Charge for courtesy car

mattyh

Can they do this?

I have a new car, and there's a slight fault that needs sorting out, but when I book it in for repair under warranty they tell me that their policy has changed recently, and they now charge £15 'insurance excess' for a courtesy car!

Is there anything I can do about this?

lisyloo

What does your agreement with them say.
If you have something in writing that says that they will provide you with a courtesy car free of charge the you can do something about it.

If it is not part of the agreement but just something they offer for free as "all part of the service" then legally there isn't much you can do except apply pressure.

You could talk to their manager and tell then that you are dissapointed and this was one of the reasons for choosing this garage.

The insurance "excess" also sounds very strange.
An "excess" is something you pay when you have a claim.
Sounds like the wrong term for a charge they want to make.

mattyh

Sorry, excess probably wasn't the term they used, they probably used surcharge.

I'll check my paperwork, but it seems really insulting, this is not a cheap car, and it's not my fault the damn thing is faulty (it's one thing if they charged when i had a service, but this is a fault!!)

lisyloo

Yes, I agree it's very annoying, but legally speaking I don't think you are entitled to a free replacement (unless you specifically have an agreement to say that was agreed).

It's worth a quick call to the manager to see if they will waive it for you "as a good will gesture" under the circumstances.
I find the best approach is to be polite and appear as a dissapointed but loyal customer.
They then have an incentive to keep you happy.

If you go in ranting and raving then it can put people's backs up.

Another appraoch is to go in ranting and raving on a busy saturday, however that may of course affect your long term relationship with them.

welshblob

I had a courtesy car the other day when my Peugeot went in to be fixed. They gave me the option of paying £7.50 for a collision damage waver so that if I had an accident I didn't have to pay the £500 excess on their insurance. As I wasn't used to the lack of power or the sloppy handling of the 206 they gave me I decided to pay it as I couldn't be guaranteed not to wrap it round the first lampost I came across ;D
I'd challenge what the charge was for exactly.
Rob

The_Biff

So you are paying £7.00 per day for £500 of insurance. If you took it out for a year it would cost £2737.50. Someone's making something here. Is it possible to get a quote from your own insurance company.

welshblob

I'm sure my insurance company would charge me £7.50 just as the administration charge for sorting out the cover note !!! But you are correct somebody is making something here at our expense. But who could it be? The ever so cost effective main dealer who charges over £30 for 30 mins of work or the big insurance company .... probably both!
FYI I didn't wrap the car around a lampost but it also wasn't returned with as much petrol as it left ... screwed them for a few pennies didn't I.
Rob

mattyh

...and they want £15 from me, so that premium would total £5000 a year. Admittedly my car's a new alfa romeo, and the courtesy car is an alfa (they offered me a Panda for free...) but that's not the point. It's not my fault it has a problem, and it shouldn't cost me any money or inconvenience to sort it out.

Well, i'm booked in for a few weeks time, apparently it'll be in for 5 days, so if i'm forced to pay it i'll just make sure i do some mega miles in it and leave it light on fuel. Might even pick my nose and leave some on the seat.

moneymart_3

Should've bought an audi - my two previous courtesy cars were :

(1) Audi A4 Avant 2.5 V6 4wd quattro and multi-tronic gearbox, leather, etc

(2) A4 Avant 20v Turbo 1.8 with every option on the list, including gorgeous 18" alloys, leather, etc.

Both supplied with over 3/4 tank of fuel (and was told "no need to put any in")

oh, and no charge for insurance :-)

mattyh

I thought it'd be dangerous to buy an Audi, as when I test drove one I almost fell asleep at the wheel...

Webbozen

A word of advice for any one who has a car in for repair and has a "courtesy car" offered to them.

???Check your own car insurance policy. ???

On my policy there is an automatic cover for a car on loan to me by a garage whilst mine is in for repair or service. What you must do though is inform the Insurance company of the vehicle, Reg. No. and garage owner IN ADVANCE.

There is no charge for this and you are driving under your own full policy as if you were driving your own car.

The excess charge is a Rip Off and should be avoided. Go to another garage as most will welcome the business.

???CHECK WITH YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY FIRST ???