Don’t Get Taken for a Ride by These 6 Scams for First-Time Car Buyers
First-time car buyers are often easy prey for unscrupulous sellers who use scams and other techniques to make as much money from a deal as possible. In some cases, sales reps can immediately spot a first-time buyer.
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As with most things, it takes experience to learn what to do when buying a car and what not to do. That includes being aware of when you are being taken for a ride on your new ride. Here are six common scams and other sales techniques that first-time car buyers should be aware of.
Misinformation
Some sellers don’t want you to know the ugly story behind a car’s history, particularly with used vehicles. For example, you might notice something odd during a test drive or see a red flag on the vehicle history report. When you ask about it, scammers will shrug it off and try to move your attention elsewhere.
Before signing a purchase contract you should research the car thoroughly or even have a trusted mechanic look at it, according to a blog from Auto City, a California-based car dealer.
High-Pressure Sales
This is a favorite trick of scammers – rushing you through the sales process and pressuring you to get started on the paperwork. If a salesperson tries to hurry you along faster than you want, stop and let them know you want more time to evaluate and research, or simply look at other cars. If they don’t ease up, it’s time to walk away and shop elsewhere.
Rushing Through the Paperwork
Similarly, scammers will try to hurry you through all the paperwork so you will sign the contract before you are ready. A blog from North Carolina-based auto dealer VannYork recommends reading all the paperwork carefully to ensure you understand and agree with every detail. While this can be a tedious process, it’s an essential one.
Not doing it could lead to years of buyer’s remorse. Make sure all your questions are answered before signing, from the warranty to the fees and interest rates.
Highlighting Monthly Payments Instead of Purchase Price
As Auto City noted, another red flag first-time car buyers should watch out for is when the sales rep only talks about how they can keep the monthly payment low. When they focus your attention on that instead of the price of the vehicle, you can “bet that they’re going to stick you with a financing deal spread out over many years,” said the Auto City blog.
Make sure the purchase price meets your budget first and then you can worry about the financing.
Offering a Deal That’s Too Good to be True
As with almost anything, if a deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Beware of cars priced well below the average market price for the same or similar models. Scammers will tell you they need to get the car off the lot to make room for more inventory. The more likely scenario is that they want to get the car off the lot because it’s a lemon. You can never go wrong assuming that car dealers don’t sell cars for less than their market value.
Hidden or Additional Fees
This is another favorite trick of scammers – offering you a “discounted” price on a car and sticking you with all kinds of fees at closing. These typically include hundreds or even thousands of dollars in processing, licensing, and title and registration fees.
Sellers aim to hide a car’s true cost during the sales stage and then only briefly mention the fees in passing if they mention them at all. Again, read the fine print carefully before signing the contract.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Don’t Get Taken for a Ride by These 6 Scams for First-Time Car Buyers
