New Hyundai Incentive: No-Penalty Return if You Lose Your Job

Losing a job is bad. Losing a job shortly after buying a new car is worse. Hyundai wants to remove a small bit of uncertainty from the car-buying process with the Hyundai Assurance Program.

The Assurance Program guarantees customers that, should they find themselves in the midst of an “unexpected loss of income” during their first year owning a Hyundai vehicle, they can return that car with little to no penalty. In other words, if you lose your job during that first year, you get a do-over with your new-car purchase.

Getting into the fine print, Hyundai defines a life-changing event as a job loss, bankruptcy, physical disability, loss of license due to medical impairment, or death. Assurance also only protects consumers for $7,500 of vehicle depreciation. Above and beyond that, they’ll have to pay out of pocket.

While the program certainly sounds like peace of mind in uncertain times, we have to wonder how it will work in real-world circumstances. Do you have to show up at the dealership with your pink slip? Also, it’s only fair to point out that losing a job and a car simultaneously is devastating, but what if you sold your previous means of transportation and put that money toward a down payment? What becomes more important: your credit score, or a way to get to the next job interview?