Car manufactures a warranty advice needed,

[Oddsocks]

Looking for a bit of help and advice regarding car manufactures warranties. My sister in law has a 4 year old Vauxhall corsa which she purchased new from the local main dealer.

As part of her finance she opted for the life time warranty, which is 5years or 100k miles, which ever comes first covering any mechanical non wear and tear related repair.

Well the car is a March 2011 car and just out of warranty the car has developed a mechanical issue where it cuts out, won't start, they starts in limp mode and so on. The car has never been abused as she has a young child and has only covered 40k in just under 4 years, so she calls the Vauxhall dealer to be advised

" your life time warranty has lapsed and is void because your 3rd year service was 8 weeks late "

To me this doesn't bode well, it's always been serviced by the main dealer it was purchased from, and this is her 2nd new corsa through this dealer yet despite an uproar with the dealer which was passed to Vauxhall uk customer services, they are sticking by their guns of late service tuff crap!

What's worse is despite the extended warranty being void, they have continued to charge the direct debit for it, and have never notified her of the lapse of the warranty, nor was she ever sent notification that a late service could put the warranty program at risk.

The icing on the cake is that with a car that has been well looked after, always serviced an so on they are now saying that after paying £65 for a diagnosis. The car has failed a block test and also need a water pump.

I'm guessing for this that the water pump has failed and the heat has caused the block to crack, but the car has never overheated and doesn't lose water,

Help me out guys.... Advice needed on this as I'm sure it just the garage and Vauxhall trying to wiggle on the bill.

 

[scottbrown]

Not specific to car warranties. But surely as they have continued to take the DD every money they are still accepting of the contract? Ie they should still pay out.

 

[mchacker]

Phone Vauxhall customer service directly 0800 026 0034 and tell them the above, if they're half reasonable they'll either tell the garage to do the job, or at the very least contribute a sizeable amount to the bill. Either which way cancel the direct debit and look into claiming back the amount taken since the warranty was voided.

I work for Renault/Citroen and our service department would have fought the owners corner to get something done so chances are it's the dealer rather than Vauxhall who are wriggling out of it. That said, there will be something in the small print that says servicing must be timely and at a Vauxhall dealer and it's not unheard of for repairs to be dodged by not adhering to the terms. The fact that it's a 2nd purchase and the low mileage is working in your favour.

 

[drdel]

Being brutal you daughter has not kept her part of the contract, it did not have to be serviced by Vauxhall but it does have to be serviced on time or mileage whichever is first.

If you miss a service most manufacturers will not honour any issues related to the engine or gearbox thereafter. You may get a goodwill contribution if you can show the mileage was low and well inside the distance service frequency Vauxhall demand even though 8 weeks out of time.

Worth remembering "you'll catch more wasps with honey than vinegar"

Going forward I'd suggest getting it repaired and then apply for and extended warranty from a specialist like Car Care, Warranty Direct etc.

 

[bladeplayer]

I have no doubt there will be something regarding the service being adhered to in the small print ..

What would i be doing ?

Id be asking for a copy of the details of the contact between the dealer & the manufacturer
I would ask for a copy of the fault diagnosis that shows the manufacturing defect is directly linked to the service interval that was late
I would ask for the refusal of warranty in writing so you can contact the finance company to rearrange the contract with them .. you cant be expected to pay for a service you are not receiving

If i was a repeat customer as your sister in law was id ask to speak to the dealer principal and inform him of your displeasure and your intention to seek legal advice on the information provided by the dealer


I have worked in VW Dealer warranty for too many years and more often than not the manufacturer will try meet you in some way ..

EDIT The water pump will have a recommended milage /age replacement guideline id ask for that aswell

 

[Ethan]

A court would consider whether the 8 week delay in the service made a material difference to the risk of later failure and would almost certainly conclude it did not. The OP should push back assertively.

 

[Oddsocks]

A court would consider whether the 8 week delay in the service made a material difference to the risk of later failure and would almost certainly conclude it did not. The OP should push back assertively.

That's my theory Ethan. Surely 8weeks late on a standard service is minimal and they continued to take the direct debit without notification so I see the contract as valid

 

[Oddsocks]

Cheers for the responses guys, having a pretty solid knowledge on engines as I used to build race bike engines I have no doubts the water pump was the weak link and they are looking for a loop hole.

By comparison my old Zetec mondeo had 100kon the clock, had been used hard for 4 years and was 11 years old before the head gasket went, I think a water pump as standard has a 5year 100k warranty if being purchased on its own so I don't see any reason for it to fail other than inferior quality.

The only possible link to water pump failure would be no oil changes or coolant changes in the cars life span , which must mean the garage haven't done the services correctly for the entire life of the car and even that would be extreme for water pump failure to arise

For a car to be just over 3year old with little to no miles she still fail is quite clear quality is the blame and not misuse,

 

[Heavy-grebo]

Check out the owners club forum too these things don't tend to happen in isolation, it's probably happened on a few Corsa's over the years and there may be some useful information.

 

[chrisd]

I'd certainly not go down without a fight

The fact that they were happy to take her money even though the service was late would suggest that the contract is still operative and they haven't asked why it was late - she could gave been away on holiday, sick or having a baby and the car may well have not been driven in that 8 weeks. If they couldn't fit her in for a service on the day it was due would her warranty be voided- I dont think so!

I'd arrange a meeting with the head honcho at the dealership and ask him to bring all of the paperwork, that she signed, stating the conditions they are now relying on are in fact correct.

 

[Oddsocks]

I've linked her the this thread Chris, as I've said call Vauxhall on Monday ask for names, references for the call and email acknowledgements as she's going legal at the end of the week

As much as I hate it the concept this has no win no fee all over it. The worst of it is she is heavily preggers and could do without the additional stress.

 

[chrisd]

I've linked her the this thread Chris, as I've said call Vauxhall on Monday ask for names, references for the call and email acknowledgements as she's going legal at the end of the week

As much as I hate it the concept this has no win no fee all over it. The worst of it is she is heavily preggers and could do without the additional stress.

I'm not so sure of no win no fee, it's going to potentially be a small claim in the County Court and she'd need to follow all the protocols. I'd be asking for a copy of their terms and conditions and to have it highlighted where she has breached the contract and how they figure the device delay caused the fault, after all, a water pump isn't a regular service item and unless it was playing up at the precise time she should have had it serviced it then, if it's included under the warranty cover, they are, in my opinion just seeking to unfairly avoid their responsibilities.

 

[Oddsocks]

Well a little bit of googling has found some interesting stuff:

Water pump malfunction is common in this model from 2010 onwards ( hers is a 2011 )

As this model has no temp gauge it's impossible to tell if the car is overheating which is why it leads to block/head gasket issues

It's most common when garages do no bleed the system after changing the coolant as part of a service, and looking through the service records that was done on the last service.

Can feel a lovely email coming on!

 

[ColchesterFC]

I'd be getting on their Twitter and Facebook pages and after an intro would be going with comments such as "It's good that Vauxhall make their cars so well that if you miss the service interval by 8 weeks they expect them to fall apart" and "Vauxhall keep taking the payments for the warranty but if you try to claim on it will tell you it's void". These big companies don't like getting negative publicity and putting comments like these in the public domain will in all likelihood lead to an offer of a resolution.

 

[chrisd]

Well a little bit of googling has found some interesting stuff:

Water pump malfunction is common in this model from 2010 onwards ( hers is a 2011 )

As this model has no temp gauge it's impossible to tell if the car is overheating which is why it leads to block/head gasket issues

It's most common when garages do no bleed the system after changing the coolant as part of a service, and looking through the service records that was done on the last service.

Can feel a lovely email coming on!

They're bound to say they did it properly although it's certainly coincidental that it should fail after service

 

[Smiffy]

All manufacturers will try to wriggle out of a warranty claim if there is the slightest chance that they will succeed.
There is usually a little bit of leeway given to having a service carried out, but two months is a long time overdue.
Why is she still paying a direct debit Baz?
Surely the warranty is included in the price of the car and shouldn't be direct debited for?
Is she paying seperately for a "service plan?"

 

[Oddsocks]

Rob, when she got the car new in 2011 her finance was a figure to cover the complete purchase. This was to include the repayment for the car and then the lifetime (100k/5 year) warranty. Her service plan was a separate package as far as I know,

My question is that surely if she was late for the 3rd year service they Vauxhall could/should have sent a reminder, should have without doubt advised her that due to not keeping up her service plan her extended warranty was void and obviously altered her payment of her finance as this was Vauxhall direct.

As it stands her service plan needed on 3 years which was last years service, and the service plan was still valid even though the car was 8 weeks late, so why shouldn't the warranty, and also why was she advised when the car went in late that she should look into any warranty packages,


She has purchased two new corsa's from the same dealer and the service has got worse day by day, even when it comes to booking the car in,

 

[Smiffy]

Her finance repayments cover the cost of the car only mate. The warranty is a separate issue I'm afraid.
It will state quite clearly in her service/warranty booklet that failure to adhere to the recommended servicing schedule could invalidate the warranty side of things.
I can understand that you are a little "miffed" that your wife wasn't reminded that a service was due, but the onus is always on the owner to check.
There is no "legal" right for a garage to remind you....they offer it as a service to customers.
If you forgot that your MOT was due and said to the Police when you were stopped "the garage didn't remind me" that would stand for diddly squat.
I have in the past sold cars to customers that are doing a very (and I do mean a very) low mileage....sometimes only 2 or 3,000 miles a year.
I make it quite clear to them on handover that the servicing requirements for their new vehicle will be "12,500 miles or one year, WHICHEVER IS SOONEST"
You will be surprised how many come back after two years for their FIRST service and when they are told they have invalidate their warranty they will complain that they didn't think they needed to have it done because they have only done 4,000 miles!!
Invariably it will then end up in a disagreement, with the customer saying "I wasn't told that I would have to have it done every 12 months!"
I'm not saying that this is the same as you are experiencing at the moment, but like I said above, the onus is ALWAYS on the customer to make sure they adhere to service recommendations. It will state it quite clearly in your service booklet mate.

 

[Scotty Cameron]

The lifetime warranty from Vauxhall at the time of purchase should is "lifetime" or 100,000 miles whichever comes first and not just 5 years. I had a Corsa bought in 2012 new and it had the same warranty. You had to have it serviced at the specified intervals AND have the warranty reactivated at the dealers every year at the time of service. You should have got a letter with the lifetime warranty activation every year, did you not get this ?

I'm inclined to agree with others here, 8 weeks is a long time over the service date, I think that they will use this to the fullest to squirm there way out of the repair, but good luck anyway with your challenge.

 

[bladeplayer]

Her finance repayments cover the cost of the car only mate. The warranty is a separate issue I'm afraid.
It will state quite clearly in her service/warranty booklet that failure to adhere to the recommended servicing schedule could invalidate the warranty side of things.
I can understand that you are a little "miffed" that your wife wasn't reminded that a service was due, but the onus is always on the owner to check.
There is no "legal" right for a garage to remind you....they offer it as a service to customers.
If you forgot that your MOT was due and said to the Police when you were stopped "the garage didn't remind me" that would stand for diddly squat.
I have in the past sold cars to customers that are doing a very (and I do mean a very) low mileage....sometimes only 2 or 3,000 miles a year.
I make it quite clear to them on handover that the servicing requirements for their new vehicle will be "12,500 miles or one year, WHICHEVER IS SOONEST"
You will be surprised how many come back after two years for their FIRST service and when they are told they have invalidate their warranty they will complain that they didn't think they needed to have it done because they have only done 4,000 miles!!
Invariably it will then end up in a disagreement, with the customer saying "I wasn't told that I would have to have it done every 12 months!"
I'm not saying that this is the same as you are experiencing at the moment, but like I said above, the onus is ALWAYS on the customer to make sure they adhere to service recommendations. It will state it quite clearly in your service booklet mate.

Hi Rob,

im in a VW , Mitsubishi ,SsangYong dealership over here so just curious ,


How do customers with extended warranties who are on a service plan, BUT have a mechanical failure NOT related to anything covered on the service schedule due stand over in the UK ..?

over here if the fault was attributable to something due on the service you'd have little or no chance of warranty , but if the fault was not related to the serviceable items due, then they would have a very god case