Vroom — Local services in Houston

Wow I should have read the reviews. I almost always read them for any purchase I make but a good friend referred them to me. I saw the car he bought and and the price he paid and it looked good. He did say that the one thing he loved about the experience is that he didn't have to deal with any salesman everthing was done online. Honestly if I would have seen these reviews I would have never attempted to deal with Vroom. It looks like well over 50% are 1 star I'm saying this to be fair because I don't know the exact number of one star reviews but i can say for sure its well over 50% wich is bad enough. If you do decide to buy a car you will notice that the process is very easy the website software goes in stages and actually shows a diagram on the top of the page that shows what stage your on and will not continue to the next stage until the one your on is completed. It asks for a 500 dollar refundable deposit to hold the car for you so that you can complete the paperwork. I entered my banking information and it seemed to go through but it didn't say weather are not the transaction was completed it said nothing and it just moved on to the next stage. The next thing it asked for was my a pic of my license front and back and a copy of my insurance. Well I have no insurance because I dont own a car at this moment so I bought some for the car the insurance agent said its very common for people to buy insurance for a car that they are in the process of buying Ive bought many cars and saw no reason why this car wasn't mine I wanted it, I put a deposit down, and the car was financed. I realized that 500 had not been taken from my debit. So I signed back into Vroom looked up the car and immediately noticed that it didn't have a "sale pending" sign on it but still had the "purchase this vehicle" below the pic of the car. So I pressed it to get back to the deposit 500 part and try again. But it would not allow me to do anything it actually said that I was in the process of purchasing a vehicle and it will not allow me to make another purchase until its completed. But this was the same vehicle. So I dug around the site to see if I missed something I referenced the Help page but still nothing I than decided to call but it was 9pm on Saturday night and they were closed for the night and would be closed till monday morning. I hung up to look for an email to customer service and under contact us at the bottom of the page it said leave a message. I prefer to comunicate via email because it gives me a time line on record and the message is tangible but when I press leave a message it immediately says call customer service with the phone number to call. No place to write a message you can go to the site right now and press said button and it will do exactly as I said. So I cant access the deposit page, I call no answer and no email to leave a message. I was able to fine an answering service to there sales manager and I left a message explaining what was going on but I still had to wait till Monday morn. Monday morning somebody already put a deposit down and and even though the manager knew that the website will not continue on with the process if something is left incomplete so it should have stopped with the deposit during my process but it continued on allowing me to complete the ID pic and proof of insurance he also got my message but had no interest in helping me he said well thats very unusual and thats why they incourage people to call a sales person instead, but isn't that your business model to be able to buy online with no hassle from a sales person. I thought that I could make him see that I tried everthing and the software would not allow me back into that paticular vehicle. But what he said was this "your financing wasn't complete that I had a "special one" that needed pay stubs and other info and wasn't completed. I said isn't what the deposits for so that I have time to complete all paperwork needed and not worrie about it being sold to someone else. I asked for his manager but...

We just completed buying a minivan for my wife. Some of our experience was good and some was not as good. I'm going to cover both.

First, the good: the selection was excellent. They had multiple vans that met my rather picky guidelines, although most of them were listed as “not yet available.” The first van I targeted actually disappeared from the site before it ever became available. I found out through their salesman that the vehicles listed as “not yet available” are still in the inspection stage, and they can still be pulled from the inventory.

Prices are extremely competitive, both buying and selling. We traded in 2 cars as part of our down payment, and the offers Vroom made blew away the others we'd received. The van itself was a little cheaper than I'd found on competitors' sites.

The sales process was easy and quick. We got a dedicated sales rep, and got a direct number to contact him. As soon as a van that met our specs was available I called him, and put down a $500 deposit to hold it for us. Up to this point, I was very happy with the process.

Then the problems started. First thing to know: while securing the sale you have a dedicated sales rep who works with you to choose your vehicle and secure financing. After you pay that $500 deposit, however, you're cut off from that rep. Instead you start dealing with the finance department, where they do not assign a specific person to your case. You call in and wait on hold, and you deal with whoever answers the phone. They aren't great about adding notes to the account, so every time I called back I had to start from the beginning, explaining every issue and attempted resolution up to that point.

The first set of paperwork they sent us was incorrect. We corrected it, signed it, and sent it back. That didn't work. They drew up a new set of paperwork and sent it again. Then, a couple of days later, we got another set of paperwork that wasn't even ours. It belonged to another family with the same last name in a different state. Vroom seemed completely confused as to what to do, and strangely unconcerned that they sent us a stranger's financial information, replete with social security numbers. We tried to take it back to FedEx, but they had no way to return it, so they ended up shredding it. It took 3 phone calls to resolve that.

Next, they started calling about picking up the trade-ins. They wanted to pick up both immediately, even though we had been very clear that we would need to keep one of the vehicles until we took possession of the van. After the first truck driver called I contacted Vroom to remind them we'd already discussed this. The customer service rep said yes, you're correct, not a problem. We then received 2 more calls over the next 3 days from other truck drivers trying to pick up our cars.

Finally, about 2 weeks after we ironed out all the paperwork, they delivered the van. We met the driver at 9pm at the nearest Elementary school since he couldn't turn his rig around in the neighborhood. He dropped off the van and took the trade-in we held on to, processed it into the system, and hauled it away.

The van is exactly what we thought we were getting. The trim, mileage, and condition were as advertised. They didn't challenge or try to change our financial agreement, which I was concerned about since 3 vehicles were exchanging hands sight unseen. The registration and license plates came by mail about 6 weeks later.

Overall I would consider buying from Vroom again. While there were some communication issues within the company and being sent a stranger's information was alarming, the very competitive prices more than made up for the headaches. The entire process took about a month from deposit to delivery, and my wife is very much enjoying...

Incredibly disappointed. Would not recommend buying a car through Vroom.

I finalized my purchase on December 15th. The representative I spoke with said it would be delivered within 2 weeks. The earliest date it allowed me to select was December 31st for delivery.

There seems to be a complete drop off of communication from when you purchase the car until you're about to receive it. As they explain it- it is being transported to a local hub and they will be in contact when it arrives to confirm delivery details, etc. About a week after my purchase was final- the status changed to shipped. I had emailed the hub inquiring about updates on my car's location a few days afterwards and received a very broad answer saying that they would reach out once it arrived at the hub. The car began in Houston, was being transferred to a Columbus hub, and then Cincinnati to be delivered. Several days after the broad response email I scoured the fine print to find a phone number. I called on the 31st (day it was to be delivered) and the rep told me it wasn't there and that they weren't doing deliveries that day because of the "holiday" Although it let me book that as my delivery day? Okay... He says it should arrive and be delivered to me Monday. I call Monday- it should be delivered today or tomorrow 'at the latest' It doesn't arrive. I call Tuesday- it should be delivered today or tomorrow 'at the latest' I am so frustrated and confused as it seems they've totally lost my car and I have been without transportation for days. I ask where the car is and am always given no answer "it could be in Indianapolis, or Chicago, or Youngstown" So they either have no idea where it is or they are refusing to tell me? I don't believe that you don't have accurate tracking on items of this price. I call Wednesday, after having to coordinate transportation for an out of state exam, and they say it is in Memphis. (none of the locations they previously said) and that I should have it "Thursday, Friday at the latest" (Memphis is around 7 hr drive from Cincinnati) Thursday, I inquire, asking what time I should expect it and they say it's "on the way from Memphis" I express my confusion and frustration and am told that they will begin the process of getting delivery fees refunded. I tell him I've been without transportation for 6 days and he apologizes saying he should've offered a rental days ago. As the latest expected delivery was the next day, I told him not to worry about it. Friday, I inquire, and am told it's "pretty much the same at the moment" I ask when it's expected and remind him that on Wednesday he told me Friday would be the absolute latest. He says his boss is looking into it and getting it expedited. Later I check in and he tells me it is "moving and the delivery date is set for the 12th- sorry I can't help more"

I received paperwork for my car payment 3 weeks ago and have a payment due in 2 weeks yet I still do not have the car in my possession. I was told it would be delivered in 2 weeks and now I'm being told 4. So I'll have the car 2 weeks before my first monthly payment? IF it even shows up then. I have had no further communication about any refund of any fees, etc.

I sold my car through Carvana and it was a smooth, quick process. Do not buy from Vroom. I read bad reviews and thought my experience would...