Used car dealers and car salespeople generally don’t have a great reputation and their practices have become the basis of jokes that have actually become part of the collective consciousness.
This is supported by a 2025 Gallup poll that showed nurses at one end of the trust spectrum and car salespeople at the other.
Gallup’s data shows that “among the professions tracked regularly, with the exception of nurse practitioners who received 75% ‘very high’ or ‘high’ ratings, doctors (57%) and pharmacists (53%) once again received majority scores for their honesty and ethical standards. In contrast, telemarketers (5%), members of Congress (7%) and car salespeople (7%) remained the professions with the lowest ethical ratings.”
America’s Car-Mart has bigger problems than its reputation, but being one of the least trusted professions in America isn’t much of a selling point when car prices remain high.
The used car dealer expressed doubts about its viability in its annual report and issued a so-called “going concern” warning.
It admitted in an SEC filing that it had “material doubts about the company’s ability to continue as a going concern.”
America’s Car-Mart has been working with its lenders
The company provided more details about its financial health and what it has done to address the issue.
“As previously disclosed, the company continues to evaluate strategic alternatives, overseen by a special committee of the company’s board of directors, which may include potential financings, recapitalizations, restructurings, mergers and acquisitions and other transactions,” the company shared in an SEC filing released in June.
Concurrently, America’s Car-Mart has entered into an amendment to its credit and security agreement with Silver Point Finance, LLC, acting as administrative agent and the company’s lenders, as part of its efforts to maintain liquidity and advance its ongoing strategic alternatives process.
“Under the terms of the amendment, the company must meet certain milestones and the lenders have agreed to waive certain defaults and events of default under the credit agreement and provide contractual relief for a specified period. The amendment provides for an initial term extending through early September 2026,” the company shared in a press release.
More cars:
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In July this year, U.S. Car-Mart confirmed in its fourth-quarter financial report that it consolidated 60 dealer locations within 12 months (from April 30, 2025 to April 30, 2026). The company’s number of active dealers fell from 154 to 94, a decrease of 40%.
Through the consolidation, the company means moving customers and loans from 60 closed locations to nearby stores or, when there are no convenient locations, to loan processing centers.
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U.S. Car-Mart has had five extensions
While the initial deadline to reach a deal has passed, America’s Car-Mart has received five one-week extensions from lenders, according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
The latest extension will expire after October 8.
However, America’s Car-Mart does believe a deal can still be reached.
“The company believes it has made significant progress with the transaction and that discussions with third parties, agents and lenders remain active,” the company said in an 8-K filing with the SEC on September 30.
It also acknowledged that a deal might not happen.
It added: “There can be no assurance that the company will satisfy the conditions for a permanent exemption from such default, that the company’s review of strategic and financing alternatives will result in any transaction or other outcome that is beneficial to the company or its shareholders, or that the company will be able to achieve a sustainable capital structure.”
America’s Car-Mart fills need
Car-Mart’s fourth quarter financial report showed that it lost more than US$139 million in fiscal year 2026, including a loss of more than US$29 million in the fourth quarter.
CEO Douglas Campbell explained during the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call that its customers aren’t going anywhere.
“Wage-wage families need reliable transportation and equitable access to financing, and that need isn’t going away.
America’s Car-Mart uses a model that targets low-income customers who may not qualify for financing at traditional dealerships.
“We have a long tradition in the ‘Buy Here, Pay Here’ industry of serving hard-working Americans by providing used car financing and delivering quality used vehicles at affordable prices,” the company shared on its website.
In February, Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Housing, Banking and Urban Affairs, sent a letter to Campbell asking American Auto Mart to repossess the cars.
Practice and error rates.
The letter is a blunt assessment of the “buy here, pay here” (BHPH) model used by Car-Mart in the United States.
“BHPH dealers provide financing to individuals who may not qualify as standard lenders, who may also end up paying higher interest rates and/or having large down payment requirements. Between 2018 and 2020, BHPH lenders reportedly wrote off more than 35% of loans,” the senators wrote.
The accusations became more serious, but no actual charges were brought against Car-Mart of America.
“There is also evidence that repossession rights are built into BHPH dealers’ business models and that defaults and repossession rights may actually be more beneficial to BHPH dealers than consumers successfully completing all required payments,” the senators added.
The letter is just a request and has no legal status. Warren’s office has not yet shared a direct response from Car-Mart of America.
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