Well I reported it via email to GMP and I just almost had a heart attack when a Chief Inspector called. First thing that goes through your mind, guilt or not, is "What have I done". When he said he was calling with regards my email I felt really bad, almost like a naughty school boy being told off by the headmaster!

I even apologised!

He said not to, as it was an admin oversight, and I was right to because it could have had implications had someone who had been booked for a motoring offence spotted it.

I was really impressed that he had taken the time to call and explain to me.

Just took it to a local back street garage and they got it unlocked, eventually. Like you suggested Malcolm_L they dug out a Renault lock with similar mechanism to check. Turns out the fix involved a long, thin screwdriver, a tiny hole in an inaccessible place and swearing.
Who knows why it stuck, probably will again... Ah well, only £20.

Thanks everyone for the advice!

good for you

Drink Lager Talk Piffle

I worked for a number of years for one of the major 'warranty companies'. As has already been said elsewhere in this thread, it is not warranty you are buying, it is insurance against the failure of specific parts on/in your car/van. This is usually defined as 'sudden mechanical failure' within the small print. How this is defined is very much a subjective opinion, usually of the 'claims engineer' at the suppliers of the policy.
All these companies work in the same basic manner: they employ actuaries, who crunch numbers to work out an acceptable(to them) risk of each covered part failing and approximately when. The longer they have been in business and the wider the portfolio of vehicles they have covered, the more accurate these figures become. They then set a 'premium' covering the list of parts they offer to cover (varies with policy type and company) and add in their profit margin and administration costs. Then they sell it to you via a number of different channels (some manufacturer approved used programmes are underwritten by this type of company) including the net. When you have a problem, they estimate how much the cost will take out of your insured 'pot'and will then approve, part approve or reject your claim. The closer the cost of repair gets to the 'pot', the more they will try not to pay. They usually look for a 'burn' rate (money spent against money taken for the 'pot')of no more than 70%. So, if your 'pot'is £100.00 & the cost to them of repairs is less than £70.00, they will normally pay it. Over that, they'll argue like hell!!
This is a rough outline of how this works. It is a complex and interesting subject. There are some good and some very bad guys in this business. Stick to a company who administers used vehicle schemes (not a scheme, but several) for the manufacturers and you should be OK.
Cheers,

I was also surprised to find that 36000 service on 306 diesel would cost £340 at Warwick Wright City (Mile End Road) and £210 at Warwick Wright Chiswick. You'd thougt same name, same "label on the tin" and yet there is £20 difference for every mile between the two garages.

My advice is to pull up yell.co.uk, type in Warwick Wright and call every single garage within reasonable radius for the price.