For many years now I have mainly purchased vehicles brand new and, as such, I receive what is called a warranty.
I have never had a warranty that has not cost me time and money. In the last year, I have purchased at least 10 brand-new vehicles from various manufacturers. I do, of course, understand that new vehicles can at times have a few teething problems – that is the way things are.
However, when it comes to these warranties, it is almost always a painful process. I recently declared that I would never go back to one dealership again, no matter what. If you are lucky, it will book you in after a couple of weeks or after an emergency call-out, where the coach then sits for days behind many other vehicles before you finally decide you may as well try and fix it privately.
And therein lies the problem – many dealerships cannot cope with the volume of work. Therefore, what is the point of having a warranty, when they cannot keep your vehicles on the road when there is a problem?
If you can afford to go private, that is the way forward, if you don’t want a huge amount of stress. As with most things, I have put in place systems which are based on my relationships with other people. If I am really in trouble, they save me every time – and in return, when they are snowed under, I work around them and never take advantage of them.
If it costs me a few hundred pounds to get something fixed in 24 hours when it should be under warranty, in my book, that is cheaper than losing a week to endless phone calls. If I could buy a mini coach for £10,000 less with absolutely no warranty, and a coach for £20,000 less, I would choose that every time, and take my chances. Every single warranty claim has been a fight, full of anxiety, and stressful.
If the warranty is worth something, put a price on it, and offer to knock it off the purchase price so we can make an informed choice.
