Motoring editor, Michael McAleer, answers all your motoring queries
From PD: I took the plunge and bought a new Volkswagen Passat. It comes with a two-year unlimited mileage warranty. I was annoyed to find that VWs sold in the UK, as well as having the standard two-year unlimited mileage warranty, receive an additional third year under warranty if the car has less than 60,000 miles on it.
For someone who does less than 20,000 miles a year, an extra year’s warranty would make a great deal of difference.
For someone who does less than 60,000 miles over three years, perhaps they should do their buying in northern Ireland and bring their new VW and three-year warranty south of the border (with VRT of course).
How can cars made in the same factory be sold with warranties that seem to discriminate against the Irish customer when compared to British customers just up the road?
According to a spokeswoman for Volkswagen in Ireland: “Volkswagen offers a two-year warranty as standard on the Volkswagen Passat. This applies in both Ireland and the UK. However the UK importer purchases an extra year’s warranty from a warranty provider. This is offered by Volkswagen UK retailers as a part of their marketing campaign.”
The VW situation is far from the exception. Many other firms offer shorter warranties in Ireland than in the UK. When we push them on the unfairness of this, they always respond with the fact that these sort of lengthy warranties are over and above the legal entitlements of the sale of goods acts and are commercial incentives rather than legal imperatives.
In Britain, warranty offers and extensions are used to entice buyers and you will find that, while the car firm itself offers an initial warranty, the extra years are covered specifically by either the local distributor or dealer, normally through an insurance policy they take out to cover any costs incurred.
For example, many leading car firms only cover the first year of ownership, with local operators taking the rest. They then weigh up the potential sales benefits of longer warranties as a marketing incentive against the cost of the cover.
Sadly for Ireland, it would seem that buyers don’t really regard extended warranty cover as crucial when buying, preferring to concentrate on bottom line prices and accessories.
One dealer we spoke to about this issue told us their experience was that customers were more enticed by a set of alloys as standard and a sunroof fitted for free than any attempt made to offer longer warranty. It is, however, something that can and should be part of the purchase negotiation with a dealer, no more than any other optional extra you want on your car.
From GN Miller: Further to the question asked in helpdesk some weeks ago, is it acceptable to have a photocopy of your original driving licence to solve the problem of the reader?
Officially you must carry the original licence with you at all times when driving so no, a photocopy will not suffice. That is the strictly legal interpretation, although in reality we suspect that a garda will take a more practical view, provided the timeframe is realistic.
The best advice, is to call into your local motor tax office and apply for a new licence. A receipt from them is acceptable.
From J Davis: I’ve lost the use of vehicles from the company car fleet and I’m on a budget. I was insured through the firm’s insurance on an open drive plan. As far as I can tell there was no record kept of the fact that I didn’t have any crashes, although I guess I could prove it as I made no claims.
I now have to get my own insurance on a new car. Will I have to start from scratch again, having no individual history in a policy, like some named driver at 17?
You need to ask your employer for evidence that you were on the policy for a number of years and that you made no claims. That can be in a letter from the insurer, which you can then show to future insurers. Unfortunately, you are unlikely to get full recognition of your no-claims driving with a new insurer, but it should not set you back to the level of a named 17 year old. Discounts on offer, however, will vary greatly so, as always, shop around. The more calls made, the more saved.