Autocare / Warranty Covers - VW Golf

alienuk

I have reserved a VW Golf 65 plate that has done 20K miles with Arnold Clark. The Manufacturer's warranty expired last December.
AC made the sales pitch to sell their after sale products "autocare" @ £365/year or £485 for years , i think this also comes with breakdown assistance.
I ran a quote with VW -Extended Warranty for the car and it says 385/Year (this is for all component cover ) or i can go for 278£/year for named component cover (god knows where the catch is!)

I am slightly confused to take a decision as to which cover to select and so thought i will post my question here to the experts to know your views. Hopefully, I can take an informed decision based on the responses here.

I appreciate your time to read this question and thanks in advance if you choose to answer.

AdrianC

AC aftermarket -
£365 for 1yr, £485 for some other period, presumably 2yrs?
VW -
£385 for 1yr, £770 for 2yr full
£278 for 1yr, £556 for 2yr restricted

What's your attitude to risk? Remember, at the end of the day, these products are sold to be profitable for the supplier. That means that the money they take in premiums is MORE than the money they pay out in claims/admin costs/salaries/paperwork/tax etc etc. So you're always betting that your car is going to be more unreliable than average. And you can bet the AC cover is going to be a lot harder to claim from, and readier to deny claims, than the VW cover...

If you're looking at just one year cover, forget the AC aftermarket. The saving isn't big enough compared to the VW full cover, and if you're happy with restricted, then the VW cover's cheaper. The AC cover also seems to be more restrictive than the VW full - https://www.arnoldclark.com/servicing/autocare - fairly similar to the "Named component" cover - https://www.volkswagen.co.uk/owners/warranty/extended/about
...but the devil is always going to be in the detail.

System

I'd take neither and put the money aside. Cars are not like they were 25 years ago. Service them regularly and you'll find annual repair bills either non-existent or £100-£200. The most expensive years tend to come at multiples of 70,000-80,000 miles when it is common to have to replace things like shock absorbers, the odd suspension bush, ball joint or track rod end but even if you had to replace all four shock absorbers or all the brake discs and pads it wouldn't come to one year's payment on this scheme.

AdrianC

Tarambor wrote: »

I'd take neither and put the money aside. Cars are not like they were 25 years ago.

No, they're a lot more complex. Even if you get past all the technofripperies, a 3+yo car with only 20k on it could be looking at lack-of-use issues if it's a diesel.

alienuk

I should have added the fuel type - It is a petrol car.

alienuk

I was slightly inclined towards VW cover for one year and then take a decision after 1 year.
AC gives 60 day warranty for all its car after sales and I would hope to uncover the issues and report them to fix. Perhaps, Its time for my second NC500 !

oldagetraveller

Off topic a bit but my Toyota has it's fifth anniversary next month, i.e. Toyota's 5 yr. warranty finishes.
They are offering two years Toyota Exended Warranty for around £380 which includes two MOTs and two years Toyota Roadside Assitance (AA). Any defects (excluding wear/tear) that are a MOT fail are covered too. Vehicle have to be "inspected" annually. However, their fixed price Essential Service, vehicles 5 years and older, is vey competitive. Possibly hoping for extra work needed on older cars?

I was undecided, seems too good to be true, therefore will probably just put the money aside.

It is a Toyota after all.:rotfl:

tonyh66

I wouldn't buy a servicing package from AC, their (post sale) customer services is krap, I know from experience.