Affinity car loans

Someone I know is getting financing through affinity and it appears they are not just requiring insurance, but also a $1000 deductible. Anybody heard of this or know anything about it?

Birdman wrote: ↑Sun Mar 06, 2022 4:47 pm Someone I know is getting financing through affinity and it appears they are not just requiring insurance, but also a $1000 deductible. Anybody heard of this or know anything about it?

That is pretty standard for most auto loans that they require you have insurance with no more than $1k deductible, so that way you actually can pay it. There are other coverage minimums usually listed in the contract, but those I believe are based on state minimums, but who knows, it could be lender specific, too.

I’ve never had that on any car loan I’ve ever had, neither has the person in question. Higher deductible means lower premium; if they have to have a higher deductible that cancels out the savings in APR. Never had a problem with the maximum deductible with any lender. If I can’t pay the deductible how am I going to repay the loan lol.

Birdman wrote: ↑Sun Mar 06, 2022 7:04 pm I’ve never had that on any car loan I’ve ever had, neither has the person in question. Higher deductible means lower premium; if they have to have a higher deductible that cancels out the savings in APR. Never had a problem with the maximum deductible with any lender. If I can’t pay the deductible how am I going to repay the loan lol.

I get that, but it is true regardless of your train of thought. Many people buy more than they can afford or can barely afford. I see people talking in credit groups all the time that they bought an 80k vehicle with 72-84+ month term, and even rolling in an upside down vehicle into the loan. If you dont think this is common, you are wrong. SO worked at several dealerships and it happens every day, moving numbers around to get them into a vehicle they really can't afford, just to make a sale. Most people also believe a down payment is evil. So we have, an upside down loan rolled into a high cost vehicle, no down payment, with a very long term (obviously meaning being upside down soon), and that they can't or barely can afford, and then add cost of insurance on top of that? Many will pick the lowest costing insurance possible, so with the highest deductible and lowest coverage amounts, if they even keep it past the first month. This means the banks need to take caution and protect their investment. If they cant afford the deductible, what happens to the collateral? I have often seen people say, well if it gets wrecked, I am ko longer paying on it. Or, if it breaks down and I cant afford to fix it (and probably can't even cover basic maintenance, which can be expensive for some vehicles and people don't realize before buying, they see a brand and want it with little to no research on ownership), they, too, do not continue to make payments, because "if I can't drive it, I am not paying for it", mentality. Recently I saw that contracts are including not being able to use the vehicle for gig work, which people scoffed, said they would do it amyway, and not bother getting the proper insurance for it, they are just "careful", because it is *their* vehicle (wrong) and they are paying for it, so they should be able to do whatever they want with it - wrong! Every auto loan, over the past 20 years, I have ever had has listed this as a term of the contract.

I was not aware of the deductible thing either. Good to know. If/when I'm ready for another car loan in the upcoming years Affinity is probably going to be at the top of my list when it comes to lenders, so reading a discussion on this now is helpful.

LaHossBoss wrote: ↑Sun Mar 06, 2022 7:53 pm Recently I saw that contracts are including not being able to use the vehicle for gig work

I don't see how it's legal to put that into a sales contract. I understand insurance requirements because they want to make sure they're getting paid (and I'm actually surprised gap insurance isn't required too) but if I want to buy a car, I should be able to use it any way I wish with no penalty except with insurance and maintenance costs. It should not be legal to tell people what they can and can't do with something they're purchasing. I'm not surprised about the deductible thing although I have never heard of it before either. Neither my first loan with SSFCU or my second with Ford Motor Credit required anything beyond full coverage. I don't know how I would feel if I was told I had to have a $1K deductible because I probably would have gone for $1K anyway but I was actually reading that it's more common to be told you have to have a $500 deductible which would have me looking elsewhere.

I’ve had many car loans as has the person that is older than me in question and not one of them have ever required anything beyond full coverage; none have ever required a $1000 deductible, so this is very new to me having much experience with car loans.

First this should be disclosed prior to the loan. Second I understand a lot of people screw the financial institutions, but if they’re willing to give you tens of thousands of dollars for a car I can’t see were $1500 matters. If it’s a loss for $1500 is going to be minor relatively. Not to mention when they give you tons of thousands of dollars on a card as well. You cd use that to pay the deductible.

Not to mention you have someone with a perfect credit record that never had a problem with a loan and a perfect driving record, so I don’t see the justification. They offer a low loan rate and then they tell you you can get an extra quarter percent off if you pay from an affinity account, and then when you agree, come to find out the advertised rate already had the quarter percent included as well. And they tell you you got to have a $1000 deductible which is going to increase your insurance premium which is basically going to amount to increasing your APR, if you consider overall cost as a result of taking the loan out there.

If this were standard that would be one thing but I’ve had too many loans with too many lenders this has never happened before, neither to me nor my elder.

I was thinking of getting a loan there too, but now it’s having me considering going elsewhere. I mean that just nullifies the savings of the low APR. definitely not happy neither is the person in question.

Saeren wrote: ↑Sun Mar 06, 2022 10:42 pm

LaHossBoss wrote: ↑Sun Mar 06, 2022 7:53 pm Recently I saw that contracts are including not being able to use the vehicle for gig work

I don't see how it's legal to put that into a sales contract. I understand insurance requirements because they want to make sure they're getting paid (and I'm actually surprised gap insurance isn't required too) but if I want to buy a car, I should be able to use it any way I wish with no penalty except with insurance and maintenance costs. It should not be legal to tell people what they can and can't do with something they're purchasing. I'm not surprised about the deductible thing although I have never heard of it before either. Neither my first loan with SSFCU or my second with Ford Motor Credit required anything beyond full coverage. I don't know how I would feel if I was told I had to have a $1K deductible because I probably would have gone for $1K anyway but I was actually reading that it's more common to be told you have to have a $500 deductible which would have me looking elsewhere.

I think some people are misunderstanding. They don't require you to have a $1k deductible, I usually go for $0-$500. They are just saying a max deductible of $1k, which I get. But, if they are requiring the policy to have a $1k deductible, now that is absurd!

Birdman wrote: ↑Mon Mar 07, 2022 1:31 am I was thinking of getting a loan there too, but now it’s having me considering going elsewhere. I mean that just nullifies the savings of the low APR. definitely not happy neither is the person in question.

So what do you get for insurance? Higher than a $1k deductible? I am a little surprised, tbh. I get cost savings with the higher deductible. I personally have never gone above $500, and usually go lower. Even with the $1k option, I just dont want to fork out $1k for a deductible. A lot of times small things could cost $1k or less, so why would I take the hit on my insurance for reporting it and increasing my premium in return. They should have disclosed it in the contract prior to signing, I totally agree. If it was after the fact, they can piss off. If the customer did not sign for it in the loan documents, no way. I am totally grateful gap insurance isn't required. I will do it through my insurance, but I am not rolling that into my loan. I usually put enough down that I do not need it, anyway.

We always get the highest deductible available. Currently hers is $2500 and she’s willing to put the difference in escrow they can freeze it in her account if it makes them happy. That offers the greatest savings and insurance premiums. We don’t plan to have accidents that are our fault. And if we do, we are willing to pay the deductible. It’s more likely that we will not have an accident, based on our history and therefore the savings benefit us more. And if it’s something less than the deductible, we are better off handling it ourselves without a claim so it doesn’t increase our premiums. I would rather repair small damage on a car for a couple thousand dollars then raise my premiums for years. Jmo.

Birdman wrote: ↑Sun Mar 06, 2022 4:47 pm Someone I know is getting financing through affinity and it appears they are not just requiring insurance, but also a $1000 deductible. Anybody heard of this or know anything about it?

I can confirm this is their policy. Verbiage from my approval email in October 2021: "Please remember that proof of insurance is required within 15 days. Comprehensive and collision coverage deductibles cannot exceed $1000."

LaHossBoss wrote: ↑Mon Mar 07, 2022 10:48 am I think some people are misunderstanding. They don't require you to have a $1k deductible, I usually go for $0-$500. They are just saying a max deductible of $1k, which I get. But, if they are requiring the policy to have a $1k deductible, now that is absurd!

I meant $1K or less, not specifically $1K. I was always a pretty good driver but despite that I was a male under 30 so having a high deductible was the only way to get my insurance under $150 a month.

Insurance... probably the biggest reason I stop myself from getting a new car. Once my 2012 Accord was paid off in 2017 or 2018 I immediately dropped my policy down to the minimum liability available. Since that time, I only pay $52/mo for car insurance. Sure my car is 10 years old now, but with no car payment and $52/mo for insurance I can't bring myself to take on another (say) $350-$400/mo for a new car and the increased insurance that it would require. Eventually of course when repairs start to become increasingly common the right decision will have to be made. I'm hoping that's still a couple of years out

Well affinity lost that loan and another as a result of their policy.

BrutalBodyShots wrote: ↑Mon Mar 07, 2022 10:18 pm Insurance... probably the biggest reason I stop myself from getting a new car. Once my 2012 Accord was paid off in 2017 or 2018 I immediately dropped my policy down to the minimum liability available. Since that time, I only pay $52/mo for car insurance. Sure my car is 10 years old now, but with no car payment and $52/mo for insurance I can't bring myself to take on another (say) $350-$400/mo for a new car and the increased insurance that it would require. Eventually of course when repairs start to become increasingly common the right decision will have to be made. I'm hoping that's still a couple of years out

SO and my greatest argument for many years was the "I" word lol I hate insurance. I have it now because I have an auto loan. If I became a resident of NH it is not required at all, but can be risky if you do happen to be in an accident. Whenever I have rented a car in NH, no proof of insurance was ever required. For rates in NM, they are astronomical! When SO and myself both had auto loans (before the most recent credit crash of ours), the insurance was as much as the loan payments. We were a bit younger, but it was insane. While I travel for work, I have to update where my vehicle is parked overnight (for extended period of time), which has drastically benefitted us. Since I have used VT as my loacation (even while NM is my permanent home state), the rates have slashed! I pay about $100/mo for full coverage with high coverage amounts and $0 deductibles - for 3 vehicles! It is crazy, IMO. What a difference from NM. I dread ever going home, because I, too, will like have to make an adjustment to my coverages and deductibles. Liability coverage only, bare bones, back in NM for 1 vehicle, not worth more than $500, is over $100/mo. Thisbis with no tickets, no claims, and no accidents. Ridiculous! I will say the difference between "as little as possible" and "as much as possible" was very small for the VT rates. It really made no sense to not have the better coverages and lower deductibles for just a few bucks a month. I have considered removing roadside assistance, but it is less than $1/mo. Same with rental car, it is only change every month, so I see no need to remove it.