I said downpayment which was sub 10L. But I've seen people buying with full payment too.
The fact that you "negotiated" is the problem. I've clearly said in my OP, there is no scope for negotiation of something that is not valid. Why are you even sitting down for negotiation? Take a stand and reject firmly.
The simplest way to deal with this is to ask them to give in writing that they want to charge extra for using credit card for the payment and hint them the escalation to Bank/RBI, that'll end the conversation. They cannot give it in writing and if they do it (then the ground staff doesn't know it) and you can actually escalate it with RBI/Bank and see the magic! -- Even before going to RBI, just escalate to senior management and if they made a mistake of giving in writing (highly unlikely) then you'll have an upper hand for a lot of things.
Lack of awareness and not being able to take a stand is why most people give into all these kinda exploitations. People get scared to escalate and let go even after getting looted and that has resulted into this becoming an SOP across India as if it's all legally allowed and I've observed even the ground staff don't know the legality of this, they just convey what accounts team tell them and think it's their company's standard policy...lol. My recent purchase, the SA was like this is common across India and all dealers in the city charge too, etc. lmao as if it holds any ground, if N number of dealers are doing it, doesn't mean it becomes legal.
Have them give it in writing to YOU stating they cannot accept payment via your credit card and why. Generally the first level of ground staff are puppets of seniors and just give a standard generic reply. Man up, escalate to their senior as high as you can go. Get things in writing via email or on their official paper as to why they do not want to accept and if they want to accept, they'll charge extra for accepting the payment via credit card. In most cases, this in itself will settle things if you take a stand and demand it in writing.
Generally people accept whatever BS the other party says as if that is true and assume that's the standard policy. This is unfortunately due to lack of awareness and confidence. Escalate this as high as you can and explain how this is illegal, many within the org are also noobs and just following instructions from higher up. There would be one of those folks within the org that take a step back seeing how you are aware about things and the consequences of letting you further escalate, that's when they'll make an exception for you.
If they continue, then escalate to the bank/RBI. But have things in writing for this to work.
Indeed. No worries.
I've been trying to spread this awareness every opportunity I get...haha.
It'll take time but people who are aware will save that extra 1.5-2% + get reward points effectively making the whole purchase at a better price than others. If this was in fact legal, then dealers wouldn't have objections to put this in writing.
💡 I would like to add this tip since we're on the topic, never disclose about payment via CC upfront.
Negotiate on the pricing, accessories, etc. etc. when the time comes for booking amount to be paid is when you reveal your mode of payment not until then. You kill your scope for further negotiation by revealing it beforehand.
And always take 2-3 quotes from different dealers and negotiate with everyone. Whoever offers best pricing and you feel satisfied from all angles is when you proceed, remember, it's business, don't hesitate and don't fall for their sales tactics of how pleasant they communicated with you or get into the guilt trap of any kind. It's your hard earned money, they will all want to loot the max meanwhile it's you who should try to save the max! Let all the dealers compete among each other to have you as the customer.
Also, if you're getting any vehicle from the stock, check which month it was manufactured and accordingly take into account the depreciation on its value, the more months its at the stockyard, the more value it goes down regardless of how much the vehicle is in demand (obviously also do your own PDI just in case). All luxury cars get hefty discounts just because of this. It becomes a loss for the dealer to keep it in their stockyard for any longer, it's in their interest to clear it sooner and it's your opportunity for a good deal. Happy motoring and saving 😉
