Part/ex'd my Honda CRV against a diesel CRV on 28th June, (already been in discussion with the dealer) and I was stalling on cost to change price as I know there's a new one out at the end of the year, he just phoned up with a better deal (end of the month targets?) He took a £200 deposit on a credit card, delivery for sometime this week but obviously had to be registered for the end of the June. No problem, been there before. Wifey got a phone call from dealer today while I was at work, no car as yet but would like the balance tomorrow, first time I have been asked to pay before collecting the car. Any comments please, dealer will accept debit card, no paperwork has been signed yet but the registration document turned up this morning all in order.
Now I am happy with the deal, but am a bit worried if it is possible the dealer could go under before I get the car. Proper Honda dealer, fairly large chain of garages in the NE, but does the fact that the registration doc is pukka and the garage says the car is on the way from Honda cover me.
Any advice from more expert/cynical/legal backroomers would be appreciated
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well my middle name is cynical and he wouldnt get a dollar more till it was in front of me if he had accepted my deposit
terms cash flow come to mind but more importantly is the saying i say to my self almost dailly
"wHATS INNIT FOR ME?" answer that one and make your own mind up as its only hard earned cash at the end of the day
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On face value I do not think you would have a problem with a reputable Honda Dealer and clearly he has already registered the car in your name.
Having said that my personal approach would be to pay by debit card on the day (I did this with my Accord).
The fact that the machine authorises the transaction will assure him he is getting the money and you keep the cash until the car appears.
I am not a legal bod but the contract should work in your favour as much as his. I imagine he wants to clear funds because he promised his boss he's got another sale. The problem as I see it is that the pressure is off him to chase your car when the money is sat in their bank account.
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There's no way I'd pay, it's the typical trick of somewhere going under and taking your money with them.
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I don't pay a deposit when I go to the supermarket for a bit of shopping! I certainly wouldn't stump up £thousands up front for something that I can't see. There is notvalid reason for demanding this and I wouldn't give in. I admit I used to have to produce proof of 'cleared funds' ie I paid in advance but it was for factory collections from a Merc factory at Stuttgart and I didn't feel that it was too risky!
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Dont pay a penny. A fool is easily parter from their money. A car purchase is a simple goods for money transaction - if your not getting any goods, why give any money?
It may all go well, but on the other hand, the car may not turn up and they have your money - yes you could get it back, but still a hassle and you are removing their reason to work hard at getting the car ready for you.
Ive been in the trade for years and worked at a main dealer and ive never heard of such a thing - only back in the days of paying by cheque would you have paid before you picked up the car.
Tell them you want to inspect the car before handing over the money - its a reasonable thing to ask and they will then have to get the car ready before getting your money.
My sister was asked to sign of on the condition of her car without even seeing it when she took delivery - however I was there and told her to sign nothing until she had looked at the car - as it turned out, the car had numerous paintwork faults and scratches, so I told her to sign nothing and ask them to rectify the problems and call her when the car has been properly prepared for delivery.
Dealers try it on - dont get caught because they have a shiny showroom.
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Ditto above. Regardless of contracts and notwithstandings I wouldn't pay a pennny until I've seen the car.....
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As people say - don't pay up.
But.... If the deposit was paid by credit card then if the dealer goes bust and you had paid the remainder by cash or DD then the deal is still covered by the consumer credit act and you should get recompense from the credit card company.
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I too wouldn't pay up without the car there ready to be driven away.
The deposit is enough to get the deal rolling & then pay the balance on collection & sorting of the paperwork out.
All the cars ive bought over the years from dealers ive never paid more then a £200 deposit to them, The balance has always been paid when I went in to do the paperwork & drive the car away.
Same with my parents & buying cars, Deposit, balance on collection.
Smells dodgy to me.
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It's obviously a cash flow thing though, wonder if they have to pay up front to the importer.
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Question: if you pay for the car now, and the registration is processed before you collect it, would that affect the period of time you have available to reject the car should there be a fault with it?
Apart from that, I'd agree with the others who've said why should you bankroll the dealer.
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I think the reason he wants it fully paid for is so it's confirmed as a sale whereas with just a deposit it's merely on order. 30th June is end of the first half of the year and he probably neded to boost his figures before end of the period.
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With ANY car purchase (used or new) I would want to thoroughly inspect the car inside and out before paying the balance.
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It is a bit daunting but if it's a large mainstream dealer network, then I wouldn't worry about losing out on the deal, just the loss of interest on the money out of your bank. I did the same with my car, purchased as a nearly new from a large well known car supermarket (even more of a worry when it's not a new car). The car was as described, delivered as promised and all minor niggles sorted straight away.
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I agree with all the other comments and believe you would be making an error in paying up front.
What if the vehicle isnt quite the specification you ordered or something similar.
If you still have to pay them you are in the driving seat ! but the other way round and the onus and difficulties falls back on yourself to get things put right.
I should give it a good inspection all round before parting with your money.
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The dealer very likely has the car on consignment through Honda's finance company as a "stocking" loan.
Normally, as soon as the car is registered, a direct debit for the wholesale cost is raised and the car is then paid for in full by the dealer.
This can cause cash flow hiccoughs, particularly if there are large number of registrations in a short space of time.I remember one August 1st. (ages ago, of course) my wife made no less than four trips to our bank to pay in sale receipts.
The joys of runnning an underfunded business!!!
Roger. (Costa del Sol, España)
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Malteser is almost certainly right- they could have done a few of these deals and be about to be debited a 6 figure sum. I doubt there is anything more serious to it. Their problem, ,to sort out their working capital, unless they had agreed this condition with you at the time the contract was made.
They are unlikely to pull out if you politely decline - even though they could probably get the car de-registered. I would be surprised if they expected all their customers to cough up quietly.
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I agree. If the new car has a paint problem etc, you are in a much weaker position once you have paid.
Otherwise the garage is worried that you might walk away, and as its registered in your name, it will now become secondhand. You have the money and therefore the power.
Keep it simple. You give me nice car: I give you money!
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MW you've got it in 9 words, why waste more !?
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When I purchased new from a local 'premium brand' main dealer, they required a small deposit upfront, notified me of a firm 'collection' date about 2 weeks before the date and required a BACS transfer into their account for the balance the day before collection.
Is this normal practice?
They said they didn't take cheques\bankers drafts because of the potential for fraud\cancellations
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When I bought my Suzuki Van, I paid a £100 deposit and then when it was ready to collect, I made sure I had the cash in my bank and paid via my cashcard - cant get any simpler than that and it was the dealers prefered method.
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Exactty what happened, getting the car on Friday, paying on Friday after inspecting same, thanks for all the advice guys.
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