If the replacement was optional then you don't have a case and the 50:50 is a good offer. .

Many thanks for the reply.

So the 'legal' question therefore is - if an item is clearly on the manufacturer's service schedule as being specified to be done at a certain age and there is evidence that that service had been done (a stamp in the service record book only) at that age, then was that item (here being to replace the cam belt) optional or not. Surely, if it is clearly on the manufacturers service schedule then an item is not 'optional' (albeit an owner can, no doubt, instruct a garage not to do it - but the stamp would indicate a full service had been done).

If everytning on a service schedulke was optional, what would be the purpose of the schedule. To an extreme, that would mean that a car with 100,000 miles on the clock and full service history (stamps) could have had services where the garage had just lifted the bonnet to see that the engine was there and not done anything else!

Some items on some service schedules are subject to a check and if they are OK can be allowed to run to the next service. I do not have to hand the service schedule for every vehicle but if the manufacturer required it to be done as part of the service schedule and not doing it might put you in jeopardy of not being able to claim for a mechanical failure then it should have been done. Similarly if you bought the car partly on the basis that it had been done and it had not then you could also reasonably expect it to be undertaken at the supplying dealer's expense.

Thanks Lucy. This still does not fully answer; Your first sentence applies to years 1 - 4. It is definately a requirement on the 5 year service but it does not put me in jeopardy of not being able to claim for a mechanical failure because it is out of manufaturers warranty. Any problems arising are likely to be outside the garages 6 month warranty. I bought the car on the basis that it had been fully serviced as indicated by the service stamps in the service record (I did not ask if that meant every service item had been done - I thought it reasonable to assume that!)