How to Judge Carvana Versus Dealers: Quality Checks and Protections Buying used is about risk management, not hype. Is Carvana worse than dealerships, or just more visible? In our view, it’s mostly a trade-off between online transparency and return-driven protections versus in-person evaluation and service access. Complaint volume tends to track visibility and sales scale, so the smarter question is how you protect yourself: verify history and listings, plan a fast pre-purchase inspection (PPI), …