Service confusion

[GrumpyGranddad]

So, last Wednesday I received a text from Citygate advising me that my Cali is due for a service and inviting me to book online which I did. Shortly after booking I received a phone call advising that the text was sent in error and that because my vehicle is on ‘variable service intervals’ it doesn’t need a service until it hits 27,000 miles (currently on 16,000). The booking was cancelled.

Here’s the thing, when I look at ‘next service due’ in the van (and in WeConnect) it says next service due in 2,200 miles.

Dropped into Citygate this morning to clarify and spoke to Cliff as I was concerned. Not least about voiding my warranty by missing a service. He advised that I should ALWAYS go on what the vehicle says and not by any message from the booking team! Booking now rescheduled.

 

[andyinluton]

Is that its first service?

 

[GrumpyGranddad]

Is that its first service?

No Andy, oil change service in 2021 so the pending one is a full service. That’ll be my two free ones used :-(

 

[andyinluton]

I'm not sure that VW and We connect are connected - For my van the We connect shows a spanner symbol for a service due in 17000miles or 282 days, a different screen shows an oil can symbol with 15200miles and 66 days.

Im not sure what its going to show after an oil change in 66 days, will the "service" date & mileage change.

If I'm on long life servicing the "service" date & mileage is about right

If I'm on Annual services the "oil" change is correct.

 

[GrumpyGranddad]

I'm not sure that VW and We connect are connected - The We connect shows a spanner symbol for a service due in 17000miles or 282 days, a different screen shows an oil can symbol with 15200miles and 66 days.

Im not sure what its going to show after an oil change in 66 days, will the "service" date & mileage change.

If I'm on long life servicing the "service" date & mileage is about right

If I'm on Annual services the "oil" change is correct.

Yes it is confusing. I’d always thought that the spanner symbol was a major service and the oilcan symbol was an oil change service. According to Cliff the oilcan symbol is a service and the spanner symbol is just an inspection? Doesn’t seem logical but when he went into his system this morning it did show that mine was due a major service not just an oil change !?

Oh well, it’s booked in early December and they’re also going to look at my SatNav issue.

 

[GrumpyGranddad]

And from the dashboard (shot taken yesterday) it does indeed suggest an inspection not a service in 15900 miles or 333 days.

 

[Perfectos]

Those with pre purchased plans should be aware that VW will cancel the plan after 2 years have elapsed from the date of the first inspection service or subsequent services thereafter !

So be aware that waiting until the van tells you to get a second service may result in your pre paid plan having been cancelled by VW with no prior warning (this particularly applies to low mileage vans ).

There are some threads on the matter and VW will not honour the remaining pre paid service(s) !

i.e. if you have pre paid service, Plan Don’t wait more than two years between services regardless of what the van tells you.

 

[RoB5urf]

Those with pre purchased plans should be aware that VW will cancel the plan after 2 years have elapsed from the date of the first inspection service or subsequent services thereafter !

So be aware that waiting until the van tells you to get a second service may result in your pre paid plan having been cancelled by VW with no prior warning (this particularly applies to low mileage vans ).

There are some threads on the matter and VW will not honour the remaining pre paid service(s) !

i.e. if you have pre paid service, Plan Don’t wait more than two years between services regardless of what the van tells you.

Not always true. My vehicle had its 3rd service at 5yrs under the pre-paid service plan.

 

[Perfectos]

Not always true. My vehicle had its 3rd service at 5yrs under the pre-paid service plan.

So you didn’t exceed 2 years after the previous service ?

im not sure if this is something VW have recently introduced, but they are cancelling pre paid plans after a two year lapse.

 

[66tim99]

So you didn’t exceed 2 years after the previous service ?

im not sure if this is something VW have recently introduced, but they are cancelling pre paid plans after a two year lapse.

A positive outrage!

 

[Perfectos]

A positive outrage!

Outrageous and IMO not within the law, the spirit of the contact or ethical !

 

[RoB5urf]

So you didn’t exceed 2 years after the previous service ?

im not sure if this is something VW have recently introduced, but they are cancelling pre paid plans after a two year lapse.

I wouldn't go more than 2 years between services regardless of what the service indicator says.

When you say VW are cancelling pre paid plans, are they contacting the customer?

 

[Perfectos]

I wouldn't go more than 2 years between services regardless of what the service indicator says.

When you say VW are cancelling pre paid plans, are they contacting the customer?

No contact from VW prior to them cancelling,

you find out when your dealer tells you your plan was cancelled! (When you make a booking)

 

[Calimili]

It's a bit like a barber shop. never ask a barber if he thinks you need a haircut.
Unless you have already pre-paid for it , then you won't need a haircut for a long time.

 

[Jenny H]

Those with pre purchased plans should be aware that VW will cancel the plan after 2 years have elapsed from the date of the first inspection service or subsequent services thereafter !

So be aware that waiting until the van tells you to get a second service may result in your pre paid plan having been cancelled by VW with no prior warning (this particularly applies to low mileage vans ).

There are some threads on the matter and VW will not honour the remaining pre paid service(s) !

i.e. if you have pre paid service, Plan Don’t wait more than two years between services regardless of what the van tells you.

Thanks for the tip so that would include it first inspection service when brand new - mines 2 years old in March 2023 so will be mindful of that.

 

[Perfectos]

Thanks for the tip so that would include it first inspection service when brand new - mines 2 years old in March 2023 so will be mindful of that.

The way dealer are ATM, (long lead time to get service) I would make a booking for Mid February 2023 Now.

 

[SFO]

Those with pre purchased plans should be aware that VW will cancel the plan after 2 years have elapsed from the date of the first inspection service or subsequent services thereafter !

So be aware that waiting until the van tells you to get a second service may result in your pre paid plan having been cancelled by VW with no prior warning (this particularly applies to low mileage vans ).

i.e. if you have pre paid service, Plan Don’t wait more than two years between services regardless of what the van tells you.

this is what my 2 services Service plan (taken out 15 November 22, with 25% winter discount) terms and conditions (20 June 2015 version) has to say about validity:

"Contract Period: From the date of the Agreement until the date of completion of the 2nd of the following 2 consecutive Services."

which means that contractually, VW cannot unilaterally just cancel the 2nd inspection service

 

[Perfectos]

this is what my 2 services Service plan (taken out 15 November 22, with 25% winter discount) terms and conditions (20 June 2015 version) has to say about validity:

"Contract Period: From the date of the Agreement until the date of completion of the 2nd of the following 2 consecutive Services."

which means that contractually, VW cannot unilaterally just cancel the 2nd inspection service

I agree 100%, that the wording of the contract states expiry on completion of second of two consecutive services,

the fact is VWFS, ARE arbitrarily cancelling pre paid service plans after two years have elapsed since last service. Saying “service plan has matured” with no contact to the third party whom is affected by their action.
VWFS action, wether legal or not can be disputed until the cows come home, but in reality this leaves you with no service plan .
i.e original service plan not being recognised by VW dealers
and the hassle of trying to deal with VWFS who administer the scheme
Dealers are unable to represent you due to data protection/ sensitive info etc, To try and get VWFS to reinstate the plan.
even when you get VWFS to agree to “honour “ the original plan they do not reinstate it !
you then have to make contact with the servicing dealer, provide them With a copy of the email from VWFS & get them (the dealer) to make contact with VWFS to arrange for manual billing to carried out by the dealer (because you don’t have an active plan on the VW database & the dealer will charge you the normal rate for servicing)

i am highlighting this issue so others can act accordingly and don’t fall foul of what quite frankly is outrageous behaviour by VWFS. (Regardless of what your paper contract says ).

 

[Amarillo]

I agree 100%, that the wording of the contract states expiry on completion of second of two consecutive services,

the fact is VWFS, ARE arbitrarily cancelling pre paid service plans after two years have elapsed since last service. Saying “service plan has matured” with no contact to the third party whom is affected by their action.
VWFS action, wether legal or not can be disputed until the cows come home, but in reality this leaves you with no service plan .
i.e original service plan not being recognised by VW dealers
and the hassle of trying to deal with VWFS who administer the scheme
Dealers are unable to represent you due to data protection/ sensitive info etc, To try and get VWFS to reinstate the plan.
even when you get VWFS to agree to “honour “ the original plan they do not reinstate it !
you then have to make contact with the servicing dealer, provide them With a copy of the email from VWFS & get them (the dealer) to make contact with VWFS to arrange for manual billing to carried out by the dealer (because you don’t have an active plan on the VW database & the dealer will charge you the normal rate for servicing)

i am highlighting this issue so others can act accordingly and don’t fall foul of what quite frankly is outrageous behaviour by VWFS. (Regardless of what your paper contract says ).

I had a dispute with Skoda about our service plan. I argued and argued that I had a service plan. “Computer says no” was their reply.

Still I argued. Eventually they called upon head office: VWFS. They found my service plan. The garage had mistyped my registration number when I bought the car with two services…

 

[Perfectos]

I had a dispute with Skoda about our service plan. I argued and argued that I had a service plan. “Computer says no” was their reply.

Still I argued. Eventually they called upon head office: VWFS. They found my service plan. The garage had mistyped my registration number when I bought the car with two services…

This is quite a different scenario,
there are accounts of people whom have had services carried out under pre paid plans that are finding that when they come to book services with the dealer, the dealer says “VW have cancelled your plan ”.

I decided to checked my two service plan, after reading some threads on here with others having service plans cancelled.
on checking with my dealer, via email, (after checking the specific wording of my contact being crystal clear regarding expiry: “on completion of the second of two services”. No problem I thought ?

I was promptly informed via email by the dealer that the service plan “had been cancelled “ & that I would have to pay for future servicing at full dealer rates. (My first service had already been carried out, so my second service had been lost as the policy had been cancelled)

the dealer did not know why or how VW had cancelled the policy
There was no previous contact from VWFS whom administer the scheme.

for context and so there is understand the issue with the two year gap:
my van did not need a service, within two years of the last service, simply because warranty work had been provided that equated to a service (Crank case seals replaced ). the dealer confirmed accordingly & reset the service indicator. The dealer specifically advised me to wait until the service indicator told me to have a my subsequent pre paid service Carried out!
after reading horror stories of others issues,
I contacted my Dealer to check, who then advised “VW have cancelled your policy & you have to contact them directly as we are not able to do so on your behalf“

very long story, VWFS made me jump through hoops to confirm the details of my original plan, date of purchase f the Plan, original agrrement details including contract number, vehicle vin, reg, who I was etc.

VWFS have now agreed to “honour”“ the final service of the two service plan because of the “issues I had with warranty work“ not because I Legally have a right to what I paid for !

after a load of hassle for me, the dealer will be able to Manually bill VWFS when I have the service carried out !

Buyer be ware, there is no “Honour” in the way VWFS are acting by cancelling policies that clearly, from there own T&Cs, they have no legal right to do so.

Edit: Why do VW offer long service intervals of Two years if they are going to cancel policies after two years ! The on board systems are set to flag a service AFTER two years have elapsed? (A fact VW seems to have glossed over)

 

[SFO]

any one else had a service plan cancelled by VWFS?

 

[Perfectos]

any one else had a service plan cancelled by VWFS?

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[66tim99]

Yes it is confusing. I’d always thought that the spanner symbol was a major service and the oilcan symbol was an oil change service. According to Cliff the oilcan symbol is a service and the spanner symbol is just an inspection? Doesn’t seem logical but when he went into his system this morning it did show that mine was due a major service not just an oil change !?

Oh well, it’s booked in early December and they’re also going to look at my SatNav issue.

View attachment 101821

View attachment 101822

How did this pan out GG?
I seem to remember you got your van about a year before me, and I’m now concerned about the same thing. I have one service left on my plan, and my van alerted me to the need for an oil service when I drove it. There was no alert from WeConnect, but when I check I see an oil service is due in 12 days

And a major service (spanner) in 377 days.

I have one service left on my service plan. I had hoped of course to use it on a major service, but that isn’t due for a year, and the oil service is due now.
VW tell me the ‘oil service’ is more than just oil - all sorts of checks, a/c cleaning etc - and will cost me £276 if I want to pay for it.
I wonder what a major service will cost next year, and given services in the service plan can be cancelled by VW (this thread), I wonder whether to just use the service plan to pay for the oil service.
I saw your oil and major services were aligned, so wonder if you got both done at the same time and used one service plan service for them both?
Thanks

 

[GrumpyGranddad]

Sorry it’s still as clear as mud to me.

Mine came with one minor and one major service. First to be done was the minor service (oil change) at about 8000 miles (from memory). The second was the major service, done last year. When I asked about the WeConnect numbers I was told to rely on the service indicator in the van (which is the same). I do get a message from Citygate when a service/MOT/other is due. They obviously have visibility of my van. Recently they messaged me to advise that Brake Fluid was due to be changed at 22,000 miles (not covered by a service plan).

As far as your situation is concerned, surely your first service would have been the ‘minor’ oil change service, so your next should be a ‘major’ service? If they are saying that the first two services on your van are both oil change services then does that contradict what your service plan states? If so I would ask for a major service and clarify what it includes. (I’ll dig out my service documentation when get a chance to try and see what the difference is). Others on here probably know.

I’ve subscribed to another service plan - 1 minor, 1 major, 2 MOTs. Expecting the next service to be a minor one?

 

[Perfectos]

How did this pan out GG?
I seem to remember you got your van about a year before me, and I’m now concerned about the same thing. I have one service left on my plan, and my van alerted me to the need for an oil service when I drove it. There was no alert from WeConnect, but when I check I see an oil service is due in 12 days
View attachment 115958
And a major service (spanner) in 377 days.
View attachment 115959
I have one service left on my service plan. I had hoped of course to use it on a major service, but that isn’t due for a year, and the oil service is due now.
VW tell me the ‘oil service’ is more than just oil - all sorts of checks, a/c cleaning etc - and will cost me £276 if I want to pay for it.
I wonder what a major service will cost next year, and given services in the service plan can be cancelled by VW (this thread), I wonder whether to just use the service plan to pay for the oil service.
I saw your oil and major services were aligned, so wonder if you got both done at the same time and used one service plan service for them both?
Thanks

Tim I presume you had two services on a pre paid plan ?

you say you have one service left, was the first service an oil service or major ?