Buyer’s Remorse — How It Affects Car Buyers

We’ve all experienced it. We buy something and almost immediately regret having done it — sometimes for good reasons, sometimes for no reason at all. It’s called buyer’s remorse.

If your purchase was for a pair of shoes at Walmart, no problem. Simply return them and get your money back. However it’s much different if buying a car.

It’s not unusual for a car buyer to feel some, if not considerable, remorse because it is typically the second-largest financial decision that most people make, after buying a home. Furthermore, since return policies and money-back guarantees are practically non-existent in automobile sales, there’s even more reason to suffer from the pangs of remorse.

Generally, questions that come to mind after a car purchase might be some of the following:

• Did I pay too much?
• Did I get cheated?
• Is this the car I really wanted?
• Did I let the sales person talk me into this?
• Is it a good car?
• Is this the car that will be best for my needs?
• Am I really going to like the color and style?
• Am I really going to be able to afford the car and all its associated costs?
• Did I compromise too much on cost when I really wanted more features or a better car?
• Did I make a too-quick emotional decision and not think through it enough?
• Will my friends and family like the car, and think I made a good decision?
• Will it be reliable and not break down on me at the worst times?
• Is the mileage too high (used car)?

Buyer’s remorse can often be for no good reason, especially for those buyers who spent sufficient time doing their homework, looking at and comparing different cars, test driving, and researching prices. It’s easy enough to question if enough time, enough research, or enough shopping was sufficient to make a wise decision. In most cases, these types of buyers will have made the right decision and their unfounded buyer’s remorse will soon go away.

Other types of buyers who make quick, uninformed, and emotional car buying decisions can have plenty of reason to feel buyer’s remorse. They, indeed, may not have spent the time and effort required for a wise purchase.  This is common among younger and less experienced buyers. Unfortunately, the results often verify whatever remorseful feelings the buyer may have.  The car is often not the right car, not affordable, not reliable, and not the right price.

When such cases occur of buyer’s remorse being justified, there’s little or nothing that can be done. Unless a dealer or seller provides a written option to return a car, the deal is done once the contract has been signed. Attempting to “trade” or “swap” the car typically only makes the problem worse, unless you are lucky enough to have a kind-hearted honest dealer willing to bend over backwards to help you.

Clearly, the way to minimize or avoid buyer’s remorse is to simply spend time before a purchase (or lease) to get answers to any questions or concerns you might otherwise have after the purchase.