I’m not sure if this is a clever idea, or an appalling one: a device that disables your car if you’re late with your payment.
“Five days before the payment was due, the light would blink five times and then the day the payment was due it would be a solid red,” says Ross.
The device is installed under the car’s dashboard. Pay your bill, and the customer gets a new code, good for another month. “And after they punch in the six digit code, they’re ready to go.”
But once that solid red comes on, the car won’t start.
Car dealerships like the device because it helps reduce reliance on the repo man, or calling people to find out where their payment is. And the bad-credit folks in the story seem to like it, too.
“It really helped me a lot dealing with the fact that I know my bill is due, I have to pay it on time or else I can’t get to work,” Johnson says. “That’s how it benefits me a lot.”
That, and dealerships are in turn a lot more likely to sell or lease to bad-credit folks while using that device.
Still, the whole idea sort of makes me feel … uncomfortable. Not sure why. Just does.
(via Wendland)
Could it be because we work in IT and know that few systems are foolproof? Can they guarantee that they programmed the device well enough that it won’t disable your car for no reason on the wrong day, leaving you stranded at a critical time?
On the other hand, isn’t this the way some people pay for satellite TV service?