Part-Exchanging Your Car? Here’s How To Avoid Getting Ripped Off

When you buy a new car, it’s worth looking into part-exchanging the old one.

You can get a bit of money off a new purchase if you trade the old one in, and that makes it a lot easier to manage the cost.

If you are looking for a way to avoid the debt of car finance, part-exchanging is a great option.

However, a lot of car dealerships will try to rip you off and give you a low price when you part-exchange, so you don’t actually save any money.

The good news is, if you know their tricks, you can avoid getting ripped off. Here are a few tips to make sure that you get the best price when part-exchanging. 

How To Avoid Getting Ripped Off Part-Exchanging Your Car

Know The Value Of Your Car

The first step is to get a good idea of the car’s trade-in value. You can find how much it’s worth by looking on the internet at the different car buying companies and seeing what they would offer you for your old vehicle.

You can also use the appraisal tool on the edmunds website to get a clear idea of the value.

That way, if you do get lowballed when part-exchanging, you know that they’re trying to rip you off. 

Get A Price For Your New Car Before Asking About Part-Exchanging

If you tell them that you have a car to part-exchange right away, the salesman will usually push up the price of the new car you are looking at.

That way, when they offer the money for the part-exchange, they’re not really giving you a discount, even though it seems like they are.

So, make sure that you find a car that you like and negotiate a price for it before you mention anything about part-exchanging. That way, you’ll know if they suddenly decide to go back on it. 

Shop Around For Better Deals

There are so many car buying companies, especially online. It takes seconds to find them and they all have different prices, so there’s no reason not to go around until you get the best price.

They want your business, so don’t be afraid to shop around. If you can get a lot of different offers for part-exchanging, you can go back and forth between them and try to negotiate a better deal.

But if you just go for the first offer you get, you’re probably selling yourself short. 

Consider Selling Privately

In some cases, it might be better to sell the car yourself instead of part-exchanging.

This is especially true if you get a good offer for it. There are lots of companies out there that buy cars for cash, so try to find the best one and see what they would pay for your car.

You can then use that money towards buying your new car without having to trade in your old one. Weigh up both options and see which is more financially viable. 


So many people get ripped off when part-exchanging their cars, but you don’t have to if you follow these steps. 

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