Private used car warranties

[Muaythaijase]

Hi

Im really interested in purchasing a used 2014 octavia Vrs tsi.

Has anybody on here had dealings with used car warranties purchased privately ?

Were they worth it etc?

thanks 

 

[hwr1983]

If you buy a car that are prone to breaking down (Land Rover for example) then they will most defninitely be worth it.

 

Some cover breakdown, and wear and tear items.

 

Haven't personally bought one privately myself (I had an AutoProtect one via Evans Halshaw when I bought my 53-plate Audi A6 back in the day - and the warranty paid out more than the car cost to buy! They were excellent!)

 

Do you research, look at reviews etc.  Look at the average cost of big-ticket repair items vs the cost of the warranty.  That should help

 

Sorry if my post wasn't what you were looking for though

 

 

[KenONeill]

@Muaythaijase - The critical thing is to get hold of a specimen policy and look at what is not covered before taking out the insurance.

[Redboy]

Short answer no. If the car is 4 years + old then then % you get of the repair fee drops. Then you get hit with 'corrosion / wear' and the policy per year can become prohibitive. Frankly save £350-500 on a policy and put it aside for the inevitable. 

[wyx087]

I believe in the bathtub curve: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bathtub_curve

 

I've never bought extended warranty or used car warranty. Put the money you'd usually spend on warranty aside for rainy day, this is called self-insure and it is a money saving technique. If you didn't need the warranty, it's money wasted; if you didn't use your self-insure fund, it's money saved.

[spinnaker]

For my old Astra I got a few car warranties over consecutive years after the manufacturer warranty expired from gocarwarranty.co.uk. The key to it is to understand what is and isn't covered. The other important thing is to carefully read what hoops they need you to jump through in order to pay out. I seem to recall this being things like having a proper service each year. regular oil changes, etc. I certainly got my money's worth from GCW after a few significant bits failed deep in the engine. The have a hook up with Halfords Autocentres which meant quicker approval for work if you had it done through a Halfords Autocentre.

 

There are comparison tables out there for the percentage of claims paid out from these sorts of companies. Warranty Wise frtoned by Quentin Wilson is a bit more expensive but seems to get decent reviews.

 

As long as you stick to the demands of the policy to the letter then they can be a good investment.

[GoneToBeemer]

Avoid Warranty Direct like the plague.

 

In my experience, a total bunch on cowboys who will try their best at getting out of anything, and won’t even listen to reason, even with written backup from a Bosch Service and registered MOT mechanic.

 

I took a 24 month warranty (top option available) out for my mum from them, and about 2 months in her timing chain tensioner broke (luckily no damage to the engine) and the whole timing chain and setup needed to be replaced. They simply called it a consumable item and wouldn’t cover the cost - total joke. 

[Jono]

They make their money by not paying out, or by paying out less than you were led to believe.

Spend your life putting the same amount aside as you would spend on phone, dog*, fridge, car** etc. warranties and insurance and you will win overall

 

 

*If you can't pay a £4k vets bill, don't get a dog

** Yes, you need insurance, just do the maths on high excesses etc. and you'l win overall.

[Falmouthboy]

The manufacturer based warranties tend to be best, although a little more expensive and can tie you into dealer servicing (because they are insurance not warranties).  As said by others, Warranty Wise seem to be the best of the rest.  On most policies the price goes up after 60k miles and cover after 100k miles is almost non existent.

[ahenners]

As above, I'd only really take manufacturer backed schemes as these seem much better when it comes to paying out.

 

That said, Skoda wanted £850 a year to cover my VRS at 30k/4yrs with no excess, which is laughably expensive.

[SkodaVRS1963]

On 24/05/2018 at 13:36, KenONeill said:

@Muaythaijase - The critical thing is to get hold of a specimen policy and look at what is not covered before taking out the insurance.

 

Exactly this.

 

Thread closed?

[dunc69]

Only buy insurance (i.e. warranty) that you are obliged to by the law / loan policy. So car and home buildings if you have a mortgage. You may get home contents thrown in. 

 

Otherwise, as others have said, put the equivalent of the monthly premium to one side in case you need it. You probably won’t = you win. 

 

There is a reason these companies make so much money.