‘We’ll absorb SST if cars booked before Sept 1 but delivered after that’

KUALA LUMPUR: At least one car distributor is absorbing the Sales and Service Tax if their customers had booked before Sept 1, but their vehicles are only delivered after that date.

An official at Bermaz Auto Bhd, the company that distributes Mazda cars, said it would honour bookings made before the introduction of SST and would absorb the tax and not pass it on to its customers.

Sales of Mazda cars spiked when GST was abolished – and before SST is to be introduced on Sept 1.

Some of its popular models like CX-9 has a waiting list up to December.

“It will not be fair to our customers if we were to pass on the tax to them as they had made their bookings before the SST is introduced.

“This is also part of how we build brand loyalty,” said the official.

A Mazda sales dealer said many buyers had brought forward their car purchases as they could make big savings without the need to pay the GST.

However, the Mazda dealer said he expected sales to slow down once SST was implemented as car buyers would take time to adjust to the new SST pricing, which could be higher.

“Sales will return to normal once buyers are comfortable with the new prices,” he said.

Meanwhile, checks on the ground showed that stocks of premium and luxury cars were limited and well-heeled buyers were placing high numbers of bookings.

“We are trying to meet demand at the moment, with most of our range-topping models already sold out,” said a sales person representing a popular German marque.