Auto Dealer Fraud: Car Prep Fee

Car preparation fee is one of the common car dealership scams that is used by car dealers to make a quick profit from car buyers in the range of $500 – $2000. It all depends on how much a customer is willing to spend. A preparation fee is a fee that dealers may charge for getting a car ready for purchase or lease. Such0 scam consists of little more than washing the vehicle and filling it with gas. Sometimes the client can negotiate this fee out of a lease contract.

Cost is not only legal but very much common practice. It is becoming a scam because it is just another way for customer to end up paying more money for the car. Basically the auto dealer will tell you have to an additional $500 to cover the labor costs of the dealership’s 5-point inspection.

It should be noticed that this fee is, in fact, legal and the car dealer has the right to charge you for car preparation. This is probably the main reason why this is such a common practice.  This car fraud happens when a car dealer charges the customer for preparing the car before the car buyer can drive it away from the dealer’s lot. The car dealer will, most likely, inform you that you should pay an extra $500 to cover the labor costs of the dealership’s 5-point inspection.  But the truth is that all the car dealer will do is to remove plastic from the seats etc, vacuum the car out, and make sure that all of the fuses and fluids are ready to go.

Keep in mind, that though this is a legal fee, car buyers should know that this prep fee is already covered by the manufacturer.