Chinese electric vehicle brands Neta (哪咜) from 
Hozon Auto (合众汽车) and Zeekr (极氪) owned by Geely have inflated sales in recent years to hit aggressive targets, with Neta doing so for more than 60,000 cars.
The companies arranged for cars to be insured before they were sold to buyers, enabling them under Chinese industry car registration practices to book sales early so they could hit the monthly and quarterly targets, according to dealers and buyers.
Neta booked early sales of at least 64,719 cars through this method from Jan 2023 to Mar 2024, according to copies of records it sent to dealers. That was more than half the sales of 117,000 vehicles it reported over the 15 months.
Zeekr, a premium EV brand owned by Geely, used the same method to book early sales in late 2024 in the southern city of Xiamen through its main dealer there, state-owned Xiamen C&D Automobile, according to dealers, buyers and sales receipts.
Vehicles booked as sold before reaching a buyer are called "zero-mileage used cars" in the Chinese auto industry. The practice has emerged out of cutthroat competition for sales in the world's largest auto market, which is reeling from a brutal, years-long price war caused by chronic overcapacity.
The industry faces a moment of reckoning, with state media calling out the zero-mileage car practice, the cabinet pledging to regulate "irrational" competition, and other central government bodies organising meetings with the industry's largest players to express concern about such methods.
On July 19 a publication run by the China Association of Auto Manufacturers said the industry ministry was planning to clamp down on the practice by banning cars from being resold within six months of being registered as a sale.
Also on July 19, state media reported that Zeekr had been selling cars with insurance already purchased to inflate sales, the first such naming and shaming of a specific automaker.
In a front-page story, the China Securities Journal (中国证券报) interviewed Zeekr car buyers in cities such as Guangzhou and Chongqing, who the newspaper said had found that their cars already had insurance policies before they were sold. They said they were refused refunds, even though they felt they were deceived.
The newspaper questioned Zeekr's unusually high sales in the cities of Shenzhen and Xiamen in December. Its reported sales in Xiamen surged to 2,737 that month, more than 14 times its monthly average.
The China Securities Journal also raised questions over Neta's sales, saying it showed anomalies.
reuters.com/business/autos
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Hozon Auto (合众汽车) and Zeekr (极氪) owned by Geely have inflated sales in recent years to hit aggressive targets, with Neta doing so for more than 60,000 cars.
The companies arranged for cars to be insured before they were sold to buyers, enabling them under Chinese industry car registration practices to book sales early so they could hit the monthly and quarterly targets, according to dealers and buyers.
Neta booked early sales of at least 64,719 cars through this method from Jan 2023 to Mar 2024, according to copies of records it sent to dealers. That was more than half the sales of 117,000 vehicles it reported over the 15 months.
Zeekr, a premium EV brand owned by Geely, used the same method to book early sales in late 2024 in the southern city of Xiamen through its main dealer there, state-owned Xiamen C&D Automobile, according to dealers, buyers and sales receipts.
Vehicles booked as sold before reaching a buyer are called "zero-mileage used cars" in the Chinese auto industry. The practice has emerged out of cutthroat competition for sales in the world's largest auto market, which is reeling from a brutal, years-long price war caused by chronic overcapacity.
The industry faces a moment of reckoning, with state media calling out the zero-mileage car practice, the cabinet pledging to regulate "irrational" competition, and other central government bodies organising meetings with the industry's largest players to express concern about such methods.
On July 19 a publication run by the China Association of Auto Manufacturers said the industry ministry was planning to clamp down on the practice by banning cars from being resold within six months of being registered as a sale.
Also on July 19, state media reported that Zeekr had been selling cars with insurance already purchased to inflate sales, the first such naming and shaming of a specific automaker.
In a front-page story, the China Securities Journal (中国证券报) interviewed Zeekr car buyers in cities such as Guangzhou and Chongqing, who the newspaper said had found that their cars already had insurance policies before they were sold. They said they were refused refunds, even though they felt they were deceived.
The newspaper questioned Zeekr's unusually high sales in the cities of Shenzhen and Xiamen in December. Its reported sales in Xiamen surged to 2,737 that month, more than 14 times its monthly average.
The China Securities Journal also raised questions over Neta's sales, saying it showed anomalies.
reuters.com/business/autos
epaper.cs.com.cn/zgzqb/wap/html
epaper.cs.com.cn/zgzqb/wap/html