New Car Warranties (10 Articles)
Back to Knowledge HubI have a warranty claim, but a dealership or garage is unable to book my car in before my warranty expires. What can I do?
If you are looking to make a claim on your active warranty policy, but a dealership or garage is unable to accommodate your vehicle to assess the defect or issue being reported before the policy expires, and it is later found that the problem was one that was covered under the terms of the warranty, you will not be liable for any repair costs.
If the claim does not fall under the terms of your warranty, even if the car was seen after the expiry of the policy, you will be asked to cover the cost of any remedial work carried out on your vehicle.
If you are unable to take your car to a dealership or garage prior to the warranty agreement expiring due to them being unable to accommodate your vehicle, it is worth contacting the administrator of the policy to discuss your concerns and possible solutions available.
Before any remedial or repair work being undertaken by a business, it is important that you ask for a quote and confirm your agreement to the cost if you wish to proceed.
What can I do if I have a problem related to my BMW warranty?
If you have a complaint in relation to your BMW extended warranty, then it is likely to be an agreement with a third party rather than BMW UK itself. Therefore, before raising your dispute, please read the terms and conditions of the extended warranty documents carefully to identify the business which is liable under the extended warranty agreement.
You can then contact the appropriate organisation by submitting a formal complaint to the business in line with their complaints procedure.
If you are unhappy with the final response of the business, or more than eight weeks has passed since raising the complaint with them, you may escalate the complaint to The Motor Ombudsman for further investigation.
Take a look at our vehicle warranty FAQs here.
What can I do if I have a problem related to my Audi warranty?
If you have a complaint under an Audi extended warranty, then it is likely to be an agreement with a third party rather than with Audi UK itself. Therefore, please read the terms and conditions of the extended warranty documents to identify the business which is liable under the agreement. You can then contact the appropriate organisation by submitting a formal complaint to the business in line with their complaints procedure.
If you are unhappy with the final response of the business, or more than eight weeks has passed since raising the complaint with them, you may escalate the complaint to The Motor Ombudsman for further investigation.
Take a look at our vehicle warranty FAQs here.
What can I do about recurring warranty repairs that don’t solve the problem?
Under the Consumer Rights Act, you need to give the seller the ‘one shot’ at repair. If the repairs are not resolving the issue and you no longer wish to have the car mended under your vehicle’s warranty, and it has been less than six years since you bought the vehicle, you may wish to ask the seller to provide you with a like-for-like replacement car or a refund.
The refund may be subject to a deduction for use, generally between 25p to 45p per mile, if the request is made after the first 30 days of purchase.
What should I do if there are rattles on my new car?
The Motor Ombudsman receives various types of complaints on car noises. For example, the car is making a noise when idling, accelerating, cruising, turning and braking.
There are times when a noise is not necessarily symptomatic of a fault. Vehicle manufacturers will often set tolerance levels on how much noise a vehicle should make in a set situation. It is normal for manufacturers to work with a main dealer to try to minimise the noise, but this does not necessarily mean they accept there is a fault.
If you disagree with the manufacturer and believe the noise is a fault, you should get a second opinion. This can be from another franchised dealer or an independent engineer (e.g. DEKRA).
If you wish to exercise your warranty rights, you should inform the manufacturer of your intention to obtain a second opinion, because if you’re successful in your claim, you can ask for your costs of the report to be reimbursed. If you wish to exercise your legal rights, you need to follow the process set out in the Consumer Rights Act and allow the seller an opportunity to diagnose the noise. If they explain that they are unable to find a fault, it is important, once again to get a second opinion and inform the seller of your intention to do this. This will help you to recoup the costs of the second opinion from the seller if you are successful in your claim
The parts that are covered under your warranty agreement is decided by the terms and conditions of your warranty.
Therefore, we recommend you contact your warranty provider, if you are unsure about what is covered under the warranty.
You can find out more about vehicle manufacturer and extended warranties on our dedicated FAQs page.
What can I do about noise issues on my new car?
We receive various types of complaints on car noises. For example, the car is making a noise when idling, accelerating, cruising, turning, braking or even when you turn the engine off.
Noise in cars can mean a number of things and for most, it can be quite concerning. If you are concerned your car is making a noise, try not to panic and book your vehicle into the nearest main dealer. Listen to the noise though as it if sounds like a fault that needs to be looked at straightaway, you should ideally pull over and contact your Roadside Assistance if you are a member of one.
There are times when a noise is not necessarily symptomatic of a fault. Manufacturers will often set tolerance levels on how much noise a characteristic should make. It is normal for manufacturers to work with a main dealer to try to minimise the noise but this does not necessarily mean they accept there is a fault.
If you disagree with the manufacturer and believe the noise is a fault, you should get a second opinion. This can be from another main dealer or an engineer. If you wish to exercise your warranty rights, you should inform the manufacturer of your intention to obtain a second opinion as if successful, you can ask for your costs on getting this report. If you wish to exercise your legal rights, you need to follow the process set out in the Consumer Rights Act and allow the seller an opportunity to diagnose the noise. If they say no fault, again get a second opinion and inform the seller of your intention to do this. This will enable you to recoup the costs of the second opinion from the seller.
What to do about a new car problem
If you have a new vehicle, which is still under warranty, and you have a fault, you have two options.
Warranty
You can pursue the fault under your warranty. The warranty will usually have terms and conditions, which set out each parties’ obligations. It will also set out the process on submitting a warranty claim, which normally involves booking your vehicle into a main dealer for a diagnostic (check). Following on from this, the main dealer will submit a warranty claim to the manufacturer. If the manufacturer accepts the fault to be a defect, they will authorise a free of charge repair. If they do not agree it is a defect, they will refuse your claim and explain the reasons why.
Your consumer rights
You can exercise your legal rights but you will need to contact the seller who sold you the car. If you discover your vehicle is of unsatisfactory quality, unfit for purpose or not as described within the first 30 days, you can raise this with the seller and ask for your money back. You will be entitled to a full refund.
If you are outside of the first 30 days, the seller has one opportunity to repair or replace your vehicle. If you are reporting a fault within the first six month, it is presumed this fault was there at point of sale. The seller will need to prove otherwise. If outside of the first six months, you will need to prove this fault was there at point of sale.
The seller has only one opportunity to repair or replace and if this fails because the same fault persists or a new inherent fault has developed, you can ask for a price reduction, which means a partial refund but you keep your vehicle. Alternatively, you can ask for rejection, which is to return the vehicle and get your money back. Remember, the seller is entitled to deduct usage, which is usually the miles you have added to the vehicle.
How do I raise a problem with a Manufacturer Warranty?
Warranties are a legally binding contract between you as the consumer, and the manufacturer as the warranty administrator. The warranty will usually have terms and conditions, which set out each parties’ obligations. It will also set out the process on submitting a warranty claim, which normally involves booking your car into a main dealer for a diagnostic (check). Following on from this, the main dealer will submit a warranty claim to the manufacturer. If the manufacturer accepts the fault to be a defect, they will authorise a free of charge repair. If they do not agree it is a defect, they will refuse your claim and explain the reasons why. Remember, the only remedy available under the warranty is a repair.
How do I get compensation from a car manufacturer?
The only contractual relationship you share with the manufacturer is one of warranty. This recognises you as the consumer (recipient) and the manufacturer as the warranty administrator. The manufacturer has an obligation to cover the repair costs of faults that fall under the warranty, as limited by the terms and conditions of the warranty agreement. Under, the warranty they are exempt from all other claims of consequential loss – such loss will generally fall to the party, which sold you the car and is therefore contractually liable for the quality of the car provided to you.
Finally, should you believe you have a claim in negligence against the manufacturer then you should contact the Citizens Advice Bureau on 0345 404 0506, for some guidance on your legal rights because negligence claims fall outside of The Motor Ombudsman’s remit.