F&I Management & Training

Consumer watchdog Which? Car is publishing a feature intent on exposing tricks of the trade and what it calls “salesman’s hype”.

Richard Headland, Which? Car editor said the article was created to help stop customers from being duped into a bad deal.

The latest report from Which? paints the trade in a negative light, further strengthening the lazy stereotype that the automotive industry is full of “wheeler dealers”.

Headland said: “Buying a car from a dealer is a bit like a game of cat and mouse. If you know their tricks, you’re far less likely to fall for them and get a good deal.”

Slogans from the Which? Car article:

• High balling - The salesman offers the customer an unrealistically high trade-in price so he can offer less discount on the car he’s selling
• Ankle tapping - A salesman offers less than market value for a trade-in, so he can offer an unrealistically low price for a new car
• Time of the month - At the beginning of month, the salesman tells the customer he needs the sale to make up last month's quota. In the middle of month, he says the sale is needed to hit a specific target. At the end of month he claims to have "almost hit target" and just needs this sale to do it
• Wooden duck - A customer who does not haggle or negotiate.