If you are starting to experience issues such as your lights are not as bright as they used to be or you have a battery and stop light illuminate on your vehicle or the car stalls or has difficulty starting then you may be a sign that your alternator is on its way out. If the vehicle has difficulty starting after the battery is fully charged, the problem likely is with the alternator. You may even have an alternator light on your vehicle which will illuminate when there is a problem.

There are some easy tests that can be done to test it the alternator is in fact charging the battery enough. If your alternator dies then your car will not be able to charge the battery enough for it to start or to keep running.

There are risks of fire etc with alternator problems so it is important to get it checked out as soon as you notice any issues.

The cost of replacing an alternator varies from garage to garage and from make and model of vehicle. On average you can expect to pay £250 plus to get the repair done at an independent garage.