Warranty- is there one worth buying?

[T5GRF]

I know this is a very tricky subject, given the standard response to this question tends to be "not worth the paper they are written on" but I thought I would canvass opinion to see if there really is a good aftermarket insured warranty scheme out there based on your experiences?

[T5GRF]

Well that's a resounding no then!

In all seriousness, any of you guys in the Trade care to share your experiences?

[itcaptainslow]

My experience from the trade-the only decent extended warranties are the ones provided by manufacturers. Anything else I generally find they look for any reason not to pay out.

[shipley]

Er, not worth the paper they're written on.....especially the one that ends in 'Direct'. From personal experience I like to think of them as "Houdini Warranties.......we'll get out of anything"

[Fats25]

I decided to purchase a warranty for my touareg when dealer warranty ran out last December, I have never bothered before, and don't have one on wife's BMW.

I spoke with VW about options, and was advised by one of the guys there to go with the warranty direct one. Did my own reading, and homework, and bought the policy. Approx £1000 for 2 years. I had a spurious airbag light came on that took a lot of diagnosis to find the fault. Ended up going in twice - would have cost be £800+.

Warranty direct were brilliant on the phone and I received 2 separate cheques. So far I am £200 in for piece of mind.

I have the highest policy they sold for my car, with the dealer rates, airbag, ICE etc etc. if you go for them, put a quote on their website, and then wait for the calls back. They will call! Don't accept the offer on the 1st callback, as the price will come down the more often they call. You will get to a price you are happy to pay!

[T5GRF]

Thanks fair the replies. I agree that manufacturer extended warranty schemes tend to be the best but I think even these schemes don't seem to cover as much ad they used to thanks to FSA meddling.

I have had reasonably good experiences with AA supplied warranties in the past

Anybody else from the motor trade care to give thieir opinion on the good and the bad?

[duncancallum]

I've been a claims controller for a warranty firm and all I can say is you get what you pay for.

The other point of note is if you want them to pay out you need to keep your end of the contract in order so service it properly and follow their claims procedure.

Oh and its all in the wording. I am now on the other side of the fence and I'm pretty good at getting money out of them.

[HertsBiker]

Well I thought the WD one was a bit tricky to get money out of at times, but this could have been my fault... however I ended up marginally in pocket after two years. I'd say they aren't as bad as some people say they are. Could be worth a go, does give you some peace of mind. Just make sure you tell them if you change phone number or email address and you won't have the problems that I did.