Seven Year Warranty - really?

[M44LCY]

I've just been looking at the MG web pages relating to the warranty we get. It made me wish I'd seen it before buying my car - I'd probably have gone ahead, but I'd have been aware of the warranty's limitations.

"In the unlikely event that something does go wrong with your MG, you have complete peace of mind with your warranty."

That's true, but it looks like complete peace of mind is only available for one year. After that, with the exception of the traction battery, it seems only to cover a "part which fails during the warranty period, as a result of a manufacturing or material defect".

My concern is that it's MG or the dealer who decides whether a fault is attributable to a defect, or is fair wear & tear.

This comes into play with the condition which states "Any exploratory dismantling charges will only be reimbursed as part of valid claims. It is the responsibility of the warranty holder to authorise and to pay for the charges if it is proved that the failure is not the responsibility of MG.”

In other words, you have to be prepared to pay the dealer if they decide the part wasn't already faulty when the car was new. But who is going to make that judgement when a part has been on the car for, say, five years? And doesn't that put a heck of a lot of the risk onto the car owner? "Certainly sir - we'll investigate that knock from your suspension. The cost to check it will be our minimum charge of (say) £100.” IMHO the further you get into the seven years, the less the warranty is worth the paper it's written on (or rather, the web page on which it's displayed).

Or am I just paranoid, and in practice the warranty is as good as I had thought?

https://www.mg.co.uk/sites/default/files/2024-02/MG%20Online%20Warranty%20Statement%2001.09.2019.pdf

 

[Verdigris]

I doubt the warranty is very much different to any other make. The battery warranty and free AA recovery, if you keep to the servicing schedule, are the both worth having.

 

[5teep]

KIA's 7 year warranty is/was much the same.

In reality no manufacturer is going to offer a long warranty on a part that is likely to fail so view the warranty as a guide to the bits they consider most reliable. The main battery is a good example.

 

[TomLane]

KIA's 7 year warranty is/was much the same.

In reality no manufacturer is going to offer a long warranty on a part that is likely to fail so view the warranty as a guide to the bits they consider most reliable. The main battery is a good example.

Your contract is with the garage that sold you the car, if you are not happy the issue is fair wear and tear which most is not, except tyres and the like then that is why we have courts, the small claims courts are very cheap and easy with no costs to pay if you lose.
:et the Judge tell you what "fair wear and tear" is and not some service manager that works for the garage.
You will only need to do it once, as long as you are being reasonable.
Would a reasonable person expect the item in question last for 7 years or more and if so they will have to replace it regardless of what the small print says.
Ever heard of unreasonable terms in a contract.

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a807f4c40f0b62302693daf/Unfair_Terms_Explained.pdf

What is an unfair term?21. A term in a consumer contract is unfair if, contrary to the requirement of good faith, it causes a significant imbalance in the parties’ rights and obligations under the contract, to the detriment of the consumer.22. Transparency is also fundamental to fairness. The Act requires that a written term in a consumer contract is expressed in plain and intelligible language and is legible. This sits alongside a more general requirement that consumers are given a real chance, before entering a contract, to see and understand all terms that could operate to their disadvantage (see paragraph 28 below).

I hope this helped.
Tom