Study finds used car dealers profit from left-digit bias in pricing
A study by professors at the University of Chicago and the University of Texas explains how dealerships exploit consumer psychology to increase profits in the used-car market.
Consumers overlook exact price details
People routinely ignore specific information when making purchases, such as taxes or ingredient lists. This inattention is well documented but businesses often exploit it for profit.
Left-digit bias drives higher spending
Shoppers anchor heavily on the leftmost digit when evaluating numbers like $1.99. Prices ending in lower digits exploit this tendency to make costs seem smaller than they are.
Dealers target inattentive buyers specifically
The research suggests dealerships systematically attract more inattentive buyers to maximize their earnings. This dynamic creates a distinct market situation where transparency may not fix the issue.
Reported by one outlet
Only one outlet has published this. Nothing here has been checked against a second report, so read it as that outlet's account and follow the link below for the original.
Reported by
1 independent outlet. Headline as published. Links open the original report.