Can I buy car insurance myself when purchasing a car at a 4S store?
2 Answers
New car owners can directly purchase insurance from insurance companies. However, when buying a car at a 4S store, the store will aggressively promote insurance, even coercively urging owners to buy insurance there. The reasons why 4S stores try so hard to sell car insurance or even force owners to purchase it are as follows: 1. For every car insurance policy sold for the "resident" insurance company, the 4S store receives a certain commission. 2. The "resident" insurance company also provides other benefits to the 4S store—for example, during damage assessment, the "resident" insurance company may relax requirements. For parts that could either be replaced or repaired, the "resident" insurance company may opt for "replacement" in the assessment, allowing the 4S store to earn more. 3. The profit from selling new cars at 4S stores is not substantial; the main profit comes from car maintenance and repairs. Owners who need car repairs are more likely to return to the same 4S store where they purchased the insurance.
When I first bought my new car, the 4S store salesperson kept telling me how convenient and safe it was to buy their insurance. But actually, you can purchase insurance on your own, which is exactly what I did. Initially, I was nervous, worried there might be some trouble, but after checking online, I found out there’s no mandatory requirement at all. The 4S store pushes their insurance mainly to earn commissions. I searched for quotes from insurance companies online myself and found options that were two to three hundred cheaper than theirs. The process is simple: contact an insurance company for a quote before picking up the car, choose a plan and buy the policy, then show the salesperson the electronic version on the day of pickup, and you’re done. Looking back now, doing it myself saved money and hassle, and I even learned a lot about car knowledge. My advice is not to be intimidated by the salesperson—you have the right to choose.
