Used car dealers get a bad rap, and it’s certainly not helped by those taking advantage of buyers in the most need.
On Sunday’s Last Week Tonight, host John Oliver tackles the “Buy Here, Pay Here” auto dealers that have been the source of several investigations and crackdowns over the last few years. The practice has been known to prey on subprime buyers who take exorbitantly high interest rates as the way to finance a car, and who are likely to default on the loans, creating a cycle of collections and debt.
Oliver’s investigation profiles those who ended up paying $13,000 for a car valued at $3,000, or a mother whose car was repossessed with her baby inside. It follows a Los Angeles Times series that followed the story of a Kia Optima that was constantly purchased at a shady lot, repossessed and sold again – which Oliver also tracked down three years later and found it still in the cycle.
“Buy Here, Pay Here” lots are a black mark in the auto sales industry and while legislation in various states has been trying to stop the predatory auto lending, the business itself has persisted and created new ways to survive, much like the payday loans industry Oliver profiled two years ago.
You’ll never look at those annoying local TV commercials for used car lots the same way again after watching the clip below.