Update - Halfords lifetime Warranty car battery.

[chris y]

I was planning to but a funny thing happened.

They are quite expensive but a lifetime warranty seemed attractive for a car where I plan to keep the car long term. I imagine they would be attractive to a few RR members.
For one of my Carltons I bought the best battery I could get a fair few years ago but now its dead, I don't think they like being unused in winter.

When I spotted Halfords lifetime warranty battery I thought that was the answer as long as the terms and conditions were OK, thats where the problem started.

I asked in store, they said said as long as its fitted to the car it was bought for its all good. I asked "do I have to pay Halfords for fitting?", the sales assistant said not.

For my car their system said it should have a 010 battery, however I've always used 096 batteries on these cars (slightly more capacity and max CCA), as it happens the ECP website says 096 too, I wondered whether they would get out othe warranty if I didnt fit the model their system said.


Not wanting to get caught out I scoured the website, I found nothing about terms and conditions.
Next I enquired in writing via the website, so I would get a written response to keep with the receipt. I asked about whether I needed to pay for fitting, whether I had to use the model they say for a given car, and asked for a copy of the terms and conditions.

That was Friday, I quickly received this message by e-mail


Hi there,



Thanks for your message!



Hold tight, we’re on the case and we’ll be back in touch ASAP. etc etc.


Anyway, I've heard no more which is a shame as I planned to buy it on Saturday, more oddly though, instead of replying on Saturday (customer services are open Sat and Sun), they have taken the lifetime warranty batteries off the website and not replied in any way!

I've been thinking about buying one for months, I don't think its coincidence that I asked then they took them off the website hours after I asked, I reckon they noticed a gap in the T&Cs and decided to change it. Lets see what happens.

In the meantime, has anyone got one and how are you getting on, did you pay for fitting and do you know the T&C's?

[igor]

I should think it all comes down to how they define lifetime.

[stealthstylz]

It's a long time since I worked there but at that time there was no terms & conditions apart from the battery must be fitted to the same vehicle. The warranty swapped over with owner changes etc.

However the warranty only covered if the battery was faulty I.e. it leaked or had a internal short. If it was just flat from lack of use and wouldn't recharge that wasn't covered.

[ChasR]

Ultimately I think you were seeing the woods for the trees with their Ts & Cs.

The bottom line for any battery warranty is that they will replace it if:

-It's fitted to a car/you have a receipt
-The battery itself is defective; They used a capacitance tester to determine this.

They will not replace it with one of the following:
-Battery has been run excessively low and permanently sulphated
-You've damaged the battery; arguably the above.

So it's what @steathstylz said.

However, it all comes down to who you deal with in the store. I've had a couple of people give me a new battery no questions asked

[chris y]

Thanks for the replies fellas.

An insider opinion is most useful Stealthstylz.

By fitted to the same car, does that mean I just tell them the reg if I buy it and they log that or do they have to fit it?


How would they know if the fault was caused by running excessively low?


Last night I replied to the first message and asked about a reply as I wanted to buy a battery, at this point no reply to the original questions or to the request for a reply, its been 3 days now.
It should be very easy to write a couple of sentences to just answer my quite simple questions.

The batteries are still missing from the website too.

[ChasR]

Mar 19, 2018 19:19:26 GMT chris y said:

Thanks for the replies fellas.

An insider opinion is most useful Stealthstylz.

By fitted to the same car, does that mean I just tell them the reg if I buy it and they log that or do they have to fit it?


How would they know if the fault was caused by running excessively low?


Last night I replied to the first message and asked about a reply as I wanted to buy a battery, at this point no reply to the original questions or to the request for a reply, its been 3 days now.
It should be very easy to write a couple of sentences to just answer my quite simple questions.

The batteries are still missing from the website too.

They use a capacitance tester to determine how flattened it is, with the following guidelines:

www.yuasa.co.uk/battery-testing-warranty-administration/

The process in which they determine the above is found here:

www.yuasa.co.uk/info/technical/battery-testing

When I said the same car I meant if they record the reg by some means. When I was at Halfords, most didn't.

I'd sometimes be refused a new battery due to my battery coming back as 'Replacement Advised' or 'Replace Battery' on their tester, but again, it was a case of who followed Yuasa's advice to the letter. As said, I did also get new batteries from another store/person despite doing this.

Without trying to muddy this too much, some batteries don't recover from being flattened or never being fully recharged (i.e, stay permanently sulphated) when compared to others. One example is the Bosch S5 battery. I've had 2 go within the warranty period as per the above "Replace Battery" guidelines, and friends have seen them die too if the car is not driven loads and/or the battery is maintained on a smart battery charger.

[chris y]

Thanks for that ChasR, very educational, I'm glad I asked now for the education.

Still no reply from Halfords, although the batteries have re-appeared on the website.

[swampy76]

Mar 20, 2018 23:17:44 GMT chris y said:

Thanks for that ChasR, very educational, I'm glad I asked now for the education.

Still no reply from Halfords, although the batteries have re-appeared on the website.

wouldnt hold your breath on a reply !
It took then three months to sort out an issue with my trade card

[chris y]

I've been away with work and just got back to find a reply from Halfords, they sent it on the 26th.
This is it.

Dear Chris,

Thanks for getting in touch and please accept our apologies for the delay in getting back to you.

In regards to the guarantee, this is correct that it is only valid for the vehicle that it has been fitted to. This does not necessarily mean that a Halfords colleague needs to fit this in store, however we would recommend checking the compatibility of the battery with the vehicle you wish to fit this to, to ensure that it does not fail earlier than expected.

We would always advise fitting the battery that has been recommended by our vehicle lookup system, if you decide to fit a battery that is not listed, this would invalidate the warranty as our systems do not recommend this.

The only other terms of the guarantee, would be that a proof of purchase is presented at any time the battery has failed and you wish to obtain a replacement, this is of course to ensure that the battery has been purchased from Halfords and to confirm the warranty of it.

I hope this helps but if I can be of any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me via email or on 0345 504 5353.

Kind regards,
Andrea Botha
Customer Support Team Supervisor - Product & Services


I'm very pleased that I asked, I would have been fitting the 096 battery that I've always used on these cars and any warranty claim could have instantly been dismissed due to me fitting what their system says is the incorrect battery.

I'll be buying the recommended battery, and after the good advice above I'll be looking after it by keeping it properly charged and hopefully will never need another battery for the car.

[chris y]

Well, I bought the battery today, all should be well.

However, bearing in mind that not looking after the battery and not allowing it to be excessively discharged are important, and it sounds like a warranty claim would be rejected if I haven't looked after the battery and allowed it to spend time discharged....

I looked at the charge indicator when I got home (too late I know) and it say that charging is required (black indicator).
Next I looked on the label, it shows a "Recharge Due" date, which is marked as 10 2016.

I have to speculate then that the battery has probably been on the shelf for a couple of years and hasnt been maintained, there is no evidence that the charging required 18 months ago or any others have been done, and the fact that its flat suggest that it hasnt been maintained.
A quick check with a digital multimeter shows 11.7v, which is very flat, 12.2v is supposed to be 50% discharged I believe and less that 12 is discharged. It should be 12.6v if charged.

I know I'm making a fuss about this but its an expensive thing and I don't need to have a warranty claim that may be declined, and I want a reliable car.

I'm going to contact customer services and see what they say.

[chris y]

OK, I called customer services, I'd prefer to email for the written record but after taking 10 days to reply last time its not worth it.

The lady went away and checked, said that the battery was manufactured 1 year before the recharge date (so October 2015), very interesting.

If you are buying a battery without lifetime warranty its something to look out for, today I purchased a battery that was already 2 1/2 years old.

She said that she would get the store to give me a new battery and charge it first. I said that I wouldnt accept an equally old battery because even though they will charge it I suspect they havent been maintained properly, which could invalidate the warranty.
Obviously if a warranty claim shows that its failed due to being left deeply discharged it could be denied and me arguing that it wasnt me wont get me very far.

She checked and the store don't have a battery in stock so are going to get one it, hopefully that means it will be more recently made.

I'll report back when I get the replacement.

[wotnot]

As an aside, I read on another forum that Bosch starts their warranty from the date of manufacturer rather than the date of retail, which seems a bit tight.
That said, I bought a Bosch silver top (S5?) with a five or six year warranty in 2008 and its still very strong, even after one year sitting dormant in a cold garage. I think that renewing the voltage regulator in the alternator extended its life. Used it to jump a 4.0 jeep a lot too, I'm impressed with Bosch

[chris y]

I would have chosen Bosch first, all other things being equal, but I couldnt ignore the lifetime warranty when I plan to keep the car long term. If I sell it and I understand correctly the guarantee follows the battery to new owners as long as its fitted to the car so not a bad bonus if I sell.

[wotnot]

Totally, its a good deal. Hope you get one from a fresh batch

[chris y]

The Halfords store called, the lady said that someone would go to another store and bring a battery to the store I want tomorrow Morning.

I explained that a battery from another store might also be old and explained that I don't want one that is older than its recharge by date because I'm not confident that they are being maintained properly and that cause them to fail which may look like neglect by me.

She said that she understood and would check then call me, and if its no good would get a new one from the manufacturer as Halfords have none in the warehouse.

Lets wait and see.

[chris y]

Progress today.

A helpful store assistant called, the other local battery was just as old so she called further afield and found another, that was completely dead! She decided that a new one from Yuasa was the answer.

There is no news on when a battery will be available but she contacted Yuasa who said they will supply one, just don't know when.

She offered a good short term fix - I took the battery back and had a refund and was sold a 5 year guarantee battery, which was £30 cheaper.
When my new battery arrives in store I take this one back and swap it, the new lifetime warranty battery will be discounted to match the price of the 5 year one so in the end I get the battery I wanted but for £30 less for the inconvenience.


I'll report back when I get it sorted, hopefully as described.

[Dorset_Clive]

Mar 20, 2018 7:59:07 GMT ChasR said:

Without trying to muddy this too much, some batteries don't recover from being flattened or never being fully recharged (i.e, stay permanently sulphated) when compared to others. One example is the Bosch S5 battery. I've had 2 go within the warranty period as per the above "Replace Battery" guidelines, and friends have seen them die too if the car is not driven loads and/or the battery is maintained on a smart battery charger.

This is a very timely thread...the battery on my wife's retro (1996 Clio) has apparently died (not holding a charge, showing fully charged after a night on the battery charger but not enough oommph to start the car)...anyway, the car wont be getting daily use (most likely, at best, occasional weekends), so any suggestions for the best sort of battery to get? Tempting fate, but SWMBO has declared that money is no object (within reason), so recommendations welcome!

[ChasR]

If it were me I'd get either a genuine battery depending on cost or an Exide. Even with recent Exides and a question mark over modern battery quality I've not have them fail as bad as the Bosch item. A few manufacturers like Jaguar Land Rover and BMW use them as OEM batteries or warranty replacement items.

What kind of driving does she do and does your car live on a driveway? Town work is always hard on batteries. Going back to my my batteries 101 thread it may be worth investigating in a decent smart charger. Lidl do one for about £15 at times if the CTEK isn't for you. The latter do have many accessories however to make charging easier, like Bluetooth battery monitors, easy connectors etc.

As an example of use my M3 is still on the factory battery. It may not last another winter (I suspect if I didn't charge it the battery wouldn't have done!) but it hasn't let me down yet, touchwood!

[chris y]

Update, and not great news.

I've been running around with the temporary Yuasa Silver battery for a few weeks as given to me temporarily by Halfords until they get a lifetime warranty one in.

The helpful lady at Washington Halfords called today, she said that there was no way she could get me the battery, it seems that they are such a problem for Halfords that they are suspending sales and probably going to discontinue them.
At the moment they don't exist on Halfords osdering system so even though she had talked to Yuasa, and they had a battery, Yuasa couldnt send one as Halfords have no way to order one.

She said that they sell almost none of the lifetime warranty batteries and it looked like they were going to stop doing them.

All she could offer me was a refund or to keep the battery I have but get half of my money back.

I chose to keep the battery and get the refund, its actually a cracking deal because its a £120 battery but as I recently managed to get a trade card, and then half the price I've paid £48 for it.
I'm happy with that, I really wanted a lifetime warranty battery, but if there is no such thing on the market a good branded battery with long warranty for £48 is great.

Halfords Washington have been great, but it looks like the Halfords lifetime warranty battery is a thing of the past.

[scimjim]

Yep, I went to buy one the other day and was told they were being discontinued.