We live in an era where convenience is king. We want it, we push a button, we get it (not unlike buying a car from your couch). Businesses have all had to pivot to some sort of online commerce or face a grim future. The pandemic, of course, really put this to the test. Suddenly every store had curbside pickup options. More and more retailers had to put their efforts into deliveries. Whatever was an added convenience before seems to be a necessity now.
The only problem with this on-demand world we live in? Fees. Fees for everything. You’ll probably end up spending just a little extra for an in-store pickup (convenience fee), or a lot extra on food or grocery deliveries. While it may seem worth it at the time, and sometimes it is, these fees add up quite a bit as time goes on.
A while back, we wrote an article on how much you could save without a dealer doc fee. If you’re unfamiliar with what that is, it’s a fee that dealerships often charge to prep your paperwork. Not cool, right? These fees differ by state, and sometimes the fee isn’t too atrocious. On the low end, it will run you around $75. The high end, however, can run you hundreds more.
Now, you’ve already committed to spending your Saturday afternoon in a dealership, and you probably came in because you saw a good car listed for a good price.
In addition to documentation fees, dealerships can also charge you for the following (from Car and Driver):
- Title and registration (the vehicle needs to be legally registered to you before you drive it)
- Inspection (every car needs to meet certain safety standards)
- Destination Fee (the cost of getting the car from the manufacturer to the dealership)
- Advertising fee (they need to pay for their advertisements)
- Dealer prep (basically making sure car looks ready to drive off the lot)
- Another destination fee if the car you’re looking for is located at a different dealership
There are optional add-ons as well, such as fabric or paint protectant for your vehicle and window tint. Of course, the customer can proceed at their own discretion, but these are by no means things you have to pay for.
So before you know it, you’ve probably racked up an extra few thousand in fees.
Now since you’re here, you’re probably somewhat familiar with how Carvana does things a bit differently. Our goal is to remove the hassle factor from car buying as much as possible, which means saving you time and money. The only fees Carvana will charge you are 1) sales tax, which is inevitable and 2) a possible delivery fee if your car is coming from a different region (IE, you live in Texas but bought a car currently located in New York).
Should anything not go according to plan, Carvana has you covered. If the car arrives at the delivery hub with any unannotated damage or mechanical issues, we’ll pay to have it fixed. This means you can either wait until the car is repaired to accept delivery, or work with our After Sale Repair team if you need the car immediately.
Since all of our vehicles come with a 100-day or 4,189 mile warranty, you’re covered during this time period as well (if your purchase is still under manufacturer’s warranty, you’re covered for even longer). Carvana also offers CarvanaCare, which gives you different options for an extended warranty. It’s similar to a manufacturer’s warranty, and will cover all major aspects of the vehicle (engine, transmission, etc) but not regular maintenance. There are three tiers to choose from: Essential, Plus, and Premier.
One of our core values here is “Your next customer might be your mom.” If we don’t think mom would approve, we’re not going to do it.
