Even Used Cars Bought by Seeing in Person Are Now 'Contactless'... 7 out of 10 Purchased Online

Certified Used Cars, Online Shop Adoption Boosts Online Purchase Share to 72.2%
Cost Savings from Online-Only Section Returned to Customers as Vehicle Price Discounts and Benefits

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[Asia Economy Reporter Ki Ha-young] Even used cars that were carefully inspected in person have become a trend for 'contactless' purchases. In particular, the online purchase ratio of certified used cars reached 7 out of 10.

Hyundai Capital revealed the results of an analysis of purchase data on the 15th to mark the 2nd anniversary of the opening of its certified used car service online shop. Hyundai Capital's certified used car program is a certification system for used cars selected under strict standards by a financial company. Only high-quality vehicles within 6 years or 120,000 km that are accident-free or have minor accident history are selected, thoroughly inspected, and improved to the highest quality. They are sold at fixed prices both online and offline. A 6-month or 10,000 km warranty is also provided. Maintenance and online/offline sales of certified used cars are handled by specialized used car distribution companies.

Hyundai Capital's certified used cars, which started online sales in April 2018, recorded an online purchase ratio of 72.2% in March this year. The online purchase ratio, which was only 1 out of 10 at the initial launch, increased about sevenfold in two years.

Especially, since the introduction of the online-exclusive section in December 2018, the online purchase ratio increased nearly fourfold. The online-exclusive section is a contactless platform that sells certain products only online for a limited period. For products in the online-exclusive section, costs for transferring vehicles from partner factories to offline shops nationwide and maintenance and management costs for vehicle display can be reduced. Hyundai Capital returns these savings to customers as benefits such as vehicle discounts and free delivery.

The increase in online purchases is attributed to the ability to check vehicle information anytime and anywhere without time and location restrictions and to easily place orders. According to a mobile survey conducted by Hyundai Capital targeting certified used car buyers, 'being able to check detailed vehicle information online' and 'a simple order and payment process' were cited as reasons for online purchases. Another reason was 'choosing online purchase because the location of the vehicle of interest and the buyer's living area differ.'

In fact, 65% of certified used car online buyers were long-distance buyers who purchased used cars regardless of their residential area. There were many nationwide orders due to the convenience of purchasing the same vehicle easily anywhere in the country and having the ordered vehicle delivered to the doorstep.

Unlike offline purchases, which were concentrated on specific days, online purchases were evenly distributed without day-of-the-week bias. In particular, looking at the purchase ratio by time, 34.5% of all buyers ordered used cars during non-business hours such as early morning and late night. This reflects the nature of online sales, which are available 24/7 nationwide, permeating the used car market.

Relatively higher-priced large vehicles were sold more. Large cars such as the Grandeur and G80 accounted for 29%, about one-third of total online sales. This is about twice the 14% sales ratio of small cars. Generally, high-priced products are often inspected and purchased offline in person. However, in the case of certified used cars, customers can carefully check the interior and exterior of vehicles without visiting stores through a 360-degree real view. The main vehicle history, detailed inspection, and quality improvement records are provided, and a 48-hour worry-free refund service is applied to alleviate customers' concerns about used cars.

Customer satisfaction was also high for used car services that removed time and location restrictions. According to a satisfaction survey conducted by Hyundai Capital targeting online buyers, the certified used car online shop received a score of 4.9 out of 5.

A Hyundai Capital official stated, "The trust in certified used cars and the convenience of online ordering are driving the increase in online used car transactions," adding, "We plan to enhance transparency and customer satisfaction in the used car market through continuous investment and digital technology development."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.