Advice
Should I pay for paint protection? Buying a new car
Paint Protection is one of several offers a dealer may try to tempt you with when completing a deal, but is it worth signing up for?
Words by: Andy Pringle
Last updated on 1 October 2018 | 0 min read
You may well be offered a paint protection service when you buy a new car. This is an extra coating that effectively seals the paintwork on the car, meaning that it won’t suffer from the light marks and fading that can damage untreated paintwork.
Dealers will be very keen to sell such treatments – indeed, there are numerous complaints online about salesmen being just that bit *too* keen – as they can earn them a tidy three-figure profit. However, are they worth having? Well, on the one hand, there’s no doubt that they do their job, and compared to the overall price of the car, they’re pretty cheap; but, on the other, you should remember that they only do a limited job. Yes, they’ll safeguard your paint against minor marks and fading, but there’s nothing they can do to stop the more major car park knocks and dents that are all too often part of modern motoring life. Another way to look at it is that you can probably either do a similar job yourself using off-the-shelf products – if you have the time and inclination, of course – or you could get an independent car detailer to do the job for you, and quite possibly for less than the dealer wants to charge. Alternatively, you could look at paint protection as something else to bargain over. Yes, it’s worth having, but probably not at the full price the dealer is trying to charge. They will have plenty of profit margin to eat into, so try and get them to do that. And, as with any step of the car-buying process, if they won’t play ball, just politely say ‘no.’
Dealers will be very keen to sell such treatments – indeed, there are numerous complaints online about salesmen being just that bit *too* keen – as they can earn them a tidy three-figure profit. However, are they worth having? Well, on the one hand, there’s no doubt that they do their job, and compared to the overall price of the car, they’re pretty cheap; but, on the other, you should remember that they only do a limited job. Yes, they’ll safeguard your paint against minor marks and fading, but there’s nothing they can do to stop the more major car park knocks and dents that are all too often part of modern motoring life. Another way to look at it is that you can probably either do a similar job yourself using off-the-shelf products – if you have the time and inclination, of course – or you could get an independent car detailer to do the job for you, and quite possibly for less than the dealer wants to charge. Alternatively, you could look at paint protection as something else to bargain over. Yes, it’s worth having, but probably not at the full price the dealer is trying to charge. They will have plenty of profit margin to eat into, so try and get them to do that. And, as with any step of the car-buying process, if they won’t play ball, just politely say ‘no.’