Borris
Super Poster
VIP Member
Our Cali Beach is now thirty eight months old and recently presented an air bag warning light. The previous day I had wound the front passenger seat back fully in order to prepare for carrying a long piece of kitchen worktop. The light came on the next time I turned on the ignition!
I suspected the wiring harness serving the inbuilt passenger seat air bag had become detached. However there was no point in looking as I don't own the correct diagnostics gadget to reset the system. I therefore booked the vehicle in to my dealer to have the issue examined and rectified. They confirmed that the wiring connection had been completely torn apart. The fault was fixed and the system reset. I was then informed that as this wasn't a warrantee item, I would have to pay. The Service Manager did say he would arrange some discount and that he'd contact me later to settle the bill.
Before visiting the dealer I'd contacted VW customer services at Milton Keynes for details of what the extended factory warranty covered only to be told that they have no records of my having an extended warranty. However, as I had proof of purchase and a fax from the dealer stating that I'd purchased said EFW that wasn't an issue.
I was subsequently told by my dealer that everything is now electronic and the customers don't receive a hard copy of the Ts and Cs. So I went online and looked into the VW advertising information about both the original three year Manufacturers Warrantee and the Extended Factory Warranty. Without boring you with the details VWs online blurb states that the extended warranty gives you exactly the same benefits as the makers original three year warranty.
Having read about what is covered and all the exemptions I told the Service Manager that the work was a warranty item. After all the front seats on a Cali are designed to recline and swivel and if they cannot do that without ripping the wiring loom apart then that is either a manufacturing fault or a wiring loom routing issue. Either way it wasn't, as the Service Manager informed me, "an adjustment and therefore not covered". A long conversation then followed in which he told me that he had already given me a heavy discount on this work and that he knew VW would not pay for this work so it would be he (his dealership department) that would have to pay. I for my part asked him what he would do if my van was only a week old. He agreed that the work would be carried out free of charge. So I then pointed out that according to VWs own online sales information, the Extended Factory Warranty provides exactly the same benefits as the manufacturers three year warranty. He then said because my van was older than six months they couldn't do the work for free. I then asked to see this ruling in writing and also why weren't customers told this. I also said that it made no mention of this condition anywhere in the online Ts and Cs and that therefore if true, VW are guilty of misrepresentation when selling these extended warrantys. At this point he begrudgingly agreed to pay the full amount.
Now that figure wasn't alot. The difference between what he had originally discounted and what I was being asked to pay was only about £35 but that's not the point. There is a principal at stake here. VW should stick to what their advertising says and not try to pull the wool over customers eyes with hidden conditions. So the moral of this story for me is: Don't pay for any Warranty work until you've checked the online sales blurb, then stand your ground.
This isn't the first warranty run in I've had either. VW refused to pay out for a new wheel centre when the VW badge delaminated a few months after it was new. They said it was a wear and tear item and therefore not covered. I asked them: what wear and tear is a hub cap is exposed to? I also stated that if they were supposed to delaminate then the hedgerows would be full of shiny VW badges. They refused to change their policy but did refund the price of the replacement as a gesture of good will. That wasn't the result I was after.
The point of this thread is: Are these Extended Factory Warrantys worth paying for especially if VW are going to find all sorts of questionable tactics to avoid paying out. Has anyone else experience anything similar?
Finally, I only continue to have the minor routine servicing work done by the dealer as it is a condition of the EFW. I've just paid £235 for an oil, filter and pollen filter change. I could have done that work for a fraction of that cost and saved myself a lost day out and a considerable amount of fuel by doing it at home. So in order to keep the EFW there are considerable other costs involved as well.
I suspected the wiring harness serving the inbuilt passenger seat air bag had become detached. However there was no point in looking as I don't own the correct diagnostics gadget to reset the system. I therefore booked the vehicle in to my dealer to have the issue examined and rectified. They confirmed that the wiring connection had been completely torn apart. The fault was fixed and the system reset. I was then informed that as this wasn't a warrantee item, I would have to pay. The Service Manager did say he would arrange some discount and that he'd contact me later to settle the bill.
Before visiting the dealer I'd contacted VW customer services at Milton Keynes for details of what the extended factory warranty covered only to be told that they have no records of my having an extended warranty. However, as I had proof of purchase and a fax from the dealer stating that I'd purchased said EFW that wasn't an issue.
I was subsequently told by my dealer that everything is now electronic and the customers don't receive a hard copy of the Ts and Cs. So I went online and looked into the VW advertising information about both the original three year Manufacturers Warrantee and the Extended Factory Warranty. Without boring you with the details VWs online blurb states that the extended warranty gives you exactly the same benefits as the makers original three year warranty.
Having read about what is covered and all the exemptions I told the Service Manager that the work was a warranty item. After all the front seats on a Cali are designed to recline and swivel and if they cannot do that without ripping the wiring loom apart then that is either a manufacturing fault or a wiring loom routing issue. Either way it wasn't, as the Service Manager informed me, "an adjustment and therefore not covered". A long conversation then followed in which he told me that he had already given me a heavy discount on this work and that he knew VW would not pay for this work so it would be he (his dealership department) that would have to pay. I for my part asked him what he would do if my van was only a week old. He agreed that the work would be carried out free of charge. So I then pointed out that according to VWs own online sales information, the Extended Factory Warranty provides exactly the same benefits as the manufacturers three year warranty. He then said because my van was older than six months they couldn't do the work for free. I then asked to see this ruling in writing and also why weren't customers told this. I also said that it made no mention of this condition anywhere in the online Ts and Cs and that therefore if true, VW are guilty of misrepresentation when selling these extended warrantys. At this point he begrudgingly agreed to pay the full amount.
Now that figure wasn't alot. The difference between what he had originally discounted and what I was being asked to pay was only about £35 but that's not the point. There is a principal at stake here. VW should stick to what their advertising says and not try to pull the wool over customers eyes with hidden conditions. So the moral of this story for me is: Don't pay for any Warranty work until you've checked the online sales blurb, then stand your ground.
This isn't the first warranty run in I've had either. VW refused to pay out for a new wheel centre when the VW badge delaminated a few months after it was new. They said it was a wear and tear item and therefore not covered. I asked them: what wear and tear is a hub cap is exposed to? I also stated that if they were supposed to delaminate then the hedgerows would be full of shiny VW badges. They refused to change their policy but did refund the price of the replacement as a gesture of good will. That wasn't the result I was after.
The point of this thread is: Are these Extended Factory Warrantys worth paying for especially if VW are going to find all sorts of questionable tactics to avoid paying out. Has anyone else experience anything similar?
Finally, I only continue to have the minor routine servicing work done by the dealer as it is a condition of the EFW. I've just paid £235 for an oil, filter and pollen filter change. I could have done that work for a fraction of that cost and saved myself a lost day out and a considerable amount of fuel by doing it at home. So in order to keep the EFW there are considerable other costs involved as well.
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