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Using Cazoo to buy a car

Passion, instruction, buying, care, maintenance and more, any form of vehicle discussion is welcome here
zico
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Using Cazoo to buy a car

#421179

Postby zico » June 21st, 2021, 4:08 pm

After several poor experiences of driving to Lexus dealerships, I've decided to buy my next car from Cazoo. Starting this thread both to let people know how it goes, and also to get any advice/suggestions on dealing with Cazoo.

I'm buying a 2-year old Lexus RC Coupe from Cazoo. As I understand it, this reverses the process of buying a car from a dealer.
With Cazoo, you pay for the car first, then they ship it to your house, give you a 30-45 minute explanation of using the vehicle, and you then have 7 days to return the car if you don't like it get a full refund (subject to you driving it less than 250 miles).

Advantages - extended trial period for the car, 7-day insurance provided, not having to deal with sales people, and no negotiation (fixed prices). They point out flaws with the car under "imperfections" on their website.

Disadvantages - to start your trial driving period you have to tax the car for 6 months (or risk a fine if you're caught!).
If you refuse the car and order another from Cazoo, there's a £100 pick-up charge if you don't like the second car either.
90 day warranty which is shorter than a normal dealer warranty.
Reviews say they aren't noticeably cheaper than dealer prices. Sounds like (as in most internet providers) if things go wrong/complicated, customer service isn't great.

airbus330
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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#421201

Postby airbus330 » June 21st, 2021, 4:51 pm

Cazoo and Cinch see themselves as market disruptors. They are serious about it and there is a lot of money being invested. My feeling is that they need to build a substantial reputation to persuade people to buy the 2nd. most expensive personal asset (for most) sight unseen. Having been in the trade I'm very skeptical of it, but it is possible that while they are avoiding reputational damage, they might be being very picky about the cars they sell. TBH if you are buying a 2yr old Lexus, you'd be very unlucky to get a lemon. If you have one nearby, Motorpoint are a halfway house, at least you see the car you buy, they only sell vehicles with some manufacturer warranty left, the price is fixed and usually realistic. I'm researching replacement cars for myself just now, prices are very high and decent stock is low.

zico
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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#421246

Postby zico » June 21st, 2021, 6:57 pm

The bad news is starting from Cazoo. I'm supposed to get my car on Wednesday, but I've been notified that my car has "missed it's (sic) slot to pass it's (sic) quality check " so its next chance is on Wednesday, following which they'll see about scheduling a delivery. So likely at least another week of delay.
(From what I've seen, the car is being sourced from somewhere in London, maybe I should just go there and negotiate with a dealer??)

Looking at Cazoo reviews, they fall into 2 groups
Group 1 - No problems at all.
Group 2 - Lots of problems.

It's not looking great.

AF62
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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#421290

Postby AF62 » June 21st, 2021, 10:07 pm

zico wrote:They point out flaws with the car under "imperfections" on their website.


When I was looking for a car earlier this year I looked at some on Cazoo and was quite impressed with this aspect - full details and photos. Obviously it only covered cosmetic issues, although the cars I was looking at had some manufacturer warranty left that covered the mechanical, but it was far better than the normal dealers who glossed over any issues.

Carzoo were also explicit with details on servicing (when, mileage, where) rather than just the 'FSH' from many.

As for buying and then getting a cooling off period, that isn't unique to Carzoo. The traditional dealer I ended up buying a car from did the same - don't like it then you could return it within 14 days for a full refund and if you had done more than 250 miles there was a mileage charge deduction. But that was during a Covid lockdown.

zico
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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#421405

Postby zico » June 22nd, 2021, 2:46 pm

Cazoo say that every car on their website has been thoroughly checked and inspected for faults.
However, I'm now being told my car is being delayed because it hasn't yet had its "final" check.
This strongly implies they sell the car first, take the money, and only then check the condition. This seems like sharp practice, and possibly borderline illegal.

zico
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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#421411

Postby zico » June 22nd, 2021, 3:13 pm

ReallyVeryFoolish wrote:
zico wrote:Cazoo say that every car on their website has been thoroughly checked and inspected for faults.
However, I'm now being told my car is being delayed because it hasn't yet had its "final" check.
This strongly implies they sell the car first, take the money, and only then check the condition. This seems like sharp practice, and possibly borderline illegal.

Sounds to me like they are just fronting dealer used stock.

RVF


They clearly are doing that, but I assumed they'd want to keep a good reputation, so
a) wouldn't sell very dodgy cars
b) would check the cars thoroughly before they offered them for sale.

The cynic in me thinks that it may be a marketing ploy - they get your money, then check the car. If it's really dodgy, they tell you so, and they've still got your money so ask you to pick another car. If it's just a bit dodgy, they deliver it saying "oh, there's a few extra faults we found" and then hope that you just say "oh, thank god, finally a car, yeah I'll take it anyway". If you cancel at any point, well, they've had your money for a couple of weeks, so no loss to them.

AF62
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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#421436

Postby AF62 » June 22nd, 2021, 5:47 pm

zico wrote:Cazoo say that every car on their website has been thoroughly checked and inspected for faults.
However, I'm now being told my car is being delayed because it hasn't yet had its "final" check.
This strongly implies they sell the car first, take the money, and only then check the condition. This seems like sharp practice, and possibly borderline illegal.


Carzoo clearly check the car before putting it on sale as there is a condition report and detailed photos of any issues - which is far more detailed then almost any other car dealer who suckers you in to visit them on a vague description, only then to find out you wasted your time as the car is a bag of nails.

It seems good practice by Carzoo that they inspect the car again before sending it out on an expensive delivery to a potentially disappointed customer if the car has picked up any new damage whilst in storage awaiting sale.

zico
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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#421441

Postby zico » June 22nd, 2021, 6:42 pm

AF62 wrote:
Carzoo clearly check the car before putting it on sale as there is a condition report and detailed photos of any issues - which is far more detailed then almost any other car dealer who suckers you in to visit them on a vague description, only then to find out you wasted your time as the car is a bag of nails.

It seems good practice by Carzoo that they inspect the car again before sending it out on an expensive delivery to a potentially disappointed customer if the car has picked up any new damage whilst in storage awaiting sale.


Hope you're right. They may be currently overwhelmed with demand, as I'm sure I saw 72-hours quoted for car delivery, yet once I'd paid, my delivery date was 6 days away, and the "final check date" that was missed was 4 days after my purchase date.

zico
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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#424726

Postby zico » July 4th, 2021, 5:18 pm

Short update
Monday - Lexus RC Coupe delivered.
Tuesday - Back to Cazoo/Lexus for fixing. Decided to return car.
Friday - Money back in my account.

Longer update.
Monday. Car delivered on schedule. Appearance was exactly as described, delivery guy spent 1 hour trying to pair devices to audio via Bluetooth. Mrs. Zico solved the problem by spotting that Lexus entertainment system required our devices to enter a code (which is different to other car makers' systems where it's just the car system that does the setup).

Tuesday. Couldn't get Sat-Nav voice control to work. Made appointment with Cazoo Leeds for 2pm. Car had to be taken into Lexus to be fixed, and we were given a courtesy car with Cazoo all across the side. We were also told there was a safety recall on the Lexus. Because neither of these had been picked up by Cazoo's 300-point check, decided to cancel. Were offered £150 compensation from our purchase (or next purchase).

Wednesday. Returned keys and other stuff to Cazoo centre at Leeds. Pretty straightforward.
Email confirmation of cancellation. Was told up to 10 working days before money back in our account, but usually much faster.

Friday.
Money back in our bank account - pretty fast and impressive.

Would I use them again? Perhaps. A good way to get an extended test drive of a car you're not sure about. Obvious drawback is if Cazoo goes bust in the week or so between getting your money and you receiving the car, but it's a very big presence (with TV advertising) so maybe that's a very minimal risk.
Online/phone contacts were irritating at times - lots of "we want you to be super-happy" followed by "not company policy to do what you've asked".
Face to face contact at Cazoo Leeds were much better - we dropped on a really helpful guy.
I now have a feeling the Cazoo cars may be not quite up to dealer quality - because of the business model, people may think "oh, bit disappointing, but it's been delivered now, so I'll just put up with it".
If you're wondering about whether a car may suit you, this could be a good way to trial it. (Apparently some dealers also have 7 or 14 day trials).

zico
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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#424738

Postby zico » July 4th, 2021, 5:44 pm

ReallyVeryFoolish wrote:Thanks for the feedback. It's indeed most annoying when the script tells the script reader that they want you to be super happy. But they aren't actually empowered to ensure that happy result eventuates. Quite pathetic really.
RVF

Yes. To give one example, when my "final" inspection had been delayed 2 days, I phoned them to ask them to book a delivery slot assuming my car would pass its checks. They said they didn't want to risk disappointing me by possibly having to change the deliver date again, if the car failed its checks. I said I'd prefer to book an earlier delivery date, and was happy to risk it being changed. They basically replied "company policy, we don't do that".

It was often difficult to get in touch with them. I used their online chat function a couple of times, but often got the message "we've logged your request, we'll get back to you".



ReallyVeryFoolish wrote:PS - edited to add a thought. Are the cars ex hire fleet or corporate fleet cars?
RVF


I asked this about my car, and was told it wasn't. They did say it had been purchased at auction - which was another red flag for me as the car only had 11,000 miles and was 2 years old, which just added to the list of dodginess for me, which is why I returned the car. A car dealer since has said this isn't necessarily a bad sign, because the used car market is so strong, and a lot of dealers send cars to auctions, rather than having the hassle of giving guarantees.

Other car dealers have said Cazoo use ex hire or corporate cars - but then, they would say that, wouldn't they????

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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#424739

Postby AF62 » July 4th, 2021, 5:47 pm

zico wrote:Because neither of these had been picked up by Cazoo's 300-point check, decided to cancel.


Would you have fought for a refund at a traditional dealer if these two issues had cropped up after you had collected the car? Or would you have taken the easier route of letting the dealer fix them.

zico wrote:I now have a feeling the Cazoo cars may be not quite up to dealer quality - because of the business model, people may think "oh, bit disappointing, but it's been delivered now, so I'll just put up with it".


If that is their business model, which I don't believe it is, then they are in for a shock as customers will take the easy opportunity to just send the car back, whether it is a significant issue, a trivial issue, or just that 'the colour isn't the same as the photos'.

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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#424742

Postby AF62 » July 4th, 2021, 5:52 pm

zico wrote:They did say it had been purchased at auction - which was another red flag for me as the car only had 11,000 miles and was 2 years old, which just added to the list of dodginess for me, which is why I returned the car.


? It will just have been an ex-contract lease car which someone had on a two year contract for 5k per year. Those all go into auctions to be picked up by dealers for forecourt stock.

zico wrote:A car dealer since has said this isn't necessarily a bad sign, because the used car market is so strong, and a lot of dealers send cars to auctions, rather than having the hassle of giving guarantees.


Exactly.

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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#424792

Postby zico » July 4th, 2021, 8:42 pm

AF62 wrote:
zico wrote:Because neither of these had been picked up by Cazoo's 300-point check, decided to cancel.


Would you have fought for a refund at a traditional dealer if these two issues had cropped up after you had collected the car? Or would you have taken the easier route of letting the dealer fix them.

zico wrote:I now have a feeling the Cazoo cars may be not quite up to dealer quality - because of the business model, people may think "oh, bit disappointing, but it's been delivered now, so I'll just put up with it".


If that is their business model, which I don't believe it is, then they are in for a shock as customers will take the easy opportunity to just send the car back, whether it is a significant issue, a trivial issue, or just that 'the colour isn't the same as the photos'.


If I'd bought from a traditional dealer, I wouldn't expect there was a possibility of cancelling for a complete refund - this is where Cazoo is different.

I think you underestimate the power of "now" when buying cars. If someone has paid for their car, but is a bit disappointed when it arrives, if they return it, they need to first wait for the refund to come through, then pick another car, then hope that one isn't disappointing in some way. So very likely they'll accept what they've been delivered unless the flaws are pretty serious.

Cazoo has been very useful for me because in about 4 hours of sitting in the driving position in a Lexus RC Coupe, I couldn't get properly comfortable in the driving seat. It looks great, but comfort is king for me.

On your point in your other post about auctions, I'm clearly way out of date on this. Last time I bought a car (back in 2007!) it was general wisdom that auctions were for dodgy cars. Any car that could stand up to a proper inspection and have a guarantee would be sold by a dealer.

Just in case anyone's interested, I've abandoned the idea of a Lexus RC Coupe (because the seats weren't as comfortable as a standard Lexus) so I'll almost certainly be buying a 2018 Lexus IS Executive edition with 45k miles and 1 previous owner.

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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#424811

Postby AF62 » July 4th, 2021, 10:20 pm

zico wrote:If I'd bought from a traditional dealer, I wouldn't expect there was a possibility of cancelling for a complete refund - this is where Cazoo is different.


And that is the problem Cazoo has; people 'trying on' a car exactly the same as a mail order dress or pair of shoes. Some get kept but lots are returned.

That isn't a problem most* traditional dealers have, and with the delivery, Cazoo has some expensive additional costs.

*Most, because some traditional dealers like the one I recently bought a car from offer a 'no quible' 14 day return for any reason. The difference being that I had to go to the dealer to collect it and would have had to drive it back to return it if I didn't want to keep it, so the cost to the dealer if I didn't keep it would have been minimal.

zico wrote:I think you underestimate the power of "now" when buying cars. If someone has paid for their car, but is a bit disappointed when it arrives, if they return it, they need to first wait for the refund to come through, then pick another car, then hope that one isn't disappointing in some way. So very likely they'll accept what they've been delivered unless the flaws are pretty serious.


I don't think I am. The power of 'now' is the power to order something and if you like it then keep it and if not then send it back and choose again. Buy and return is the new hobby for many.

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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#424906

Postby DrFfybes » July 5th, 2021, 10:29 am

AF62 wrote:
zico wrote:I think you underestimate the power of "now" when buying cars. If someone has paid for their car, but is a bit disappointed when it arrives, if they return it, they need to first wait for the refund to come through, then pick another car, then hope that one isn't disappointing in some way. So very likely they'll accept what they've been delivered unless the flaws are pretty serious.


I don't think I am. The power of 'now' is the power to order something and if you like it then keep it and if not then send it back and choose again. Buy and return is the new hobby for many.



This is true, but it is different with a car to a handbag.

People are tending to order 5 variations of an item with the intention to return the 4 they don't like. This is a real headache for online retailers as at any one time they really don't know how much stock they will have the following day.

Few people have the spare cash required to serially 'try on' vehicles, changing insurance, VED, being without a vehicle between changes or running a second car.

I wonder how many actually do get returned?

Paul

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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#424965

Postby quelquod » July 5th, 2021, 2:06 pm

“ Appearance was exactly as described, delivery guy spent 1 hour trying to pair devices to audio via Bluetooth. Mrs. Zico solved the problem by spotting that Lexus entertainment system required our devices to enter a code (which is different to other car makers' systems where it's just the car system that does the setup).”

That’s not at all unusual in my experience whether on a car system or elsewhere, just a bit of security that you permit the connection.

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Re: Using Cazoo to buy a car

#424985

Postby AF62 » July 5th, 2021, 3:25 pm

DrFfybes wrote:
AF62 wrote:
zico wrote:I think you underestimate the power of "now" when buying cars. If someone has paid for their car, but is a bit disappointed when it arrives, if they return it, they need to first wait for the refund to come through, then pick another car, then hope that one isn't disappointing in some way. So very likely they'll accept what they've been delivered unless the flaws are pretty serious.


I don't think I am. The power of 'now' is the power to order something and if you like it then keep it and if not then send it back and choose again. Buy and return is the new hobby for many.



This is true, but it is different with a car to a handbag.

People are tending to order 5 variations of an item with the intention to return the 4 they don't like. This is a real headache for online retailers as at any one time they really don't know how much stock they will have the following day.

Few people have the spare cash required to serially 'try on' vehicles, changing insurance, VED, being without a vehicle between changes or running a second car.

I wonder how many actually do get returned?

Paul


How many - well that is the $64,000 question that will answer whether Cazoo has a future or not.

Personally I think their issue will be is that people will be far less 'invested' in a car ordered over the internet which they have never seen, never driven, and haven't had to suffer haggling over with a used car salesman for an hour or so.

Thus when it turns up and isn't perfect in every way, then it gets returned the same as the handbag.

Yes people might not be able to afford to order several cars at one go, but insurance isn't an issue as Cazoo insure them during the 'no quibble' return period, and a months VED isn't going to break the bank.


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