Halfords Wipers rip-off.

Sideways

I'm not usually one to slag-off companies for over-charging, I believe if you're not happy simply go somewhere else and forget about it.

However I was so shocked at the cost of car windscreen wipers in Halfords I thought I would let others know there are much lower-cost options on the High Street.

Briefly- I went in for two new wipers for my wifes Nissan Qashqai, Halfords own brand replacements (not high quality Bosche) costs £33 for both.

I then went to Wilcos and got both for £8 (£4 each), now fitted and working fine. I was even surprised at the build quality of the Wilco wipers, they fitted easily with the adapter provided.

If you're thinking of changing your wipers as winter approaches, I would advise you stay away from Halfords.

System

Its almost a tax on those who don't know where to look and buy in a hurry, like me, I wouldn't know where else to look for that sort of thing

pappa_golf

I was on a facebook page the other day , site where all the 125 cc "kids" go ,

£59 for a small motorcycle battery from halfrauds , £27 from the local auto electrical place down the road , both had 12mth warranty , but the lad thought the halfrauds one was "better"

Strider590

Halfrauds over-pricing shocker!!!

I order mine online, I only buy Bosch or Valeo. I think my last set of 3 cost me £18 delivered to my door.


Hafrauds serves an important purpose, it provides car parts to people on the clueless side of car maintenance and gets people involved in looking after their cars, without them we'd be worse off, but there is a price to be paid.

neilmcl

MatthewAinsworth wrote: »

Its almost a tax on those who don't know where to look and buy in a hurry, like me, I wouldn't know where else to look for that sort of thing

If you can use the internet there's not really much excuse to be able to search out cheaper alternatives.

neilmcl

To be fair to Halfords they're just like any other retailer, with bargains for certain things and not so competitive with other items. No big deal, if you can't be bothered to shop around, especially these days, then more fool you.

Herzlos

Plus you're usually near one, they have pretty good opening hours, and they'll fit most things for you.

Need a new wiper blade / bulb / battery after 12:25pm on a Saturday and you're going to have difficulty finding something elsewhere.

DigForVictory

Last time I bought wipers at Halfords, they offered to fit them for me for a fiver the pair.
I declined politely, pulled up a YouTube video & after a thoughtful couple of minutes managed to swap out the old & in the new myself. Despite being short & female.
I think 'needing Hafords help' is usually shorthand for physical infirmity or lack of relevant b!oodymindedness.

Giles_K

I think you can easily get windscreen wipers for under £20 or even £15, but there is still some correlation between price and quality.

£33 for a Halfords-own pair? Unless they light up and work forever, that's a bit much. Yet I've also seen wipers for sale at Poundland (£1 for one... of course) and they clearly don't look like they're made with quality in mind.

Strider590

Herzlos wrote: »

Plus you're usually near one, they have pretty good opening hours, and they'll fit most things for you.

Need a new wiper blade / bulb / battery after 12:25pm on a Saturday and you're going to have difficulty finding something elsewhere.

Bulbs wise, for what Halfrauds charge, I've got probably 50+ spare bulbs in my garage (all good brands), 15-20 of these are H7s (most common headlight bulb), as long as you drive your always going to need them, so buy the common bulbs in bulk and you'll never need to go more than 24 hours with a broken bulb.
My GFs KA eats through H7s, at least one every 6 months, I hate to think what this would cost if I didn't have a stockpile.

I think the total cost was probably equivalent to buying 3 or 4 headlight bulbs from Halfrauds.

droopsnoot

DigForVictory wrote: »

Last time I bought wipers at Halfords, they offered to fit them for me for a fiver the pair.

Certainly true for wipers, but there are some headlamp bulbs for example where you might want to grab their hand off if they offer to fit for a fiver.


The various grades of rubber might indicate that the Halfords or Bosch wipers last longer, but there's only one way to find out. I fitted a pair of Bosch ones to my car last time, and I wasn't impressed with how long they lasted, with the drivers side one developing a "missed spot" quite quickly, so I've just stuck a Wilko one on there and will see how it goes. Impressed to see that the aerofoil from the Bosch wiper just clips straight onto the Wilko one.