to the customer within 60 days. However, GM expects all reimbursement requests to be either approved or denied by the dealer within 30 days of receipt. To accomplish this task, dealers should promptly:

• Review the applicable bulletin for a clear understanding of the subject condition and required correction.
• Check the Investigate Vehicle History (GMVIS2) application to confirm the status of the subject field action and if a previous reimbursement request has been paid.
• Carefully evaluate the customer’s supporting documentation to ensure that it is credible and appropriate for the involved product field action.

If the reimbursement request is approved by the dealer, the dealer is responsible for issuing a reimbursement check to the customer.

If the reimbursement request is denied by the dealer, the dealer must respond to the customer with a written explanation as to why the reimbursement request is being denied. This can be done in person or by mail.

Note: This declination procedure and associated time limit is required by Federal law and must be strictly adhered to when processing each reimbursement request.

The CRRF form may be used as the written notification to the customer as long as the dealer properly completes the bottom portion of the form. This must include a clear and concise statement of the reason the reimbursement request was denied. Listed below are some appropriate reasons for denial:

• Repair performed did not address the condition that was the subject of the product field action.
• Documents provided do not substantiate the reimbursement request.
• Vehicle is not included in the product field action.
• Duplicate reimbursement request was previously paid.
• Failure not caused by condition described in the product field action bulletin.
• Vehicle repaired at non-GM facility more than ten days after customer notification letter mailing.
• Time period to submit a reimbursement request has elapsed.
• Vehicle is outside of Special Coverage Adjustment time and/or mileage parameters.
• Vehicle reported with a branded title and not eligible for Special Coverage Adjustment.

If a U.S. or Canadian dealer approves the reimbursement request, the dealer must use the appropriate reimbursement approval labor operation from the field action bulletin when submitting the transaction to GM. Dealers should submit the dollar amount reimbursed to the customer in the Net/Reimbursement field. Dealers may also submit a $20.00 administrative

allowance in the Net/Admin Allowance field for processing.

If a U.S. dealer denies the reimbursement request, the dealer must use the appropriate reimbursement denial labor operation from the field action bulletin when submitting the transaction to GM. Dealers should submit a $10.00 administrative allowance in the Net/Admin Allowance field for processing. This allowance is not available to Canadian dealers.

If an export dealer approves the reimbursement request, the dealer must use the appropriate reimbursement approval labor operation from the field action bulletin when submitting the transaction to GM. Dealers should submit the dollar amount reimbursed to the customer in the Net/Reimbursement field. Dealers may also submit an administrative allowance of 0.2 hours for processing in the Net/Admin Allowance field.

If a CRRF is missing any supporting documentation, the dealer should advise the customer what information is needed to complete the reimbursement request and that they may resubmit when the missing document(s) have been located. Resubmission must occur within the reimbursement period specified in the product field action bulletin.

If the dealer approves the reimbursement request and issues a check to the customer, all related documents must be maintained in accordance with GM records retention requirements and available in the vehicle service history file. This includes the original CRRF, copies of all supporting documentation and a copy of the check attached to the Repair Order that was opened to submit the required warranty transaction. Failure to do so will result in the warranty reimbursement request being considered as unsupported and subject to debit.

If the dealer denies the reimbursement request, all related documents must be maintained in accordance with GM records retention requirements and available in the vehicle service history file. This includes a copy of the CRRF and copies of all supporting documentation. Failure to do so may result in a procedural audit with their District Manager Aftersales (DMA).

The Customer Assistance Center (CAC) will continue to receive and process customer reimbursement requests associated with prior product field actions. However, with this process change dealers are now fully empowered to handle all reimbursement requests regardless of when the product field action bulletin was issued. The reimbursement labor operations provided in the prior bulletins are no longer restricted and dealers are authorized to use them whenever they approve a prior bulletin reimbursement request.

Note: When processing a prior bulletin reimbursement request, the declination procedure described in this document is still applicable even though there is no provision in these bulletins to compensate dealers for handling denied reimbursement requests.

Please remember that all customer reimbursement requests must be either approved or denied by the dealer within 30 days of receipt.

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