Ever encountered a salesperson who isn’t cheerfully trying to lure you into some of the best deals at their showroom? Most definitely not!
You always walk into a showroom to find an enthusiastic sales person tactically trying to divert your attention to many more brands and deals until you get caught up in fulfilling their sales target.
In this article, you will get a broad perspective on some of the used car dealer tricks that you should be wary of.
Trick #1 Selling upgrades with the used-car purchase
Even as an informed customer, it is quite normal to walk into a store to realize that your used car can undergo a few upgrades – for example, a tyre upgrade, fabric protection, etc.
However, in most cases, these upgrades are unnecessary and are expenses that can be easily avoided. While certain used-car dealers may pitch them as a necessity, these upgrades add up to large amounts for the customer and may only show up in the final bill payment.
Trick #2 Offering unrealistic deals
Advertising has become a common medium to lure customers. Many used car dealerships tend to advertise deals that seem great but once you read the fine print, the offer seems like a gimmick. Also, spreading falsehood about the delivery date of your used car, which is often unrealistically quick, would pose as a good example.
The trick is to get you to the showroom and pick a car, hopefully of your choice. Once the process is done, the waiting period may be an unpleasant one.
Additional Read: Quick Tips While Buying a Used Car
Trick #3 The last lot
One of the oldest selling tricks practiced by used car dealers is to arouse panic by saying that the product that you liked is the last of the lot. Creating a sense of loss and urging the consumer to make a quick purchase is the only motive behind the trick. In reality, there may not even be a dearth in the stock. Such tricks may urge you to make a hasty and undesirable pick by compromising on the colour or the model.
Trick #4 Misquoting future resale value
In a relatively long-term investment like a used car, resale value plays an important part and dealerships are well aware of it. Quoting a high resale value for a model, which may not eventually fetch a resale price close to the one the dealer mentioned, is another trick you should stay wary of. The only way out is to research the resale value of the pre-owned model thoroughly before making the purchase.
Trick #5 Terms and conditions apply
This is possibly the oldest trick in the book. Most used car dealerships quote prices that may seem fair or even low but when the time for payment comes, there would be a whole list of charges and processing fees added to your bill, blowing it up to almost twice the quoted price. When asked, the dealerships would simply point out the tiny, almost-invisible asterisk and then proceed to explain how these charges were always present and turn it back on you for not reading the fine print.
Trick #6 Payment over price
Not everyone buys used cars with full cash. Most people look for different pre-owned car finance options to afford their vehicle. Some dealerships exploit this by selling to you on your monthly payment commitment rather than the total price of the car. They may make it seem as though they are stretching their limits to fit in your EMI budget while in reality, you end up paying extra on the whole.
The only way to avoid this trap is to look into pre-owned car loans from different providers for the model you have in mind. Most pre-owned car loan providers would be able to give you a ballpark value for your chosen make and model. You could even use this value as a guideline while negotiating.
How to detect when you’re being tricked?
As an informed buyer, you can ensure that you don’t fall for such cheap tricks by doing your homework beforehand. In today’s world, all the information you will ever need to know on buying a pre-owned car is available on the Internet. Research thoroughly your car, the dealership, its charges, its services, etc. Consider all your pre-owned car finance options and zero in on your requisite pre-owned car loan provider and terms before walking into a dealership. The only way to beat these tricks is to arm yourself with information.
Additional Read: How to Calculate a Second-hand Car Price?
To sum up
Now that you are a well-informed buyer, it is time to sort your finances for the final purchase. Choose Tata Capital for used car loans.
We are one of India’s most reputed lending institutions offering second-hand vehicle finance at competitive used car loan interest rates. With us, you get to apply online and choose a comfortable repayment tenure.
We also extend relaxed used car loan eligibility criteria and ask for minimal paperwork to approve a loan.
So, quit the wait, apply for a used car loan with us and purchase your favourite pre-owned car right away!
15 March 2024
5 mins read
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