Buying a used car requires extra care

While auto lemon laws are there to protect buyers of new cars, buyers of used cars are pretty much on their own. Here are some things you should know in order to protect yourself when you purchase a used automobile or truck.

More below.

Used cars have no lemon law protection in most states

The process of buying a car is a cumbersome one; it will probably never be as easy as buying a television set. The pricing is vague, the financing is complicated, and you can’t take it back for a refund if you aren’t happy with your purchase. With very few exceptions, once you’ve bought it, you own it.

Due to a number of problems with consumers purchasing defective new cars, every state now has a lemon law to protect them from recurrent problems that occur within a set time frame. Unfortunately, that generally doesn’t apply to used cars. With a used car, you have to be much more careful about what you buy because you have fewer protections available to you under the law.

Here are a few things you might wish to know about purchasing a used car:

• There is no right to cancel - Chief among misconceptions and myths about buying cars is the belief that you have three days under the law to cancel any contract. Unfortunately, that simply isn’t true. Once you buy a car, either a new one or a used one, it’s yours. And with that come any problems that may have been included with the car. If you drive it only one day and the transmission falls out on the highway, that problem now belongs to you. There are exceptions; most states require some sort of warranty for the sale of used cars by dealers. But if you make a private purchase, you have no recourse.

• Have a mechanic look at it ahead of time. Once it falls apart, having a mechanic look at it and tell you that the thing is a piece of junk that wasn’t worth 2¢ won’t do you any good. Before you buy a used car, arrange to take it to a mechanic of your choosing and have them give it a complete looking over to see if there is anything major that might be wrong with it. This is your best bet if you want to avoid buying a car that will be a habitual problem. Once you buy it, it’s too late.
• Read the contract - If you are buying from a dealer, make sure that you read the bill of sale and/or contract carefully. There are numerous scams often used by car dealers to take advantage of buyers. This isn’t to suggest that all car dealers, or even most car dealers, are dishonest. But you are legally responsible for anything to which you sign your name. Read the contract and understand it. If you don’t understand it, find someone, preferably a lawyer, who understands it.
• Make financing arrangements, if necessary, somewhere other than the dealership. You will generally get better financing deals online or at a bank than you will at a used car dealership. There are exceptions, but it makes plenty of sense to check it out ahead of time.

Buying a used car requires a bit more diligence than buying a new one. If you take your time, do your research and make sure that the car is mechanically sound, you can get a much better deal on a used car than on a new one. Just make sure that you don’t get stuck with a lemon.

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