The 2-year-old battery in my Vauxhall Astra 2.2 Coupe failed to start the car during the recent spate of cold weather. After recharging it, it again failed a few days later and so I charged it up again and took the car to a local branch of Tyre Sales for the battery to be replaced. I pointed out that the old battery had only lasted two years and asked if they could check that the car was charging correctly. They said that it was charging fine.

After travelling 65 miles up the M6 that same evening, the lights went dim, the power steering stopped working and the AA diagnosed a faulty alternator and then towed me back to Bromsgrove. The Tyre Sales branch is refusing to consider even a partial refund of the £85.50 they charged me for the new battery, even though it seems clear to me that the alternator fault was already there and that they should have picked it up.