Perhaps the manufacturers should cover any costs of repair to their products to any dealer that sells their products.
Warranty is good only in shop where you buy the bike
- Thread starter ebikereu
- Start date
Perhaps they should, but the fact is they don't.
Even if they did the warranty work is pretty unprofitable & problematic. Almost inevitably the good dealer's workshop would be full of the rubbish dealer's warranty claims & they would be dealing with the headaches giving them little time to sell the bikes & leaving the rubbish dealers more time!
Do the more expensive Ebike manufacturers let rubbish dealers sell their high cost, high spec Ebikes ?
Well even more reason then, for them to cover the costs to a local dealer to fix any warranty problems.
Maybe, but the fact is they don't.
Also see what I've already said about it being unprofitable etc. etc.
Fundamentally the eBike market is not that mature, particularly in the UK so there are vast, vast differences in the experience of those selling. Possibly in 5 or 10 years when the market has matured it will be the same as we experience with cars. At present however it just isn't.
I think any dealer that sells a certain make of Ebike, should be prepared to fix problems on that model under warranty, irrespective of if it was bought at another dealer. The original selling dealer would have to do the same to Ebikes that weren't bought from them as well
It should be part of running a dealership that stocks and sells those models of Ebike.
It should be part of running a dealership that stocks and sells those models of Ebike.
I'm not a manufacturer but will take it upon myself to inform you the gist of what some of these have posted previously on this subject.
Basically it's the split in the market that is the problem. Discounters and online retailers sell the bikes cheaply while often not providing any backup and of course unable to give local service.
It follows that local outlets and others who do provide full service get lumbered with any warranty demands if the warranties are transferable. There are two reasons why that is unacceptable. First the disproportionate service workload that can result, second that warranties often don't include all costs, sometimes excluding labour and other incidental costs.
.
Not disagreeing with you however put yourself in the good dealer's position when everybody around buys their bikes from the pile em high & sell em cheap brigade then takes them to the good dealer to sort out any problems.
edit: flecc has posted whilst I was typing & made much the same point but more eloquently than me!
edit: flecc has posted whilst I was typing & made much the same point but more eloquently than me!
I think if any manufacturer was to ensure only reputable dealers sold their bikes and had a flexible warranty service that could be used in any, and was supported by training the staff, followed up by speedy repairs, then they could be onto a winner, it would be a great selling point, peace of mind!
My experience of the power of Mercedes certainly made me appreciate the brand I bought into, I guess having never had an eBike before and buying it from a car dealer you tend to think like a car buyer, going into Halfords or wherever, warranty and potential future problems are probably at the back of your mind, but as has been stated these are not cheap machines.
I am all ears and ready to buy another bike so will be watching this thread.
My experience of the power of Mercedes certainly made me appreciate the brand I bought into, I guess having never had an eBike before and buying it from a car dealer you tend to think like a car buyer, going into Halfords or wherever, warranty and potential future problems are probably at the back of your mind, but as has been stated these are not cheap machines.
I am all ears and ready to buy another bike so will be watching this thread.
It's the way the bike trade works in the UK, the manufacturers cover component costs, they don't generally cover reimbursng labour costs to the dealer. The dealer has to absorb them.
Right or wrong, it's the way it is.
It may be 'the way it is', but i wonder how many potential buyers are put off spending many thousands on a high end Ebike because of it.
I know i certainly am.
Complelety understand your position.
I also have a lot of sympathy for people who pay out thousands for an eBike & only discover once they have a problem how bad the follow up service from that particular dealer is. There have been a few cases of this reported on here over the years.
Not quite so much sympathy for those that buy cheap from abroad or a discounter then think they can land their problems on a good UK dealer's doormat though!
I notice Halfords are selling more Ebikes these days, some of them based on their Carrera bikes. If the Ebike scene grows i would predict that their range of Ebikes will grow, with possibly higher end ones based on their Boardman bikes.
I would assume one could take it into any Halfords for repair inside the warranty period. Almost everyone has a Halfords not far away.
I would assume one could take it into any Halfords for repair inside the warranty period. Almost everyone has a Halfords not far away.
Yeah thats pretty bad and they deservedly got a heavy fine for it, but you get good and bad dealers in most chains.
I took my car to my local Halfords for an MOT, cos it was half the price of everywhere else, everyone said dont do it, they will find loads of stuff to fail it on.
It passed without even an advisory.
Agreed. Like it has been said by others, independent bike shops do not get paid for the time it takes to do warranty work. I do not see that changing anytime soon. Think of it this way, when you by a bike from a dealer a small part of the profit is put aside to cover the warranty work if the need arose. If a bike from another dealer comes into the shop and the owner wants warranty work done, there has been no monies put into shop's pot to cover the work.
Just to use Haibike for example. Raleigh is the distributor for Haibike in the UK. Bikes bought from Raleigh and it's dealers are covered by the Raleigh warranty. Hiabikes purchased directly from Germany are not covered by this warranty. They are covered directly by the Haibike warranty. If someone bought a shipment of Haibikes from Germany cheap and flogged them on Ebay to unsuspecting UK customers would UK dealers be expected to do unpaid warranty work? I think not. Nobody that works for free stays in business. It is in no dealership's interest to repair other people's bikes under the current circumstances. If you want warranty work done, contact the party you bought it from, they are the ones that have your money.
Having said all that, if it is a minor warranty issue, a lot of shops will not see you put out. There are some shops that will do all the work for you regardless. Just do not expect every shop that sells your brand to be obliging.
What an utter mess the industry is in, I bet people don't realise this when they buy an eBike, there is talk of warnings about fitting dongles, well there should be clear warnings informing you of the lack of assistance from anyone except your seller. For people buying remotely whether it be abroad or not, they need to know the gamble they are taking, a small problem of a faulty motor on arrival could be catastrophic financially.
I am just so glad I am now in the Mercedes Smart family with the huge back up and network they have for their eBikes.
I am just so glad I am now in the Mercedes Smart family with the huge back up and network they have for their eBikes.
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