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Carvana Stock Drops By Nearly 90% - Thousands Laid Off

Online used vehicle retailer, Carvana, looks like it is headed for trouble. Here’s what’s happening with this once-promising company.

Over the past six-month period, online used car retailer Carvana has seen its stock value drop from nearly $300 per share to about $30 per share. According to the New York Stock Exchange, on which the company’s stock is traded, the value of a share of the company's stock has dropped by 88% in the past six months. Carvana’s stock price peaked at over $360 per share in August of 2021. In the first quarter of this year, Carvana posted a half-billion-dollar loss.

Related Story: Used Car Purchased Online From Vroom Goes Horribly Wrong

In Illinois, the company’s license to sell cars was suspended. Like fellow online retailer, Vroom, Carvana customers have claimed that they did not receive the title to the vehicle they purchased from the company, and therefore could not register it.

Two weeks ago, Carvana laid off about 2,500 of its workers - using Zoom. Employee Jay Romero told CBS Newa, "It was a very scary experience. I had no support from anybody — no management, no team leads." According to news reports, workers being laid off were not even allowed to ask questions.

In a summary of Carvana’s troubles, TechCrunch says that the company overbuilt for its sales volume. That is a way of saying that the company has too much overhead and not enough customers.

Torque News looked up Carvana’s rating by the Better Business Bureau and discovered that the headquarters listing is “being updated.” The Florida location of the Carvana has had nearly 4,000 complaints filed by customers over the past three years, with the bulk of those complaints happening in just the last 12 months. Furthermore, despite Carvana advertising on its website that it earns a 4.7 out of 5-star rating for quality, on BBB customers rate the company just two stars. BBB says the Carvana does not earn its accreditation despite being in business for over ten years.

Online car-buying held the promise of eliminating the dreaded used car lot and the hassles associated with haggling over prices. Carvana created buildings intended to look like vending machines. This gives the impression that buying a car is a simple process. As any used car buyer knows, a test drive, review of all maintenance records, a report detailing any accidents, and inspection by one’s own trusted mechanic are always important steps in the process.

Have you purchased a car from Carvana? Tell us about your experience in the comments below.

Image courtesy of press release via Carvana's News Page.

John Goreham is a long-time New England Motor Press Association member and recovering engineer. John's interest in EVs goes back to 1990, when he designed the thermal control system for an EV battery as part of an academic team. After earning his mechanical engineering degree, John completed a marketing program at Northeastern University and worked with automotive component manufacturers, in the semiconductor industry, and in biotech. In addition to Torque News, John's work has appeared in print in dozens of American news outlets and he provides reviews to many vehicle shopping sites. You can follow John on TikTok @ToknCars, on Twitter, and view his credentials at Linkedin

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Comments

Joe (not verified)    May 30, 2022 - 1:05PM

I traded in a car and bought from Caravans. I had a good experience, though I believe I was over charged for fees. I got a little more for my trade in and paid a little more for my purchase, so it was a wash. I had no issues with registration. My purchase was pretty much as advertised, and the couple of minor issues were handled reasonably well.

Dan Reale (not verified)    May 30, 2022 - 1:45PM

We purchased a vehicle from Carvana in February 2022. I have to say I never thought I would be one of those people to buy a car site unseen, but we tried anyway based on the absolutely horrible sales experience we had buying a new vehicle 2 years ago. The process was incredibly easy. Loved the free delivery and pickup of our trade in, plus the comfort of the 7 day money back guarantee. We received the permanent tags right on time and have been very happy with the purchase. Hopefully once it's paid off we won't run into any issues obtaining the title, but right now I couldn't recommend the experience any better. Not having to sit at a dealership for hours on end made the whole experience worth it.

Traz Ragin (not verified)    June 2, 2022 - 9:28AM

In reply to by Dan Reale (not verified)

I've had the exact same experience. Financed my car a month ago, and It was painless, fast, and I love my car. I also hope there isn't any issues when I pay off my car and get the title...

Scott T. (not verified)    May 30, 2022 - 8:13PM

I just bought a car from Carvana and it was a great experience from start to finish. I strongly recommend them. They had a good selection, the price was reasonable, and the execution was flawless. They make it easy to buy a car.

ShadowZX7R (not verified)    June 3, 2022 - 2:23PM

In reply to by Scott T. (not verified)

You are one of very few that would recommend this sorry excuse for a company. I own a mechanic shop and we use to be a authorized mechanic shop for this worthless company until last month when I told them to get lost. In April over 50% of the cars that came in to the shop was cars from this worthless company. One a 2yr old Subaru come in without a battery in the car. I have 3 cars in my back lot waiting for this worthless company to pick them up because people bought them and received them with major issues, with total cost at $1500.00 or more. Not to mention they still owe my company about $7000.00 for work done to these o so great used cars. So ya far as I am concerned carvana is a the biggest joke and p.o.s used car company ever.

Jon Burr (not verified)    May 30, 2022 - 9:30PM

Caravana offered me ~$16k for my Hyundai SF Sport last October. Gargurus beat their offer by ~$5600. Carvana advertises constantly-they’re wasting money there !

Dennis R. (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 3:39AM

I tried to sell them a car. Their customer service was non existent. They were the worst and I did business with a local dealer. I predict they must go out of business. I believe they have been a stock play/bust from the beginning.

Dennis Warr (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 7:06AM

I have personally purchased two vehicles through Carvana. Overall the experience has been quite satisfying. They approved me for a car loan when no one else would with my credit. But in six months I was able to refinance the vehicle through an outsource credit bureau because my credit score had improved so much. They do have pretty high interest rates but that’s what’s expected to come when you have a low credit score and your promise to pay percentage isn’t high enough. I have only had one issue when it came to the registration of one of my Carvana vehicles. I had to get a state inspection and send them the actual hardcopy from the inspector and somehow they misplaced it so it delayed my registration, but I was still able to get my registration completed before the expiration of my temporary tags. I’ve only had a small issue when it came to the warranty through Bridgecrest and Silverock. And all that was was a constantly calling Silver rock to speed up the process of their own inspection of the issues you’re having with the vehicle. I’ve never had to pay out-of-pocket for anything wrong with the vehicle except regular maintenance and parts they obviously wouldn’t be covered under the warranty. Silverock actually waved The $50 co-pay for out of service networks providers because the in-service provider was unable to fix the issue. So yeah, all in all I personally am thankful to Carvana and their platform and would still recommend them to people with low credit or needing a vehicle that is personally in my opinion of the standards for the price you pay.

Sebastián Count (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 10:10AM

In reply to by Dennis Warr (not verified)

I brought my one owner 2015 Lexus LS 460 with only 44k miles flawlessly from Carvana last year. And because Carvana is partnered with Credit Karma along with my excellent credit score, I pre-qualified with a $300 down payment. I ordered my Lexus on a Sat and for verification, the only document needed was proof of insurance and that following Sat my car was delivered. Two weeks later, my plate was delivered. PA only requires one plate. A month later, I refinanced my auto loan from loan predator Bridgecrest at 18% interested to Lending Club now at 6% and my vehicle will be paid off in 2025. My car experience with Carvana was tremendous. Every last agent I spoke with gave me the white glove treatment and I have absolutely no complaints. Would I purchase from Carvana again? Absolutely.

Freda billings (not verified)    June 3, 2022 - 5:18PM

In reply to by Dennis Warr (not verified)

I purchased a electric vehicle without knowing it would be a dire shortage of charge stations where i live they r i private homes , i live in an appt i contacted carvana after a year of the charging hassle to change to a gas powered carvof sam e value everything was all set i never heard from him again i called twice no answer being a senior cutizen i thought this was good for me but…..

k grigorian (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 8:02AM

i bought car from them last year all was good , until came time to sell it. if you financed from their partner Bridgecrest financial, this company holding you basically as a hostage by not sending you a vehicle title until car paid off. im in NY state and by law car owners must have title in hands.
called them and explained everything not helped, they play games with you basically! never again!

L sapp (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 8:28AM

I’ve purchased two cars from Carvana and never had any issues. I would highly recommend them to anyone looking for a quality used car.

P Taylor (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 9:09AM

First, the car I bought came better than expected and the delivery person was outstanding. Each time I spoke with their customer service folks they were super polite and sympathetic. Had a small issue that a key promised did bot come with the car and silver rock authorized and paid for a new one from my local dealer. That was the good part. The bad part it took forever to get my title and registration with daily phone calls, one excuse after another. Two day before I would no longer be able to drive my car because of no registration the documents a plates finally arrived. Very frustrating when you have 30K invested in something you would not be able to use, For my inconvenience they send me a $100.

Vlad Gendelman (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 10:15AM

I have sold a car through Carvana. They gave me the highest quote out of about 5 I received. The process was very smooth. They picked up the car from my house with a flatbed pickup and gave me a check for full amount I was quoted online via check during the pickup. I was looking forward to using them again in the future.

Juan C Moncada (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 11:03AM

I bought a car from Carvana with no problem the car I chose was delivered on time and my tag and registration arrived as scheduled. Now Carvana is planning on buying my use car. Again all done online with no problem.

Concerned citizen (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 11:17AM

I purchased a Subaru from Carvana in March of 2020 and they promised me repeatedly there would be no issue registering it on there end. Here we are over 2 years later and the vehicle is still not registered, I have no title and cannot operate it lawfully. Countless hours of phone calls that lead to no resolution at all. Legal proceedings are under way.

Lawren Whitney (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 11:32AM

We purchased a 2021 Toyota Sienna Hybrid in January 2022 from Carvana and also sold (as a trade-in) my 2014 Toyota Sienna to Carvana. It was absolutely the easiest, smoothest and financially advantagious experience we have ever had, and we have always bought/trade-in previously via the Dealership. So, this news today (May 2022) about Carvana's woes is disconcerting because we had hoped to do business with them again in several months since we have another vehicle we will be replacing. Carvana's staff and efficiency in our experience was SUPERB! We have zero complaints.

George (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 11:57AM

I did not buy a car from Carvana but I did sell them my Tacoma pickup. It was the best car experience I have ever had. Easy. Straightforward. Efficient. Got a good price. It was a pleasurable experience. I recommend using them.

Joshua Peerce (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 12:04PM

I sold my car to Carvana at 20% over MSRP a couple weeks ago (don't know why they gave so much). Process was smooth and easy. Originally was going to trade but they delayed at last minute and seemed to have several inconsistencies between photos and details (like showing a V6 and saying I4).

Tiffany C (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 1:07PM

My Carvana experience had mixed emotions. Online purchase was easy but pick up was horrendous. The front desk lady was rude to me because I was late (I sprained my back an hour prior and notified the CS number). When the car came down it didn’t start after three tries. The car wasn’t fully cleaned as there was sticky residue in the cup holder and water marks everywhere. Really disappointing.

Scott H. (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 3:07PM

I purchased a vehicle in a location which had a vending machine and picked it up there. It was a very cool experience! I previously had an suv prior to getting a little sportier car this time. I drove it for almost a week and decided I'd rather have another suv. I called one of the customer service reps and told her that I'd like to return the vehicle and get a suv instead. She told me to go online and pick out another vehicle. When it was delivered to the location, she called me and I took my original car back and got my new one. I was thrilled! It was the best experience I'd ever had purchasing a car!

Jay (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 3:41PM

I purchased a 2012 Nissan 370 Z, for my son. It stated that it was a certain model, the one I was looking for, registration came, it's registered as the model that was advertised as, down the road I found out that it's actually a lower model trim package that costs 2500 less.

When I brought it to there attention that they advertised and registered falsely, there answer was that a third party handles that. WHAT??
I filed a complaint with New Jersey Consumer affairs

V.M. (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 5:48PM

I don't have an experience but a relative did. Spouse purchased thru carvana. Died 10 days later. Took 7 months to get title straitened out! And insurance processed. Car bought in Mississippi, sold to Texas, then to yet another state. Nightmare.

Nina DuBois (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 6:16PM

Loved my experience with Carvana! I got the exact car I had been wanting. The warranties (7 & 30 days) were reassuring and fabulous. Hate to hear that their stock has gone down.

Joe B. (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 6:58PM

I purchased a 2019 BMW X3 from carvana last year. It was easy and I got a good price. No issues whatsoever. Easiest car buying experience I've ever had. I would be leery buying a car that was more than a couple years old, but for me, it was a good experience and I would do it again. Certainly a better experience than going to a car dealership.

Marshelle Culberson (not verified)    May 31, 2022 - 8:57PM

Received the car on May 25th 2022 got the car it was all scratched up the real visor was missing off the back passenger door inside the door it was pulled the only state at the car had one hotspot on the side fender and the crown on the back of the car when you raise the hat was all scratched up they offered me to go to silver Rock and found the complaint which was done I went to one collision place they said I needed to go to another one I did that so I'm waiting to hear back they got the registration papers are wrong had those FedEx them back today which is May 31st which is the last day I can't return the car after this please reply back

Tommie W (not verified)    June 1, 2022 - 12:06AM

I traded my Jeep for a Ram 1500 Nov 2021 and the process was a pleasantly smooth experience. The hardest part was waiting on the the vehicle to be delivered. Received my plates and registration on time and without any issues. Couldn't have dreamed of a better experience.