Experts: Hyundai deal has no big consumer traps

Raleigh News and Observer

By now you’re bound to have seen or heard the Hyundai ad that promises to take back your car if you lose your job within a year of buying it.

And if you’re as cynical as most people, you probably thought: What’s in the fine print?

Well, nothing too onerous, it turns out.

Philip Reed, the senior consumer advice editor for edmunds.com, an automotive research firm, says that he’s heard of no hidden traps.

“It’s a pretty remarkable program,” Reed says. “It strikes at the very insecurity that many car buyers have: Can I step into a long-term commitment knowing that I could lose my job or that the economy could get worse and I couldn’t make the payments?”

It’s great to think that if the worst happens, your credit won’t be ruined, but Reed points out that the company is not being completely altruistic.

The aim of the offer, after all, is to boost sales or at least brand awareness.

So far, that seems to be working. Hyundai’s sales last month were up 14 percent over a year earlier, a bright spot in an otherwise dismal market.

Mike Hammer, sales manager of Southern States Hyundai in Raleigh, N.C., credits the Assurance program, as it’s called, with increasing the public’s awareness of the brand but thinks it’s the cars’ value and Consumer Reports rankings that help make the sale.

He says sales were up in November, December and January.

Reed says he’s surprised that other automakers aren’t offering similar programs, though he points out that there are plenty of other deals out there.

Here’s what Hyundai says about the program on its Web site:

“If you find that you cannot make your payment because of a covered life changing event, we’ll allow you to return your vehicle and walk away from your loan obligation — and in most cases we will cover most, if not all, of the difference.”

For more details about the Assurance program, visit http://www.hyundaiusa.com/financing/HyundaiAssurance/HyundaiAssurance.aspx.