How to check if your car is still under warranty

By Lawrence Minnie 

Checking if your car is still under warranty is not as difficult as you imagine. The first thing you will need to know is what cover your car’s warranty actually provides, both in terms of timespan and distance. As an example, a common manufacturer’s warranty is the 5 year / 100 000 km plan, which basically means that your car will be covered by the warranty for 5 years or 100 000 kilometers, whichever comes first.

Once you know the terms of your car’s warranty, you can check the kilometers to see if it is still within the distance range, and also what year model you have, to see if it falls inside the allowed age.

If your car is covered according to your investigation, the best and easiest way to verify the warranty’s validity is to approach your manufacturer’s local dealer with the vehicle’s VIN (Vehicle Identification Number). They will be able to check on their system and let you know.

Vehicle warranties aren’t always that comprehensive, so it is generally a good idea to read the fine print for any exclusions in the warranty terms, and then to make suitable arrangements for those eventualities. Such arrangements could include maintenance plan extensions if applicable, or in the case of older vehicles, mechanical breakdown insurance.