My car's warranty ends in 2 days time. I have been investigating alternative sources of extended warranty in the (temporary) absence of such a warranty through Skoda dealers. Warranty Direct appears to be the major player in the market. Their cover includes fair wear and tear on the Gold Policy, albeit cover is for named items as you will see below. A major stumbling block for me is that the FWD policy does not cover the Haldex unit or Haldex ECU - both expensive items. The online quote was

Just make sure you have it serviced according to their instructions, they normally insist on 6,000 mile servicing regardless of manufacturers reqs, and keep any and ALL reciepts.

They will try and argue the toss come claim time, as all companies like this do.

Also check whether or not they have a "betterment" clause on repairs (this basically means if you make a claim and they replace a part and this replacement makes the part better than the original,were it in full working order, then you will be expected to pay part of the cost of the part)

eg.. Your starter motor packs up, they replace it with a brand new one, this makes the replacement better than a fully working 3 year old original part (because it's new) so you have to pay part of the cost of the new starter.

Does that make sense ?

Whatever it's just a way of them getting away without paying out fully on a claim.

Their terms published on the internet require that the car has been serviced in the 12 months prior to taking out cover. I mentioned to Warranty Direct when contacted since my car is on variable servicing and is a couple of days outside that requirement. I was told that if the car has been serviced in accordance with the manufacturer's service schedule then the 12 month limit does not apply.

I looked into a warranty when I had my last sensor failure, but couldn't get a simple answer as to whether, if a MAF or perhaps a crank sensor went, they'd be covered?

I'm always dubious of these companies. I did come accross this though

http://www.tt-forum.co.uk/content/adverts/index.asp?navID=adverts

Audi Warranty expired? Want to have piece of mind that if it breaks, its not going to cost you the earth. At 50% of the Audi Extended Warranty, Warranty Direct is the preferred supplier for the TT Forum.

I've been having a look at feedback about Warranty Direct on that forum too, Stu. Seems positive so far.

I always have a google around if I'm unsure of something, it normally turns up some answers.

I got through 10 pages without a bad word about them before I gave up!!

Something to consider might be the use of non genuine parts?

They rely heavily on the garage to make the assesment so a lot can be down to your garage, but they may well ask the garage to send the U/S parts back to them before they pay up.

If you do go for it - as was said above, keep everything, notes of calls and offers made, reciepts and get a written acceptance of the variable servicing routine.

Denis

The only control units I can see mentioned are the Air conditioning and cruise control units.

What about the other control units? It specifically states that anything not listed is not covered.

Dougal

Denis

Have you emailed Skoda customer services ? I went through the same search just before I decided to sell the 4x4 and Skoda came back and said its an 'official' Skoda warranty

- yes, underwritten by the usual warranty providers, but from personal experience, there's far less chance of them arguing the toss about coverage if you have full history and have bought from the importer.

From experience on my Subaru Impreza (

I have used warrenty direct and for the money, I don't think there's much that can touch them.

The callcentre staff in the claims dept were always a bit grumpy sounding with me, but they did their job.

Denis

The only control units I can see mentioned are the Air conditioning and cruise control units.

What about the other control units? It specifically states that anything not listed is not covered.

Dougal

Denis

They are also mentioned under e.g. diesel injection system and electronic ignition and the wording there would seem to cover crankshaft sensors.

I am covered by Warranty Direct but have no claims experience to report. I have never read/heard bad things about them. They are always recommended by Honest John when punters ask.

I have read reports of VAG franchises refusing to deal with Warranty Direct on the grounds they only deal with the provider of the VAG branded warranty.

Mike G

Thanks for all the comments so far. I have also had a look at Warranties Online's Comprehensive Plus warranty for cars with less than 40000 miles and less than 5 years old when the policy is bought. It doesn't cover fair wear and tear, but does cover mechanical and electrical failure for all but a fairly low-key list of items. It's also cheaper at

I'm sure that one of my statistician colleagues would be able to explain it better, but...

Most of the warranty problems (if any) will occur fairly early on. If your car survives three years, the chances are that it will survive many more years (normal wear and tear excepted). without problems.

My car has been out of warranty for almost a year, now. No problems; I don't expect any (except normal wear and tear) before I sell it in around 1 to 2(?) years from now. If there are any problems, I expect them to cost less that (x) years extra warranty premium.

It's a gamble. Your Mileage May Vary

I'm sure that one of my statistician colleagues would be able to explain it better' date=' but...

Most of the warranty problems (if any) will occur fairly early on. If your car survives three years, the chances are that it will survive many more years (normal wear and tear excepted). without problems.

My car has been out of warranty for almost a year, now. No problems; I don't expect any (except normal wear and tear) before I sell it in around 1 to 2(?) years from now. If there are any problems, I expect them to cost less that (x) years extra warranty premium.

It's a gamble. Your Mileage May Vary [/quote']

My feelings too Mike. My car's warranty expired before I even got the car, but in 30,000 miles of motoring I never regret not getting any extended warranty. With a mate who can work on pretty much any aspect of a car, and my 100% trust in the reliability/build quality - I've had two years of quite cheap repair bills... In fact I struggle to think of any major issues - new ARB was

I was fortunate to get my VAG-COM lead in time to check for DTCs and find that I needed a new Haldex ECU at

To illustrate 'tis indeed a gamble.

Our cars were both registered in April 2000. I took a Warranty Direct warranty at three years, SWMBO did not. I have had no problems. SWMBO has a failed instrument cluster (handbrake light permanently on) which was quoted at

All valid comments.

If you think you will benefit from the warranty then you should take it however, fair wear and tear or factors attributable to that may well be good causes for exclusions and failed claims or at least a bargaining point for them.

just took out a warranty direct policy in the last few days ( skoda warranty expires 26/02/05) after hearing positive feedback , i too got 13months for price of 12 plus a meaty discount for paying annually.

as ive already mentioned in a differant thread my cars had alot of problems and its worth the price of a cheap bottle of wine a week especially as full breakdown/ hotel cover is included.

There are plenty of other parts on the Octavia which, if they fail, would cost a fair bit to replace, eg turbo, Haldex, gearbox etc. I guess that the bottom line is that peace of mind comes at a price. I've had that for almost 3 years with the standard warranty and am prepared to pay for it again.

Exactly my way of thinking. I work for a 'premium brand' at the moment and nothing I have seen would change my logic - if you can afford a few hundred pounds to protect you IF IF IF something expensive fails, then why not !

Impreza, bought with FSSH needed new engine

When I was thinking of hanging onto my Omega, I looked around at warrantys, and Warranty Direct seemed to be the most open about what they did and didn't cover.

On the other hand I suppose that, like any insurance policy, you only find out how good they are when you have to make a claim.

Phil

Skoda Customers Services have just confirmed what my dealer said again yesterday - there is no official extended warranty available to buy from/though Skoda UK at the moment. There will hopefully be news of a revised one which meets FSA requirements later next month.

Blinkin' FSA - lets complicate things in the name of transparency !

I decided to bite the bullet and take out Warranty Direct's Gold cover from midnight.

I decided to bite the bullet and take out Warranty Direct's Gold cover from midnight.

Tempting fate I see... I hope it makes it problem free until midnight!

Tempting fate I see... I hope it makes it problem free until midnight!

No problems - existing 3 year warranty ends at the same time.