Soaring repair costs to hit 400,000 drivers

Thousands of motorists could be faced with crippling repair bills just to keep their cars running after their warranties expire.

Tesco Personal Finance has estimated that more 400,000 drivers will find their car warranty runs out this month, leaving them exposed to costly repair bills. Coupled with mounting petrol prices, increased car tax and the wider impact of the credit crunch, this could have a dramatic affect on drivers' pockets.

Everyday faults such as alternator and central door locking failures top the league of most common faults, and an estimated £45 million could be spent on everyday repair costs over the next year.

For thousands of drivers, Tesco Personal Finance could prove to be the answer to this expensive problem after introducing its affordable Car Warranty Plan. The plan is a simple and easy way to help ensure costs don't spiral out of control by covering a range of motoring faults and repairs not covered by motorists' insurance.

Leeds motorist Tim Downs was left with a bill for nearly £1,000 after his car suffered an engine sensor malfunction. Says Tim: "I bought a Honda because of their reputation for reliability, so when the warranty expired around six months ago, I didn't feel the need to renew as I was confident there wouldn't be any problems.

"Recently, there was a fault with the engine which resulted in me having to pay out a large amount of money in labour and repair costs. This could easily have been saved if only I'd taken out a warranty."

Allan Burns, head of insurance at Tesco Personal Finance, said: "September is always a busy month for motorists as many drivers buy a new car. However this also means that the warranty on some cars expires which can leave drivers potentially facing huge repair costs.

"We find that drivers don't tend to budget for these alongside their other motoring costs so they can certainly come as a surprise. Tesco Car Warranty is simple, affordable and can really help to prevent additional motor costs."

Three Tesco Car Warranty Plans are available, offering different levels of protection - Value, Standard and Finest. These cost from just £99 a year, and customers can pay in 10 monthly, interest fee instalments or a lump sum.

The plans can be taken out for almost any car up to 10 years old with less than 100,000 miles on the clock, even if it has been out of warranty for years, as long as it has been serviced in accordance with manufacturers' guidelines.

Protection starts from day one and, after that, there are no limits on the mileage a car can do or number of claims a driver can make. Customers can choose where to have cars repaired, including main dealers, and Tesco then settles the bills directly for them. The plans provide peace of mind during the current holiday season too, as they apply throughout the EU at no extra cost.

Tesco Car Warranty Plans are available online, via tesco.com/carwarranty