Date:
Attention:
Subject:

September 17, 2013
ALL Subaru Dealer Principals, General Managers and Service Managers
Urgent Request for Customer Assistance / Vehicle Repurchase

Subaru of America has been on a tremendous vehicle sales growth for the past five years and in addition to this sales growth, we are seeing record
volumes in the service side of the business. We appreciate all of your efforts to provide exceptional customer service for all Subaru customers. We
are also experiencing an increase in customer contacts with our Customer Dealer Services (CDS), requesting assistance or resolution to service
related concerns. Our goal is to satisfy all Subaru customers for retention, referral and ultimately keep the customer in the ownership cycle.
Unfortunately, there are times that the best decision is to repurchase the vehicle. We want to remind our dealers of the Urgent Request for
Customer Assistance (URFCA) procedure to minimize any potential vehicle repurchase.
Each time a Subaru owner requests warranty repairs on a vehicle, the following questions must be asked of the owner or the person bringing the
vehicle in for service. If the vehicle is being dropped off during non-business hours, the owner should be contacted to answer these questions. The
answers must be appropriately noted on the Repair Order:


Date of sale and state where purchased



For each item requested to be repaired under warranty, ask the customer if this repair had been requested previously and note on the R.
O. “2nd attempt”, etc. as applicable.



After completing the Repair Order, but before obtaining the owner’s signature, ask the owner how many total days the vehicle has been in
the shop for warranty service (not maintenance). If the owner normally does business with your dealership, this should be looked up in
your service file. Ask the owner, “Have you had any service elsewhere?” The answer to the number of days out of service should be noted
at the lower portion or the unused side of the R. O. (Example: “Vehicle in shop for warranty repairs a total of 11 days to date”). The owner’s
signature should be obtained at this time. NOTE: If a transient or visiting owner is reluctant or hesitant to cooperate, a vehicle history can
be obtained through Subarunet or by contacting Customer/Dealer Services at 1-800-782-2783.

Under the following circumstances, it is REQUIRED that an “Urgent Request For Customer Assistance Form” be submitted PRIOR to
commencing repairs. Submit the form to Customer Dealer Services via electronic mail or fax. Include all repair orders that are on file for this vehicle.


The vehicle has already been out of service for any and all warranty repairs a total of 10 or more calendar days.



The warranty repair is a second or subsequent attempt.



The warranty repair is first attempt for a safety concern.

When it is determined that any warrantable repair(s) will cause the vehicle to be out of service for more than 5 business days (this
includes parts delays, or lengthy repair processes, etc.) an Urgent Request For Customer Assistance must be submitted immediately.
The Urgent Request for Customer Assistance should contain detailed information about the concern, even if a separate sheet of paper needs to be
attached. All repair orders on file for this vehicle (including maintenance) should be attached. Any and all aftermarket or performance parts and
accessories that are on the vehicle must be noted in this document (including accessories installed by the customer, dealer, etc.). The overall
condition of the vehicle should also be noted (i.e., body damage, tire specification variations, etc).
Additionally, it is requested that each service advisor and service manager review repair situations when closing out repair orders each day. This will
increase awareness of potential problems. The repair order write up procedures listed above are customary and have always been utilized by welltrained, successful service advisors. With your cooperation in communicating this information to CDS and your SOA Field Representative/Distributor,
unpleasant and costly incidents can be avoided.
A PDF or electronic URFCA form can be found on Subarunet > Service > Forms.
Dealer Responsibilities
 Urgent Request for Customer Assistance (URFCA)
 Tech Line Case with case number
 Communication with the District Parts and Service Manager
 Dealer cooperation with requests from CDS department
We are asking all dealers to follow these minimum procedures to avoid vehicle repurchases however, failure to follow these procedures
could result in dealer participation in the vehicle repurchase costs.
Please contact Rich Winters, Gary Huckle or your Zone Director if you have any questions or concerns.