Bought van in Oct 2011 with 2 year warranty now company gone 'bust'???

mrandmrsm

We bought a Vauxhall Combo Van (56reg) from a local dealer thought we were being very sensible by buying one with a 2 year warranty!

Now we called up last month as we had a warning light come on about the particle filter and we were told by the guy we bought it from that the company we bought it from has gone into administration?? Where we find this very dodgy is that the company is has the same name advertised on its website, same web address, same phone numbers, emails, address etc.

Fortunately that fault seemed to fix itself however, there is now another warning light on in the van - the control indicator for engine electronics and it is not allowing us to accelerate much??

We have just been away for a week on holiday and as we are a new business I suppose the van hasn't been used as much as some commercial vans. Not hundreds of miles per week.

Would really appreciate some advice on the fault with the van? But also this dodgy company too - don't understand how they can now simply pass all responsibility? Anything we can do?

Thanks in advance!!

bazster

Check your paperwork, long warranties are rarely direct with the dealer. If it was new then it's probably a manufacturer's warranty, and if second-hand it's probably with some insurance company.

mrandmrsm

It is with an outside company and the guy we bought it from at this dealer said the warranty will now be void as they folded the company that we bought it from (even though they are still operating the exact same business just under an ever so slightly different name!

vaio

how did you pay for it?

If you paid any of it on credit card then s75 might cover you

generally, I'd have though it the warranty was with an external company then you should be fine (as long as they are still trading)

bazster

mrandmrsm wrote: »

It is with an outside company and the guy we bought it from at this dealer said the warranty will now be void as they folded the company that we bought it from (even though they are still operating the exact same business just under an ever so slightly different name!

I wouldn't take his word for it. Get onto the company the policy is with and ask them how to make a claim (if it doesn't say in your paperwork).

thenudeone

Most garage warranties are actually purchased from an external insurance / warranty company.

If the garage didn't pay the external warranty company before entering administration, the warranty would be voided.

If any part of the purchase was paid for with a credit card, you can make a claim under s.75. It's probably too late for a Debit Card chargeback.

bazster

It's worth pointing out in this context that S.75 doesn't say you are entitled to your money back, it says that the credit card company is jointly liable for the performance of the contract.

This means that, if you have a warranty paid for with a credit card, and the company issuing the warranty cannot or will not honour the warranty, you can insist that the card company honours the warranty.

This really works: I claimed against a card company when a company went bust after I entered into a 2-year contract for services with them, paid in advance with my credit card. The card company just wanted give me my money back, but I insisted they paid for the completion of the 2 years' of services with another company, which cost a hell of a lot more than the original payment (which was a stupidly good deal, hence, presumably, the original supplier going bust!)

The card company didn't like it, but they paid.

dacouch

I guess you do a lot of driving in town and not much motorway driving.

The particle filters become blocked if you don't give the van a good run at least once a week. When they become blocked the van become sluggish.

My mechanic told me the best way to clear it is "Drive it like you've stolen it".

If it's really blocked there is a chemical they can add that helps clear it or failing that they can clear it by hand. Speak to a decent mechanic