Plaintiff Terri Martin (“Plaintiff") sued Defendant Hyundai Motor America ("Defendant") under the  Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act  (“Song-Beverly Act”) alleging that Defendant breached the express and implied warranties associated with a motor vehicle that Defendant distributed and that Plaintiff purchased.  Defendant has moved to compel arbitration of Plaintiff's Song-Beverly Act claims. Defendant based its motion on two arbitration provisions: one in the Owner's Handbook and Warranty that was inside the vehicle when the Plaintiff purchased it  and the contains the express warranty on which Plaintiff is suing ("the Handbook" ), the other in an optional Bluelink Consumer Services Agreement that Plaintiff entered into ("the Bluelink Agreement").  The Court is granting Defendant's motion based on the arbitration provisin in the Handbook.   Having disposed of the Defendant's motion on that basis, the Court need not address whether arbitration could be compelled here based on the Bluelink Agreement.

The arbitration provision is part of the warranty within the Handbook. In her opposition to the motion, Plaintiff contends that she never assented to the arbitration provision in the Handbook and thus there is no agreement between herself and Defendant to arbitrate her claims.  It is true that Plaintiff did not sign anything reflecting assent to the arbitration provision in the Handbook.  And Defendant did not sign anything either.   Nevertheless, the Court has concluded that the doctrine of equitable estoppel prevents Plaintiff from asserting claims based on the express warranty contained in the Handbook while contesting the arbitration provision that also is contained therein.  Under that doctrine, a party cannot claim the benefits flowing to it from a contract (here, the warranty in the Handbook), but at the same claim that the burdens imposed on it by the contract (here, the arbitration provision in the Handbook) are inapplicable.  

The Court observes that Plaintiff made no argument that the arbitration provision in the Handbook is unconscionable.

In light of the Court's decision granting Defendant's motion to compel arbitration, the Court is staying proceedings in  this Court pending the outcome of the arbitration.