My manufacturer warranty is void - what can I do? | Ask Honest John

My manufacturer warranty is void - what can I do?

Last week I took my BMW 1 Series to my local dealer to fix a fault with the USB connector. The car is less than two years old and has covered just 5500 miles. When examining the car the dealer found excessive amounts of black oil in the coolant expansion tank, which they say is from a previous accident.

The dealer believes the accident (which has been repaired) has caused significant damage to the car and has void the warranty. However, they will not do any further investigation on the car without me paying for it. Is this correct?

Asked on 6 January 2015 by Spearce96

Answered by Honest John

The dealer is being entirely fair. Its position is that if its investigations ascertain that the problem was caused by a crash prior to your ownership of the car, BMW will not re-imburse the dealership for any work, so it is not prepared to undertake the investigative work unless you pay for it. However, if you bought the car from a dealer within the past 6 months, that dealer is liable. Law here: www.honestjohn.co.uk/faq/consumer-rights/

Tags: dealer warranty legal and consumer advice

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