Used cars are categorized into two categories, namely, certified pre-owned and non-certified pre-owned cars. The certified used cars are generally priced higher than non-certified cars and are more reliable as they are are subjected to comprehensive inspection before they to to market.
Following are important points that will help you understand and know more about certified pre-owned cars and non-certified pre-owned cars.
Certified pre-owned cars:
- Used cars that are inspected by expert technicians and given a certificate about the inspection details is called certified pre-owned cars.
- The inspection standards vary across agencies giving certification.
- To become eligible for a certified pre-owned program, the car has to meet standards as per the company certification policy.
- The standards are based on the life age and the distance traveled by the car.
- When the car is eligible for certification program, the certified authority will check the car at various points.
- The list of points is available to the customers in the perspective company website or inspection place.
- Some companies provide additional warranty to the certified used cars.
- If there is any prior warranty from the company, the new warranty will start after the the earlier warranty expires.
- Some cars are advertised as certified cars by the third parties. Such cars are actually not certified by the manufacturer. Some other party will support for a period of time.
- For the certified program, a minimum of 100 points should be tested.
- If problems are found, it will be fixed by the company’s trained professionals or an authorized expert.
- If the car has many problems, it will be disqualified from the certification program.
- Certification providers: There are two types of certification providers for used cars – manufacturers and others.
- Manufacturer: Almost every manufacturer will provide certification program for the car. This certificate has more value than the others. When the inspection is done by the manufacturer additional warranty is directly applied as the the terms of the program.
- Others: Private certification companies and sometimes dealers inspect the car and certify. It is better to check whether the inspection is done as per the manufacturer’s standards.
Non-certified pre-owned cars:
- Used cars that do not have the certification are called non-certified pre-owned cars.
- Non-certified pre-owned cars do not meet the standards of a certification program by the manufacturer of the vehicle.
- They are priced lower when compared to certified pre-owned cars.
- There might be no warranty for such cars.
While choosing any of certified and non-certified pre-owned cars, the latter is a sensible option. This is because you might be putting a substantial amount to purchase the car, and need to get one worth your money. Certified pre-owned cars are advantageous because they carry warranty of a certain period, and are more safe.