Car Warranties - are they worth it?

Quest73

Seeking advice , please. We are just about to buy a 2008 car from a dealer.It comes with no warranty, but they have suggested that we take one out -Nearly £400 for 1 year up to £700 for 3 years. What do people think? Are these a good idea? We would not be able to do repairs ourselves.

Tilt

Waste of money! Too many get out clauses and basically it is an insurance policy. In any event, when buying a used car from a dealer you are protected by the SOGA for 6 months any way. My advice is always buy from a main dealer as at least you have more chance of decent aftersales service. Make sure you keep any written descriptions of the car, make sure the car has all its service history and check the mileage. If there any minor faults with it, get the dealer to put them right before you take delivery which is the point that you hand over the balance of the money.

forgotmyname

They do not cover anything that wears. So virtually everything is excluded.

Put your £700 into a high interest savings and keep your fingers crossed. Check your oil, water etc
often. Dont think its fairly new and just run it until something breaks.

hairybeanbag

i personally would stay away from dealer extra warranty otions they always seem to get out and make you pay

theres loads of companys out there that offer extended warranties heres one i just looked up
from £99
and from £158 for the ultimate package

gocarwarranty - is one of many

you dont need to use this one theres loads out there

always read the small print in these situations i work for a garage and have worked in many garages for over 12 years i know the scams and the ways out the warranty
wear and tear items is a biggie

have a search on google and see what the diffrent compaies offer

Quest73

Phew! Thank you all for the speedy and clear advice! Glad I asked.

s_b

my advice?
you are probably buying a mainstream car that has just run out of manufacturers warranty
some smarmy turd stood at an auction next to me in his harry fenton suit ( i wear jeans and matalan tops) and outbid me for your very car,
he then has the cheek to stick it on his forecourt with trading standards approved stickers all over and hasn't even taken the wheels off to check the pads,he will let you do that as you bomb down the motorway and need to brake sharply to find they is shot,did i mention his mark up on this car he got a valet to shine up for him and yet he wants to sweet talk you its the car for you and its a good un?
anyway enough trade talk,do him out of his undeserved profit and go the auctions yourself,many now offer warranties and better choice,reg dwight used to buy for private punters, im sure there are others, or if you have a good relationship with a local independent garage pay them to go to a local auction with you to find a sweety,they love doing this,i know i used to

GandalfTheTight

I think it depends on the car and the warranty you really need to read them carefully.

I brought a 3 year warranty (warranty Direct I think) which cost about £700 on a Mercedes . They paid out for a faulty sensor (£280) and when the main CPU blew up (£1800) but they refused to pay for a catalytic converter (saying it was knocked). So for me, it was worth it.

Don’t buy from the dealer – maybe buy separately (depending on the car).

They might be worth haggling into the price but as I said read the small print very carefully.

GTT

thenudeone

Take the gloom-mongers views with a pinch of salt.

I am pleased with my warranties and have recouped the cost of them by at least 1½ times.

I let a warranty lapse a few years ago. Within a few months the diesel pump began to fail - two separate quotes both for around £2.5k - more than the car was worth.
Since then I have always bought a good warranty and they have more than covered their cost. Obviously some people may never need to claim but that's good news as far as I can see, rather than bad news for "wasting" money on a warranty that wasn't needed.

Have a look at my posts on page 4 and 5 here: https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3084630 which list points to look out for in a good warranty.

mongeese

My Experience - I took out a 3 year warranty with the trade seller I bought my volvo from for about £700. The warranty company the dealer used is WMS (also known as VGC) and bargepole don't touch!

Money wasted. "wear and tear" small print gives them a get-out for every time I have tried to claim.

My volvo specialist tried their best to deal with WMS but had no joy. The mechanic did say that they had dealt with AA warranties in the past and not had any problem for the same issues.

Looking back I would have been better off saving the money and definitely reading the small-print!

Hope this helps.

s_b

mongeese
4 of us agree with you in this thread
2 dont
warranties lose
isa wins, try for 3.5% mind:)

property.advert

Dealer selling 2008 car but won't offer a warranty. I think I'd be somewhat concerned about this.

Aftermarket warranties have a bad name. I wonder why ?