A while back, in August 2024,  prior to my Karoq turning 3 years old with MOT due, and service, warranty and breakdown plans etc  coming to an end, I thought about renewal. I opted for the 2 year all in package (2 services, breakdown and warranty plus MOTs)  and, ironically to save hassle, I  paid the whole £900 in one go. I actually had a service just before the package commenced because of issues arranging everything the same day, and that came out of the plan. (Further irony, two weeks later I got an email offering the deal with 20% off)

 

In October I decided to upgrade to a nearly new Kodiaq and settled on a deal. It came with warranty etc.  The Karoq was to be  P/E and I was, on advice of staff, expecting a partial refund on the  Karoq warranty plan. Come the day, staff had to ring some head office to arrange refund but to surprise of all, they refused saying I'd paid in full and not monthly, and had received a service. Fortunately, what was about to be a deal breaker was 'worked on' by staff and I still bought the car and was advised I could appeal to Skoda Finance. I have but they have just replied that small print only allows cancellation within 14 days. Thats a reply from a company that think they have special relationships with their customers! It is also a lesson for me and perhaps many others.

 

If I had expected to buy another car within 14 days of the Karoq turning 3 I am pretty sure I wouldn't have bothered with a 2 year plan! It seems very short sighted of Skoda to rely on small print to refuse a partial refund when one is buying  another Skoda from them. It is not an incentive to use part exchange through Skoda either.

 

So, the point of this posting is to make all potential buyers of extended warranty plans aware of the way Skoda will rely on the small print. It makes a straight off full purchase of any such plans, or other plans, 

as it is no doubt the same across VAG, pointless. The suggestion is that had I paid monthly I may have not had to pay for two years- I'll leave exploring that up to any who may be thinking of going that route- spend hours of their time checking it out before signing.

 

The Karoq plan remains mine and in force for another 18 or so months, and it is transferable with the car even though I have no idea at present who might buy it. (So, if there is anyone thinking of buying a Karoq HD21BXV feel free to contact me to talk about warranty at a cheap rate ! Of course, whilst the dealer cannot say who may buy it, I'll keep an eye on when it is taxed and get the keeper from DVLA. and have a conversation)

 

So, I hope others may benefit from my poor experience of Skoda Finance. This was a warranty etc plan and not finance and  I hate to think what potential traps financing through them might hold. At the very least the message must be don't pay full whack straight off- and read, read and read T&Cs. There are circumstances surrounding my purchase that may amount to a mis-selling which  I'll be pursuing through the Regulator but meantime, the cars may be great, but parts of the support are pretty rubbish. Do I feel like I'm a member of the Skoda family? No way.

 

I read this thread with interest and I have a similar but not same thing to report. I currently have a Karoq which is due an immediate service but I am due to buy another new Karoq in 3-4 months time. I asked one local skoda dealer if I commenced the all in one plan (sounds like same one you had) on a monthly basis then immediately booked a service but disposed of the car in 3-4 month time what would happen - i was advised that I would have to pay the balance of any service cost after the 3-4 instalments were paid (perfectly fair) but other than that I would benefit from all the other add ons (apart from any warranty claim in the first 30 days) so I took the plan out as they were prepared to confirm that via email - this goes to show that paying monthly is the best option for this plan. Where it gets more interesting though was that I had already contacted two other localish skoda dealers who both said cancellation was not permitted. Frustrated at the inconsistency of advice given, I contacted skoda financial services who administer the plan who confirmed that when paying monthly, cancellation part way through is permitted subject to any service balance being paid if applicable. I advised they should circulate this advice to their dealers as some are not advising customers of this and potentially losing business as a result of this        

Thank you for this helpful information, and apologies for not responding earlier.

 

It is an odd attitude that Skoda take given that we were both willing to take deductons for services received, in both senses of the word, and that Skoda wouldn't really lose a penny refunding a balance. Also it is hardly an encouragement when it is a newer Skoda is  taking the place of the older vehicle. I don't think I'll buy another Skoda in the future, the car is fine but their Head Office (or offices as there are so many parts to the organisation) are just rubbish and spoil the whole relationship. The lesson must be, never ever pay in full up front.

 

Skoda Head Offices do seem to behave in strange ways as though the left hand doesn't know what the right is doing. The day after I bought the newer car I received an offer to but an electric one, and a few weeks later, was told my new car was due for a service. The local franchise, with whom I have deal for many years, knew nothing about the 'due service' email-other than they hadn't sent it and their records (and the app) showed it wasn't due this year. HQ  tried to blame the local franchise staff as no doubt they will over the warranty terms issue and thanked me for being a Skoda Ambassador! I put them straight!

 

I do quite like the Kodiaq but the gain in space and weight leads to less economy (41.1 on a two part 360 run) than the Karoq, and it is less sprightly. Anoyingly various Karoq features are missing or accessed in different ways on the Kodiak. No ECO, Comfort modes though some passengers have said they prefer the ride that your are left with.

It is who you are talking to at Skoda HQ or the Customer Services Provider, or Skoda / VW Finance.

Arse and Elbow is the issue with them.

 

 

Edited 17 November, 20241 yr by Ootohere

44 minutes ago, Ootohere said:

It is who you are talking to at Skoda HQ or the Customer Services Provider, or Skoda / VW Finance.

Arse and Elbow is the issue with them.

 

 

 

Got it in one! Thanks.