Extended Warranty?

[renster]

I have just purchased a MY11 Skoda Octavia RS 125TDI, 46K kms on the clock. Warranty runs out in September 2014 and I was looking to extend the warranty. One Skoda dealer could go to about $2,300 for 2 years. Another one wouldn't even haggle and they were at $2,500 (listed price).

I rang VW they couldn't offer the VW Allianz unlimited 2 year warranty for my car but could offer an Allianz 2 year/100,000km warranty (that same as the unlimited km one) for about $1,650. I have to do some more ringing around. What is stopping me ringing every Skoda/VW dealer in Australia for a price? I assume I can get a warranty anywhere in Australia and still have it apply in Brisbane.

I think the price differences some people are quoting are the difference between the unlimited and the 100,000km limited product. The unlimited only available straight from a Skoda dealer the second available through VW.

On another thread I read that MY11 cars might have been given a 2 year warranty gratis. I wasn't told/haven't found out more about that.

[bobski]

Just passed my 3 year warranty period. Given the outrageous cost, I thought long and hard about this and I've decided to self insure and keep that money earning me interest. The worst thing that can happen is the DSG/motor goes and I figure there is little chance of that given we do 15000kms a year of country driving, its well maintained, closely watched and I've had zero mechanical problems.

It is a risk, yes, but I'm a thousand times more likely to hit a roo.

I also have a 6 year warranty with NMG, though the fine print expects you to change the service interval to 10k & 6 months and only cover the first $2000 of cost so that is near useless.

[cbay]

that's a winning idea, bobski!

[woofy]

We did that too, but now have a failed seat heater and a dodgy handbrake gator...the gator was always an issue we just hadn't noticed. The seat heater started working then stopped again so might just be a loose connection. It did start after moving the seat up and down a bit but I couldn't see any loose connections. Anyone know a good auto electrician familiar with VAG cars in Melb?

[roshea]

My original warranty expired last Friday. I also went with the self-insurance option once I convinced the dealer to fix the DSG shudders (new clutch pack) when the mechatronic unit is replaced under recall.

Confusion about whether Skoda can or cannot offer extended warranty - on the phone they said it was no longer an option, but on Facebook they said their dealers could sell it.

In the end, the best quote I got for adding another 3 years to the warranty (up to 100,000 km total) was $1850. Not as bad as the first quote of $2950 for 2 years!

[wai]

I know I have said this before, this is not an extension of the factory warranty but nothing more than warranty insurance. Even then, you really need to look at the exclusions. When I looked into this, things like pre-existing conditions were excluded. What this meant (when I had them clarify this) was that if I had advised the dealer of an issue during one of the routine services that subsequently failed during the extended warranty, it was considered a pre-existing condition and so excluded.

Just remember, insurance companies did not grow as big as they are by writing policies they then paid out on. They do not take risks. If they perceive that a particular make/model has a high risk, then your premium will be adjusted up accordingly. If you do make a claim and they do pay out, it is actually your money anyway. If you do not make a claim, they pocket the money.

Insurance companies have to pay their shareholders dividends, and the dividends come out of the premiums you pay. Overall, insurance companies collect more than they pay in claims and dividends. There are things like salaries, utilities, software, rental, etc. So never think you have pulled the wool over the their eyes. They have a sneaky hole they can look out of and have a snigger at your expense...literally.

Insurance is buying peace of mind, and even that is an illusion. Do not look at it returning you anything else.

Look at this. How many have home and contents insurance and agree to pay a higher excess? If you do not fancy the idea of a reduced policy for paying a higher excess because you fee you may not be able to afford the excess, next look at how often you have made a claim on your home and contents policy.

[brad]

a dodgy handbrake gator...the gator was always an issue we just hadn't noticed.

Let me know what you do about the handbrake "gator" (I'd call it a door). My spilit in several places last year. Care factor is just about zero but if the part is cheap I'll fix it.

[bobski]

I'm not too worried about the little stuff like seat heaters (as annoying as that is). I'm ahead all the way up to $1500 in parts/labour.

I agree with you Wai, overall insurance is a scam for small stuff. Your premium and excess rarely make it worth getting a problem fixed. My wife did a very nice scrape job on the front of the car. It was $300ish to have it resprayed and it looks like new. Its only worth it if its a write off or to protect your future income/medical bills if you are injured or injure someone else. I reckon its thousands in damage before its worth claiming. You pay for it one way or another as soon as you make a claim.

[wai]

I agree with you Wai, overall insurance is a scam for small stuff.

The problem is that when it comes to the expensive stuff, the exclusions take over and you then find out that you won't get any assistance either. I do work for a major multi-national chemical company, and they only carry insurance that is required by law. Things like their property etc., are not covered by insurance. What happens is that all the divisions around the world pay what would be insurance premiums into a central fund the company holds, and if payments are needed by any division in the group, they can draw from that fund.

You know, that is what insurance was all about. Then along came shareholders who wanted that pool for dividends, so this meant payouts had to suffer. In fact, insurance companies measure productivity by the number of claims they can deny.

[woofy]

Let me know what you do about the handbrake "gator" (I'd call it a door). My spilit in several places last year. Care factor is just about zero but if the part is cheap I'll fix it.

They call them gators by part name for some reason. They are cheap to buy, just a pain to replace. I thought at first it would be usual undo a few screws on the side of the plastic and it all lifts up...as per a normal car. No its a whole heap of mucking about and dealing with tiny plugs and wires etc. The part itself is easy....ours hasn't broken, and might be fixed with some silicon spray or something I suspect. Have a look on Briskoda there is a full writeup of whats involved.

[stormshark]

"Things like their property etc., are not covered by insurance. What happens is that all the divisions around the world pay what would be insurance premiums into a central fund the company holds, and if payments are needed by any division in the group, they can draw from that fund."

Aah, self insurance the hot topic amongst a number of professions over the last 3 years.Just have to find a collective way amongst collaborative firms/individuals when not muti national. Some proifessional bodies and institutes could be more pro active in this respect.

[wai]

"Things like their property etc., are not covered by insurance. What happens is that all the divisions around the world pay what would be insurance premiums into a central fund the company holds, and if payments are needed by any division in the group, they can draw from that fund."

Well, in the over 100 years the company has been operating in something like 230 plants around the world, that scenario has never occurred. Don't worry, this is precisely what the insurers say to convince you to pay them. Then when there is a major disaster, the money they have collected from premiums for years has been handed over to shareholders as dividends and the safe is empty so they then increase premiums to pay for the claims made against them.

Now, isn't that a Ponzi scheme where you take investments (increases in premiums) to pay dividends (claims)???