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RAC warranty


Jac55

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Has anyone had experience of an RAC warranty - I have seen a dealer offering a years warranty and wondered how much of an incentive it would be to choose this dealer over others offering 'in-house' warranties. The RAC warranty has advantage as it is nationwide - the devil is in the detail and will try and find the small print somewhere!
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We have been offered an RAC warranty in the past but from memory I found the cash limits, various exclusions and conditions took away much of the potential for protection from big bills so I declined them to carry the risk myself and sometimes was able to negotiate other benefits instead.

 

But that was a few years ago and things may have changed so it pays to read it before agreeing to it.

 

It depends on the dealer but the best warranties we ever had were those issued by the dealer where they warranted everything themselves and fixed it promptly and with a smile - but not all dealers are equal in this respect!

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Jac55 - 2018-12-29 10:41 AM

 

Has anyone had experience of an RAC warranty - I have seen a dealer offering a years warranty and wondered how much of an incentive it would be to choose this dealer over others offering 'in-house' warranties. The RAC warranty has advantage as it is nationwide - the devil is in the detail and will try and find the small print somewhere!

The seller is liable for the condition of the vehicle under consumer legislation. I suggest you look into your consumer rights via Citizen's Advice or Trading Standards. A warranty - whoever offers it - is likely to be no such thing, but merely an insurance contract that will probably be relied upon by the seller to try to limit or offset his obligations under sale of goods etc legislation. It doesn't, and the usual phrase is that the warranty does not affect you consumer rights.

 

However, if you choose to rely on the warranty be aware that there is no general concept of "reasonableness" with such warranties. If something is stated to be covered, it is covered only to the extent stated, and what is not stated to be covered, or is stated not to be covered, simply is not covered at all. The warrantor is judge and jury over whether any item will be repaired or replaced, often by whom and at what cost, and legal challenges to his decision are very difficult to bring.

 

If the vehicle appears in generally good condition inside and out, and has a full service record (including any water ingress etc properly carried out by authorised workshops), you may be better off getting an engineers inspection carried out (e.g. AA or RAC or similar accredited inspection) than buying an insurance backed warranty, and relying on your consumer rights against the seller and the inspection agent if the vehicle subsequently lets you down. Any vehicle can develop faults, and once you buy, nothing can protect you from that risk. The best you can achieve is to mitigate the risk, and it is always to keep back a "wad" just in case you have need of it.

 

I would also suggest you investigate legal assistance insurance as a extension of the vehicle insurance, just in case. You probably won't need it, but it should make obtaining redress that much less stressful if push comes to shove.

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Jac55 - 2018-12-29 10:41 AM

 

Has anyone had experience of an RAC warranty - I have seen a dealer offering a years warranty and wondered how much of an incentive it would be to choose this dealer over others offering 'in-house' warranties. The RAC warranty has advantage as it is nationwide - the devil is in the detail and will try and find the small print somewhere!

 

 

From the opposite side of the fence : We do quite a bit of warranty work for the electronics side.

 

When we submit a quote for any work to the RAC, it has never been refused or 'negotiated'. Always agreed and paid promptly.

Not all warranty companies are the same, even though they know we are less than half the cost of a Dealer, some will still 'discuss' the quote and take a long time to pay.

 

 

The best warranty claim that was settled was with the PVC specialist company Murvi. They, agreed on the phone for the work to be carried out on their behalf and paid out two days later.

 

 

 

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