DETROIT – When you buy a new car, there are usually a lot of fees you have to pay. Included in that fee is a destination fee, which is the charge for delivering the car from the factory to the dealership.
Those fees are skyrocketing. Some people have reported the fees reaching close to $2,000. Often you don’t see the fee in the numbers until after the sale is finished.
Mike Monticello with Consumer Reports said he is frustrated. He said Stellantis in particular has had destination charges go up.
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“When assessing vehicle pricing, we do not look at any single element of the pricing equation. But rather, at the entire equation, which includes the MSRP, options, destination/transportation, etc...” Stellantis said in a statement.
Guidehouse Insights Auto Analyst Sam Abuelsamid agrees with the Consumer Reports concern.
“Having that mandatory fee added on either the fact that can be several percent of the price of the vehicle and in many cases I think that’s unfair,” Abuelsamid said.
There is no requirement that a destination fee be included in advertising. Sometimes it is. General Motors included it in the price for the new Chevy Bolt.
The best answer is to go in looking at that cost before you negotiate a deal because it’s going to be there.
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