California Close, Morecambe, LA3 3FU
Battery Warranty
Battery Warranty Information
The total lifetime of your battery will differ based on numerous factors, these include length of use, temperature and application. The most common causes of premature battery failure are incorrect application, and insufficient charge.
All Honda genuine batteries carry a standard limited three-year warranty from date of delivery against defects in workmanship and/or materials unless stated otherwise.
However, batteries can fail for reasons not covered by warranty. Some of these are as follows:
What Voids the Warranty:
• Abuse, misuse, improper installation, improper maintenance and modifications including removal of the battery lid.
• Incorrect use of the battery.
• Physical damage, including broken or melted terminals.
• General wear and tear.
• Unserviceable as a result of improper charging.
• Failure due to overcharging, deep cycling, sulphation and undercharging are not covered.
• Voltage less than 10.5v (battery fully discharged).
Abuse, misuse & improper installation
The warranty does not cover batteries that have been improperly used, handled or installed. Incorrect maintenance includes the removal of the battery lid, this is especially relevant to AGM and GEL batteries, as this will cause them to fail. Once sealed AGM and GEL batteries should never be opened, and never require any replenishment of fluid.
Incorrect Application
Incorrect application is one of the leading causes of premature failure. Fitting a smaller or less powerful battery, or the incorrect type of battery to your vehicle will result in a shortened lifespan and premature failure. Fitting the incorrect battery type for a specific application will also cause a shortened lifespan and premature failure. This is not a manufacturing fault.
If you provide your reg/vin number at the point of order it will be checked for you to make sure your battery is correct.
Physical Damage
The warranty does not cover any physical damage that occurs to the battery case or terminals due to improper fitment, from being dropped, or if any connectors are hammered on to the terminals. Connectors that are not properly fastened, may cause the battery to fail rapidly.
Also, an improper terminal connection can cause electrical arcing between the terminal and the connector, causing the lead portion of the terminal to melt. It is also extremely important that the battery terminals are never shorted, as this will cause the terminals and the conducting object to get very hot, rapidly.
This intense heat can then act as a source of ignition for any flammable items near the battery, as well as any of the gases that are naturally emitted from the battery. This is not a manufacturing fault.
If in the unlikely event your battery is damaged when it arrives with you, please let us know within 24 hours of receiving your delivery.
General wear and tear
When a battery is charged and discharged, material from the battery plates (active mass) is in motion, through the electromechanical reaction that produces electricity. Every time a battery goes through a charge-discharge cycle, a small amount of this active mass is lost from the plates. Due to so many factors impacting on the life of a battery, it is impossible to stipulate a minimum or maximum life expectancy.
Every battery has a limit to the number of cycles that it can go through before it loses its active mass, and with it, its capacity. Vehicles with high usage, such as buses, taxis and trucks, will often put a battery through this finite number of cycles over a much shorter amount of time, causing a battery to show the above symptoms after only a couple of years. This is not a manufacturing fault.
When a battery is subject to a deep discharge, and/or a rapid rate of recharge, the above process is accelerated. The loss of active mass, and therefore capacity due to over/excessive cycling is not a manufacturing fault.
Improper Charging
A battery charged at an excessive voltage or current can cause it to overheat and the electrolytes contained will start to evaporate. Overcharging will cause the active mass in the plates of the battery to rapidly breakup, and battery performance will be permanently affected, as will the cyclic life of the battery. This is normally quite obvious to spot when examining the battery. During charging, there may be a pungent smell of rotting eggs. When off charge, the battery will have low levels of acid, and there may be a black coating on the filler caps (It is not possible to check the levels on maintenance free batteries). This is not a manufacturing fault.
When a battery voltage drops below a certain level, a chemical reaction known as sulphation takes place. In most cases this voltage is at or below 12.06v. Sulphation is normally irreversible, and can permanently impair performance of the battery, causing reduced performance and premature failure. Sulphation can be seen as a fine white/grey coating on the plates.
This damage can be caused if a battery is stored for long periods without charging, or installed in applications that are not frequently used, i.e. tractors, boats and motorbikes. Vehicles are prone to discharging batteries as there is always a permanent drain from vehicle clock, alarms etc. Over time, sulphation will build up on the plates, and hinder the performance of the battery. As sulphation is easily avoided by simply keeping your battery charged, this is a non-manufacturing fault.
Voltage less than 10.5v
It is worth noting that under normal operating conditions a battery cannot become discharged on its own (unless left for a long period of self-discharge). A battery is considered to be 100% discharged when showing a resting voltage of 10.5v, and is 100% charged when showing a voltage of 12.73v +.
The reason for this discharge is normally caused by one of the following:
- malfunctioning alternator, regulator, or starter motor
- slipping fan belt
- electrical fault
- excessive use of electrical items such as heated seats, air conditioning etc
- long standing time without recharge
- boot light/glove box malfunction
- vehicle lights being left on
A battery showing a resting voltage of less than 10.5v will have become discharged through one of the above points, this is not a manufacturing fault.
PLEASE NOTE: You will be required to provide a proof of purchase (invoice) for a claim to be initiated, if you do not have this information, we cannot proceed with a claim. All warranties are non-transferable.
Warranty Procedure
Unpacking
In the unlikely event that you experience an issue with a battery purchased from Cox Motor Parts, please make sure you have first checked the following:
- Recharged the battery using a correctly calibrated battery charger.
- Checked that the cause of the problem is not external to the battery.
- Read our advice on battery care and maintenance.
Once the battery has been fully charged (12.73 volts for a standard lead acid battery or 13.0 volts for an AGM battery) this may well solve the issue. Please note that a battery discharged below 10.5v may not accept a charge from a number of standard battery chargers – This is not a fault with the battery itself. If after fully charging the battery, the battery still appears to not be performing correctly please contact us regarding your issue and we will see what we can do to help. After you have contacted us, there are two options to test your battery to help us determine the cause for battery failure and if the battery is covered under the manufacturer’s warranty.
1. Battery test by Cox Motor Parts
The most effective way to claim under warranty is to return the battery to us for reliable, professional testing. You can either return the battery to us via tracked delivery or arrange for us to collect the item from you.
Should you wish to take advantage of our collection option, we ask that you pay a £20 refundable deposit (more on this below). Once paid, we will book a slot with our courier to collect from you on a business day of your choosing.
Once back, our returns team will get to work on charging and testing your battery and will advise you of the outcome in the shortest possible time frame.
Once tested:
If the battery is covered under warranty, we will issue you with a brand-new replacement and within 5 working days will refund the £20 deposit in full. No other refund, credit or exchange will be accepted within the warranty framework. The £20 covers the cost of a parcel collection only. Please contact us to discuss the deposit for palletised goods.
If the battery is not faulty, or does not have a fault covered by the warranty, we will use the deposit paid to cover the collection and return cost, and will return the battery back to you. We will always notify you of this, and will arrange a suitable time and date to return the item.
Please note that Cox Motor Parts offers a free test solution and therefore will not refund external test report costs.
2. External Testing
Should you wish to have your battery tested locally you are free to do so, however, it can only be tested at a certified Honda Dealership. We cannot accept tests done by any other 3rd party as it is not included in Honda’s claims procedure.
The cost of any testing done by a dealership would have to be covered by yourself, however we have a collection method available for only £20 (refundable if found to be faulty) which you can purchase here:
https://www.coxmotorparts.co.uk/special-order-parts/battery-collection-service/
