Warranty Claims and Repairs

Our car warranty guide provides you with all the information that you need to know about warranty claims and repairs. Whether you are looking to make a warranty claim or you just want to check what a warranty could offer you incase your car breaks down, take a look at our claims and repairs guide.

On This Page

  1. Why you need a Car Warranty Insurance Plan
  2. Repairs Under Warranty
  3. Free Vehicle Inspections
  4. What to Look For
  5. Common Car Warranty Complaints
  6. What do Car Warranty Policies Cover?
  7. Car Warranty Exclusions

Why you need a Car Warranty Insurance Plan

Here are some examples of what you could typically end up paying for without a car warranty insurance plan:

common Warranty Claims

  1. Turbo Charger – £602
  2. Cylinder Head Gasket – £444
  3. Air Flow Meter – £286
  4. Water Pump – £195
  5. Radiator – £208
  6. Gearbox – £887
  7. Alternator – £225
  8. Clutch Assembly – £399
  9. Electric Window Motor – £313

Source: Tesco Warranties – average costs across all makes and models.

Repairs under Warranty

Although some polices may claim to cover a wide range of faulty parts or electrical devices, the conditions affecting these may be conditional. The following is a guide to help make you aware of potential problems you may face when claiming for any repairs through a car warranty insurer.

Petrolprices top tips on what to look out for in car warranty policies:

  1. Some insurers will cover you against wear and tear but exclude normal deterioration. This means that you are only covered if the part fails within its expected life span.
  2. You may need to pay towards the parts when the car has covered over a set number of miles, even when wear and tear has been included in the policy.

    Milage Graph

  3. Your claim may be invalid if you do not have a valid MOT or full service history.
  4. Check the consequential damage policy as insured parts may no longer be covered if they’re damaged or breakdown as a result of a non insured part.
  5. Check the payment charges towards betterment. This is a common way for car warranty insurance providers to get out of paying for a claim. You may have to either contribute towards the cost or even pay the full amount.
  6. Check the claims limit for your policy‚ although most providers state that you can make an unlimited number of claims they may be limited to a small amount so you could end up paying for most of the repairs anyway.
  7. Make sure you are clear on your overseas coverage. Some warranties cover you in EU countries but exclude the rest of Europe.
  8. Some warranty providers accept claims resulting from wear and tear‚ however we recommend that you thoroughly check your policy and what it covers. Although some policies claim to cover wear and tear‚ there may be conditions for this in the small print which can exclude a number of wear and tear claims.

Free Vehicle Inspections

A number of insurers will request that you have a vehicle inspection carried out prior to a warranty agreement. Most warranty providers will offer a free vehicle inspection so make sure you research the company as this is a common industry standard. Not all warranty providers require a vehicle check‚ however your vehicle may need a full service history and up to date MOT which is not due to expire within the next three months.

What to Look For

Common Car Warranty Complaints

As with all the pros of taking out new or extended car warranty there are some cons. After carrying out independent research‚ we have determined the five most common complaints made to warranty providers. These are:

What do Car Warranties Cover?

All car warranty policies claim to cover more than the other and be the market leader. There are numerous policies available all insuring different parts and causes of failure. The main coverage to look out for in your car warranty are the following, you can click these for a more in depth explanation:

Car Warranty Exclusions

Unless you take out car warranty that specifically caters to sports or specialist vehicles, then most insurers will exclude you from their policies. Vehicles which are commonly exempt from the majority or car warranty plans are: