A Student Kicked A Field Goal To Win A Car, The Dealership Tried To Weasel Out Of It
A Student Kicked A Field Goal To Win A Car, The Dealership Tried To Weasel Out Of It
The dealership eventually gave in, but it put up a big fight over a fraction of a second delay.
cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/19704884
A Purdue University student thought he kicked his way to a two-year car lease for making three field goals in a contest held during the Boilermakers’ season opener in West Lafayette. However, the dealership sponsoring the giveaway later reneged on the deal because of a technical. The final kick – a 40-yarder – left his foot just a split second too late on August 31. Car dealerships really cannot help but be bastards, can they?
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It was a two year lease; they weren't giving it away. The whole point of these giveaways is to attract good attention toward the dealership. Not following through just does the opposite.
Businesses that make these offers usually buy an insurance policy against someone winning. If it's a $10,000 prize, but extremely difficult (like a hole in one challenge), the insurance might be like $1,000. The business pays win or lose, so they're hoping someone wins because it's great publicity. It's much more fun when the person awarding the prize is happy and celebrating with the winner, so in that sense it's a good idea.
The insurance company, however, will have very specific language and will try to avoid paying even if it makes the business look bad.
I don't know the specifics in this case, but I worked for a generator company that sponsored a long-putt challenge at a golf fundraiser. Someone won a free generator, and the insurance company tried everything to weasel out of paying. We ended up giving them the generator anyway, because the publicity would have been horrid, and it took like 18 months to get the insurance company to pay up.
Either way, it was stupid of the dealership to try to weasel out of the prize. A lease is like $350 a month times 24 months is $8,400. The kick happened at a football field named after the owner of the dealership after he donated $15 million to the university.
Just so you know how this stuff works... Dealers don't pay for this out of pocket. They pay for "prize insurance" in case someone wins and the insurance pays out.
In this case, what looks like happened is the insurance company reviewed the footage and went "Nope, not paying." Which then fell back on the dealership to make good.
Source: Was a judge on a "hit a hole in one, win a Cadillac!" at a golf tournament. Someone did, in fact, hit a hole in one on my hole and won the car.
It wasn't even he won a car, either. It was a two-year lease. Also
To get out of some of the responsibility for this PR fuck up, the group attributed the issue to an insurance company...In a post on LinkedIn, Trey Rohrman said Spangler missed winning the Kicks for Cash contest by 0.07 seconds...
Dealerships, insurance companies, they ask really are dirty.
As always, car dealerships are a ✨ plague ✨
I don't even understand why they still exist. What value do they even add? Having to compare prices across several dealerships, then try to get them to beat each other's prices, is a massive pain.
I was test driving a Polestar 3 a while back. They have stores where you can look at their cars, test drive them, and ask questions, but all purchasing is done online. No sales pressure at all in their store.
I hate them, but if you treat it like a game and operate within their rules it can be fun instead of a pain. I think if it a lot like poker. I sure would bluff my own grandma to win a pot. Same thing in car buying. They aren't your friends but your adversaries.
I have bought 7-8 cars of my own over the years and helped 4 friends buy cars because they know I love doing it.
First, if at all feasible bring several thousand dollars cash, no matter what your goal is. When you buy a car without cash the sales people get their cut at the end of the month in a lot of places but if your cash down payment is large they will usually get their cut immediately and this puts them a little more on your side at the close. Make sure you show them the cash when you're safely doing a test ride and tell them you want to give it to them! Don't do this if you can't do it while feeling safe i'm very large and do car shopping mostly in big safe city areas.
Second, don't ever fall in love with a car. You always have to be prepared to walk away from a bad deal. And in fact you will find that your willingness to walk away can often get you a better deal. I balked once over a $300 dealer fee, that only popped up while signing paperwork. They bitched at me, a lot, (we had been at the deal for about five hours) but they got the fee worked off.
Third, do not ever let them get you into the 'four square' that's a suckers game. Negotiate the price of the vehicle directly or go to another dealership that will. I have been forced to leave when the sales guy told me flat out the four square was a requirement at their dealership. Smart for them but lame for you it's like playing a complicated game for the first time against someone who plays it many times a day and is hugely financially incentivized to confuse you with it. Refuse it.
If you are buying a new car (which i don't really recommend) wait until they have given you the absolute rock bottom lowest price. Then tell them that you think there's still a little room. On speakerphone call other dealerships in your area and tell them the price you're getting offered on that exact make and model. If it's actually a good price they will tell you they can't beat it. I have been invited across town to save $1,000, whereupon the now angry sales manager agreed to match that price. You gotta do it on the speakerphone with them hearing the better offer though or you'll have to drive to the other dealership. They have heard that 'it's $1000 cheaper over on the eastside' before.
Don't be rude, don't be an intentional dick, but play their sleezy game with their rules and you can save a lot of money.
It's a shitty system that should be abolished.
It's doubly messed up when considering the dealership [Rohrman] paid a bunch of money to the recent stadium renovation so they could have their name on the field [Rohrman]
Is that image nightmare fuel for anyone else?
Of course they did