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The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruling against the KIA Motors’ 7-year warranty should help expose the small print restrictions of other manufacturer schemes, according to Warranty Direct.
Just days after Vauxhall continued the trend of manufacturers extending their cover by launching its own ‘lifetime’ care package, the leading independent specialist says consumers should not be fooled by the marketing hype.
“The ASA ruling is a victory for the consumer against the smoke and mirrors being employed. It’s also a lesson to check the small print rather than just being sold on the headline,” says Duncan McClure Fisher, managing director of Warranty Direct.
The ASA found that KIA Motors had breached its code by not giving enough prominence to the 100,000-mile limit on its heralded seven-year warranty and that the advertisements were misleading because they did not highlight the varying periods of cover for different parts such as batteries and air conditioning units.
Warranty Direct, which challenged KIA’s advertising in the interests of accuracy and fairness for the consumer, says the ASA ruling should have far-reaching implications on how manufacturers market warranties and how the public view them.
“It is going to be interesting to see how the others react,” says McClure Fisher. “I’m intrigued to see how Vauxhall now take the lifetime cover to market – is it for lifetime or for 100,000 miles?”
Other manufacturers to have recently extended their cover include Hyundai (7 years), Toyota (5 years) and Chevrolet (5 years).
Warranty Direct has long been a trailblazer in the sector, being the first to remove small print exclusions like faults as a result of ‘wear and tear’, consequential loss and mechanical failures identified during routine MOT and servicing.
The Company subscribes to the Motor Industry Code of Practice for Vehicle Warranty Products, which safeguards consumer interests by helping them identify responsible providers and encourage the sector to raise and maintain a high standard of customer service. The Code is currently progressing through the OFT Consumer Codes Approval Scheme.
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