Do I need to include the space saver when returning a vehicle on PCP?

[skovirg]

Hi all

 

Sorry, I can't see this mentioned but my beloved VRS is being picked up by British Car Auctions and is making way for a superb.  My question is, do I also need to replace the space saver I specced on the VRS?  If not, I plan to use it for the superb.

 

Thanks

[Auric Goldfinger]

Forget to put it back in the boot, see what happens. Once it's been picked up by BCA and you/they have sorted the paper work, not you problem.

 

 

[andyvee]

They do an inspection back at BCA, if they notice it is missing then they will send you a bill for a new one and you are too late then ........

 

At your risk, not sure how much of the spec they get from Skoda finance, but others have been picked up on missing wheel locking keys which were in the boot, so they don't look very far either.

[Auric Goldfinger]

26 minutes ago, andyvee said:

They do an inspection back at BCA, if they notice it is missing then they will send you a bill for a new one and you are too late then ........

 

At your risk, not sure how much of the spec they get from Skoda finance, but others have been picked up on missing wheel locking keys which were in the boot, so they don't look very far either.

 

It was in the boot when it left here, .......................

 

It's up to them to prove it wasn't   

[themanwithnoaim]

The entire spec. is coded on the label in the boot so, its easy for them to check as, there should be something in the wheel well either, wheel kit or junk kit.

 

As you paid £100 for the spare & kit as an optional extra 3 years ago but, its over £290 from the Skoda spares dept. now

 

Risk & Reward just ain't worth it 

[Dodgy]

Yay for encouraging theft.

[Auric Goldfinger]

1 hour ago, themanwithnoaim said:

The entire spec. is coded on the label in the boot so, its easy for them to check as, there should be something in the wheel well either, wheel kit or junk kit.

 

As you paid £100 for the spare & kit as an optional extra 3 years ago but, its over £290 from the Skoda spares dept. now

 

Risk & Reward just ain't worth it 

 

Part of the deal when I bought my 230 was I kept my spare wheel/jack from my previous MkIII Vrs, The tin of junk is in the old Vrs.

 

Will I get charged for the junk or will the spare wheel do ? The lable says Junk 

 

To be honest I don't think they really care whats in the boot after all it's gone to the auctions.

 

Bought as seen.

 

 

     

Edited 30 May, 2017 by Auric Goldfinger

[skovirg]

Thanks for the thoughts.  I'll let you know whether I have the bottle to leave it out and if so, how I get on.  I'm looking at excess mileage fees of about 14K due to a change in circumstances plus refurb costs for two anthracite alloys so my bill for voluntary termination will already be quite high.  Still, it's less than the difference between my settlement figure and the actual value of the car!

[Mallettsmallett]

You really mean, do you think I'll get away with nicking the spare. You know that answer to the question you posted. Go on, be honest.

[ahenners]

Leave it in, it's part of the equipment for that car.

[Jigger72]

16 hours ago, skovirg said:

Thanks for the thoughts.  I'll let you know whether I have the bottle to leave it out and if so, how I get on.  I'm looking at excess mileage fees of about 14K due to a change in circumstances plus refurb costs for two anthracite alloys so my bill for voluntary termination will already be quite high.  Still, it's less than the difference between my settlement figure and the actual value of the car!

 

It's not about having the bottle, it's about doing the right thing. Why not go all the way and remove the entertainment system and fill it with a blank panel? They'll probably never notice. Jesus!

 

How would you feel if you'd just bought a car and got a flat on the way home, only to discover the toe rag who previously owned it had robbed the spare to save a few £££s because he'd over-extended himself on his previous lease? Annoyed? You betcha!

[skovirg]

OK, after calling an hour beforehand, a nice guy from British Car Auctions just came to collect my fully valeted VRS.  He commented on how well it had been maintained and that after 50K+, apart from scuffs to 2 alloys it could not be improved further.  For those who are wondering, the guy checked the car thoroughly for 30 minutes inside and out, examined each panel individually and completed a full inventory .  Everything was recorded including the number of mats, head rests, locking wheel nut, wheel brace, load cover and all of the other 'tools' which are included.   

 

Jigger, your concern for other motorists and for my financial well-being is laudable.  You'll be glad to know that the spare wheel (that I had the wisdom to purchase as an optional extra because I didn't want to be stranded or inconvenience other road users should I ever end up on a motorway with a shredded tyre and a can of foam) will hopefully be passed on to the new owner.  You'll also be glad to know that I have not 'over-extended' myself on either the previous lease or this new one.  

 

For information, the inspection is completed using a hand-held device similar to a mobile phone.  A report and inventory is created on this.  You will then be asked to 'sign' to confirm your agreement and it is then emailed to yourself and their office.  The driver made his own way to my house, left in my vehicle and he will be taking it the 50 miles or so to Leicester tomorrow to be left in what he described as being a huge field filled with other cars from the VW group.  Apparently selected dealers are then invited to view and buy vehicles from here before they are taken to auction.    

 

I know what the bill will be for the excess mileage because that's clear and in the contract but I'll let you know what the charges are for two 18" scuffed gemini anthracites. Hopefully, someone finds ownership of this car as enjoyable and trouble free as I have.

 

[andyvee]

Just for reference, you don't have to sign the inspection report. It has been rumoured on other forums that some nasty wording has been inserted in to some manufacturers inspection report along the lines of you agreeing to pay for any damage.

 

The vehicle only has to be returned in a condition that is 'fair wear and tear' in line with age and mileage. If you end up stumping up the excess mileage charge then you have paid to return a car that is in the condition you would expect a 50k mile car to be in - you have reasonable grounds to argue that a couple of scuffed alloys is to be expected on a 50k mile car so you should not be charged.

[silver1011]

Assuming the car was financed through Skoda (VW) Finance then they are members of the BVRLA.

 

What is classed as fair wear and tear is listed in quite some detail in their 'Fair Wear & Tear Guide'.

 

Alloy wheel scuffs are included however there is a limit to the amount of scuffs and their size.

[andyvee]

On 2017-5-31 at 22:23, silver1011 said:

Assuming the car was financed through Skoda (VW) Finance then they are members of the BVRLA.

 

What is classed as fair wear and tear is listed in quite some detail in their 'Fair Wear & Tear Guide'.

 

Alloy wheel scuffs are included however there is a limit to the amount of scuffs and their size.

Actually not quite correct. They are a member of BVRLA, but BVRLA guidelines are only enforceable on commercial leases and rentals, not on any personal lease or hire, inc. PCP. They would like to make you think that they are and that they are complying with industry standard guidelines, but on a personal agreement 'fair wear and tear' is actually undefined and if challenged in court would fall under that old chestnut of what the average person would find 'reasonable'. Hence why they issue the BVRLA guidelines as they don't expect anyone to challenge what on the face of it appears to be an industry standard which applies to their agreement, when in actual fact it is irrelevant.

 

Plenty of info on legalbeagles forum about this and the other underhand practices the finance companies try to con you into thinking are statute, when they aren't.

 

http://www.legalbeagles.info/forums/showthread.php?77612-A-guide-to-voluntary-termination-Your-rights

 

Edited 2 June, 2017 by andyvee

[silver1011]

To be fair we're talking about VWFS, not one of the many shady financial houses out there offering finance to anyone who wants it.

 

Whilst the BVRLA wear and tear guidelines were indeed originally created primarily for commercial use that same methodology applies to the type of finance too, it is only very recently that PCH has filtered down to consumer level, hence its recent surge in popularity.

 

The BVRLA fair wear and tear guide is actually quite strict so if you work to the BVRLA's guide then you are already going above and beyond what the CCA requires of you i.e. returning the car in 'reasonable condition'.

 

Skoda UK even issue a copy of BVRLA's guide here specifically for all cars financed by them...

 

https://www.skodafinance.co.uk/en/private_customers/faqs_and_glossary/Downloads.html

[andyvee]

From looking at the some of the recent disputes in regards to PCP charges for damage, BMW and Merc are some of the worst offenders, and VWFS seem to be heading in the same direction.

 

I agree, if you work to the BVRLA guidelines you are returning a car in better than 'fair wear and tear' condition so shouldn't have an issue.

 

This is all relevant to the OP's mention of kerbing on the alloys though, what is deemed 'fair wear and tear' on alloys could vary significantly from the 50mm maximum of kerbing in the BVRLA guidelines and what an average person would deem 'reasonable fair wear and tear' on a 3 year old 50k car, hence why I posted.

 

The problem is that it is all subjective, you are in their hands and if they send you a bill you either pay it, ignore it and get a default on your credit file, or challenge it in small claims court. The ball is very much in the finance companies court, and they send a stiffly worded letter and most people will just pay up to make it go away rather than fight it, even though they may be in the right.

[skovirg]

I was looking at the skoda document here:  https://www.skodafinance.co.uk/en/private_customers/how_your_agreement_works/solutions_pcp/what_to_do_at_the_end_of_your_agreement.html

 

It states that "acceptable Light scratches limited to the wheel rim, which do not exceed 50% of the rim and must not be visible from two metres away, corrosion not caused by wheel rim damage, light scuffs on the rim edge of wheel trims" are fine,  As has been stated, light is a very subjective term.  To be fair, Skoda appear to be fairly lenient. I just wish they'd apply a bit of discretion so in my case, as the only defect identified were two wheels,  the car could have been returned in a significantly worse condition and still meet their guidelines.  Saying that the guy from BCA did know that the car was being VT'd so I don't know if they try a bit harder to recoup costs in this case.  

 

To be fair, the wheels are pretty damaged from city centre parking and multi-storey car parks so I wouldn't argue that they were light scratches.   I've read somewhere that their refurb costs are around £40 per wheel.  If so, this is way cheaper than getting it done myself.  When I get the bill, I'll have another conversation with them to see if charm can reduce it a little.  

 

 

 

[themanwithnoaim]

I wouldn't be surprized if a large company in the car industry couldn't get wheel refurbished at £40 a wheel hoever, I would be surprized if thats what they charged their customers.

 

Dunno call me a sceptic but, I'd be happy for you if you surprize me

[skovirg]

On 2017-6-3 at 10:50, themanwithnoaim said:

I wouldn't be surprized if a large company in the car industry couldn't get wheel refurbished at £40 a wheel hoever, I would be surprized if thats what they charged their customers.

 

Dunno call me a sceptic but, I'd be happy for you if you surprize me

 

So, after the voluntary transfer, last week Skoda refunded me one month PCP rental.  Today, they have sent me the final invoice requesting that I pay it within 14 days.  It just has the extra mileage charges, the wheels, although highlighted on the report and being pretty trashed, have not been charged for.  Well done Skoda.  I'm impressed.   

[PirateSyrett]

8 minutes ago, skovirg said:

 

So, after the voluntary transfer, last week Skoda refunded me one month PCP rental.  Today, they have sent me the final invoice requesting that I pay it within 14 days.  It just has the extra mileage charges, the wheels, although highlighted on the report and being pretty trashed, have not been charged for.  Well done Skoda.  I'm impressed.   

 

Result!

 

Well done for being so honest and for keeping us all updated as this has moved forward. There's plenty of us in a similar situation to you and I'm glad that VWFS have kept to their end of the bargain as you did with yours.

 

Many thanks for the info.

[themanwithnoaim]

19 minutes ago, skovirg said:

have not been charged for.  Well done Skoda.  I'm impressed.   

Very glad to hear this

[BoxerBoy]

I couldn't have lived with those 2 trashed wheels for very long before fixing them anyway.

[tigermad]

On 19/06/2017 at 20:42, skovirg said:

 

So, after the voluntary transfer, last week Skoda refunded me one month PCP rental.  Today, they have sent me the final invoice requesting that I pay it within 14 days.  It just has the extra mileage charges, the wheels, although highlighted on the report and being pretty trashed, have not been charged for.  Well done Skoda.  I'm impressed.   

Edited 20 June, 2017 by tigermad