Opinions on Warrenty Direct

traveyb

traveyb

traveyb

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So picking up my Audi A3 today and really want to get a warranty that covers the DSG box + the other main bits.
I've seen the name Warranty Direct flown around a bit so spoke to them today regarding cover.
Seems perfect for me, £455 PA, franchised/dealership repair covers everything except consumables (they also cover wear a tear which is a big thumbs up as other companies are very sneaky with that).

Has anyone had any issues with them/reasons not to use them?
 
Minstadave said:
They'll try and wriggle out of any claim you make. Check the documents thoroughly.
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This - my dad had one a few years ago and wasn't worth the paper it was written on.

3 month battle to get them to pay out for a warranty claim which was only £400's worth of work but dad reckoned he put 20 hours of calls and letter in to the claim by the end of it. Eventually they only agreed to pay half of the costs.
 
Typical type of insurance then lol :)
It was a very attractive offer so will probably go with it for piece of mind, they cover the DSG which was my main concern
 
booyaka said:
This - my dad had one a few years ago and wasn't worth the paper it was written on.

3 month battle to get them to pay out for a warranty claim which was only £400's worth of work but dad reckoned he put 20 hours of calls and letter in to the claim by the end of it. Eventually they only agreed to pay half of the costs.
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Hmm thats a bit disturbing then, reading reviews from 2009 they get a bit of a bad rep but reviews from 2012+ they seem to get good ones =/
 
From experience your better off putting the money in the bank than giving it to Warranty Direct. You will end up paying for the repair anyway so might as well have the £455PA to put towards the repair if it goes wrong.
 
Check out Warranty Wise as well.

They seem to have a slightly better reputation, their T&Cs are clearer than Warranty Direct and I found them to be nearly £100 cheaper (after a bit of over the phone "oh but it's just a tad too expensive for me").

I have just paid £340 for a years cover for a 2008 BMW 520d auto, that's with a £5k per cost limit, no excess and £100 p/h labour rate (nearly main dealer costs, read the WD wording VERY carefully regarding this as there will be a set £ limit per hour and over that you'll pay the difference)

Saying that, my dad had his 2006 Land Rover Discovery with Warranty Direct for 3 years (paid ~£400 py) and probably had something like £7k worth of work over that time that they paid out for without hassle. So, the warranty did as it was designed to do, but Land Rover reliability is rather suspect! (air suspension compressor failure @1k and a leaking fuel tank sender seal @ £700 were my two favourites).
 
we got the wife's car from Available car and took the warranty they offered which was from Abraxas (Mappfre)

I was against this but this missus wanted it

we have had 4 faults on the car (well it is French) and they have picked the bill up for 3 of them, the other was clearly excluded frim the policy (leaking hose)
 
matthab said:
Id go ideally a manufacture backed one i.e https://www.audiextendedwarranty.co.uk/.

I have the Seat equivalent and they covered new clutches on my DSG no argument (This was with Seat them selves footing most of the bill though).
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I initally looked at the Audi extended warranty but whilst they cover a lot of stuff, a lot is under wear and tear (this is where Warranty Direct come in as they cover a lot of these). I can understand little things like brake pads, suspension bushes etc, but say the drive shaft seal went, they would probably claim that wear and tear.
The guy that called me from Warranty Direct also claims they cover damage to insured parts from non insured parts (i.e fan belt breaking).
Will carry on my search but so far they are winning
 
traveyb said:
I initally looked at the Audi extended warranty but whilst they cover a lot of stuff, a lot is under wear and tear (this is where Warranty Direct come in as they cover a lot of these). I can understand little things like brake pads, suspension bushes etc, but say the drive shaft seal went, they would probably claim that wear and tear.
The guy that called me from Warranty Direct also claims they cover damage to insured parts from non insured parts (i.e fan belt breaking).
Will carry on my search but so far they are winning
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Drive shaft seal would be classed as an oil leak. WD wouldnt cover that, they also dont cover any thing due to leaks, carbon, silt/sludge build up etc etc. You need to read the wording on their exclusions they can be twisted many ways and will be used to get out of a claim if possible. They also wont cover the clutch facings in your DSG box.

I remember when I took out my luxury care plus package and was sold the dream on the phone. I thought they wont catch me out as im covered for everything, I learnt the hard way.
 
I've got them but they wouldn't pay out for a clutch replacement, they would only pay for the faulty clutch bearing but you can't just buy the bearing, you need to buy the whole kit which they consider a consumable part and thus not covered....
 
I have a policy on my octy vrs to give me a bit of peace of mind over expensive bits blowing up (turbo for example). Haven't claimed on anything yet but the cover is cheap, only £260 for 13 months fir their extra care policy + extras.

If it was nearer £500 though, I wouldn't do it.
 
I had one on my volvo s80. I just about broke even and that was with some arguing.

Think I'd have a manufacturer warranty or bank the cash if I went for one again.

2yrs Toyota warranty on my hi lux was or is £1100
 
Had my first ever experience of AA's repair cover service this week, shocking to say the least, wanted us to use second hand parts. This happens often, companies wanting you to use second hand parts. Such has been our experience with warranty companies at our garage that we now have no dealings directly with them, the customer can sort it out, the customer pays us. Wasted far too many hours arguing with companies on the phone and answering their stupid questions.
As jono says above, £260 is worth it, £500 will pay for just about anything that'd break on most cars, so better off just pocketing the money. Warranty only really makes sense if you buy big expensive cars that break a lot (aka landrovers)
 
Interesting, thanks for the advice all. Always best to get advice from people who have actually used it! I actually have the AA repair cover already however I'm going to drop it at renewel.
The Audi Warranty I think sounds the best, at least it's covered with the dealer. I will only use it when I actually seriously need it (engine fault, DSG fault etc). Anything else I will pay for it myself.
 
radar19 said:
I've got them but they wouldn't pay out for a clutch replacement, they would only pay for the faulty clutch bearing but you can't just buy the bearing, you need to buy the whole kit which they consider a consumable part and thus not covered....
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You wouldnt expect them to cover the clutch, its a consumable item in the same way as brake pads are, friction plate that wears out over time and designed to do so, (admittedly at a slow rate).
 
Rich1988 said:
You wouldnt expect them to cover the clutch, its a consumable item in the same way as brake pads are, friction plate that wears out over time and designed to do so, (admittedly at a slow rate).
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I wouldn't mind paying for the kit, they aren't that expensive, just the labour cost to do it I would expect them to pay
 
I wouldn't waste the money. £450 only to have them muck you around, waste your time, and wriggle?

I'd rather pay £450 for syphilis.
 
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