AutoMoneyBack, which offers group buying for cars, gets US$200,000 in seed funding

AutoMoneyBack, a website that offers a range of services for car and home buyers, closed a seed funding of S$250,000 (US$200,000) from a group of private investors last month.

The startup also relaunched their services this year and publicized it through an outdoor campaign involving taxis. They plan to use the funds to expand their operations and engage in more marketing activities.

AutoMoneyBack essentially serves as a one-stop destination for a variety of loans and insurance products for vehicles and homes. They also have assistance schemes designed to help aspiring car owners make the right purchasing decisions and existing car owners to sell their vehicles.

For customers who would like to buy their car at a deep discount and don’t mind waiting, the website offers a group buying program.

It doesn’t work like Groupon however — one does not simply buy a voucher and redeem it at a car shop. Instead, after prospective buyers indicate the make of the vehicle they want, AutoMoneyBack will group them with other aspiring owners and process the documentation needed to get the discount.

The whole process could take a month, since forming groups take time. There’s also a need to wait for the next COE bidding exercise.  As a general rule, steeper discounts can be sought if there’s more people in a group and if the car is more expensive.

Finally, customers can use a rewards program when making purchases on the site. The points can be redeemed for gift vouchers.

The company is founded by Chua Teck Hiong, who is also a consultant for computing solutions startup Progeniq and its former VP for business development, together with Adrian Ang, an insurance agent with 13 years of experience.