€99 fee just to have an S6 warranty issue checked — is this normal?
I’ve had my VanMoof S6 Open for only around 300 km and I’m already experiencing a couple of issues:
-Strange/unusual noises from the bike
-The right handlebar grip has become loose
I contacted a VanMoof service partner in Amsterdam to have the bike checked under warranty, and they want to charge me €99 upfront as an administration/diagnostic fee.
I contacted VanMoof directly and their response was that their service partners are independent shops and can set their own fees. They did acknowledge that €99 “does seem a bit high” and suggested I try another service partner.
This doesn’t make much sense to me. The S6 has a 3-year warranty, and this is a nearly new bike with only ~300 km on it. If I have to pay €99 every time I need a potential warranty defect diagnosed, that significantly changes what I thought I was getting when buying a new VanMoof.
I’ve gone back to VanMoof asking them to clarify whether customers are actually expected to pay administration/diagnostic fees to access warranty service.
Has anyone with an S5/S6 had a similar experience?
Did you have to pay a diagnostic or administration fee before a service partner would inspect a potential warranty issue? And if you’re in Amsterdam, which service partner did you use?
If €99 upfront is genuinely the standard arrangement for warranty claims, I’m seriously considering returning the bike rather than dealing with this every time something goes wrong.