How much are car-buying fees?

By Ané Theron

Did you just sign an offer to purchase a car, but now you’re expected to pay even more? Hmm, those pesky car-buying fees. But before we get to the Rands and cents…

What are car-buying fees?

A rose, by any other name, would smell as…expensive. Car-buying fees, more commonly known as on-the-road fees (or dealership fees) are additional expenses which are slapped onto your final bill when you’ve bought a car. These hidden fees are a sneaky way of getting you to part with more of your hard-earned cash, by making you fork out for all sorts of little extras that shouldn’t be your responsibility to pay for – even the red ribbon around your new car and that congratulatory set of mugs!

A few months ago, a certain German automaker made headlines because of these hidden fees, which were added to the already-financed prices of cars sold through their dealerships. Unfortunately, this is the norm at most dealerships. The silver lining is that the National Credit Regulator has declared this to be illegal. In their own words: “An on-the-road fee is not among the list of extra charges that the National Credit Act allows credit providers to add to a credit agreement.”

Indeed, these ORT-fees should already have been included in the purchase price itself. So there you have it. Adding these fees to a car’s purchase agreement can land dealerships in very hot water.

Typical ORT-fees include: Pre-delivery inspection/safety check(s); Certificate of Roadworthiness; Initial and/or delivery fuel; HPI Clearance; Administration (licensing and registration; number plates); FSB fees; and valet costs. These can add up to a total of around R6000, making a hole in your pocket rather quickly. Of course, there are instances where you don’t have time to go and stand in the queue at the traffic department, for example. So by all means, if you prefer the licensing to be done through dealership, go ahead and pay them handsomely for the privilege.

We recommend that you read Martin Pretorius’s in-depth report (right here on AutoTrader) about on-the-road fees, for a more detailed look at what each of these entails.

What to do?

To prevent being fleeced by these so-called car-buying fees, ask the salesperson to show you the breakdown of any extra costs not included in the purchase price, and ask that they be scrapped, if unreasonable. If they aren’t willing to do so, there is surely some other dealership who would rather do the right thing, instead of losing the sale over a R3000 OTR-dispute.