A new report from the National Fair Housing Alliance, presents evidence that African Americans still face discrimination when they are in the market for an automobile.
The organization sent testers to car dealerships in eastern Virginia. One of the testers was White and the other was not. Each tester requested buying options on identical make and model automobiles. The non-White testers were given slightly better credit histories than the White testers.
The results showed that non-White testers often received more costly pricing options than their White counterparts even though they were better qualified for financing options. White testers were more likely to receive rebates or lower interest rates. On average, non-White testers would have paid $2,662.56 more over the life of the financing period than White testers who were less qualified.
Non-White testers also were more likely to report that they received disrespectful treatment.
The full report, Discrimination When Buying a Car: How The Color of Your Skin Can Affect Your Car-Shopping Experience, may be downloaded by clicking here.
