A new report by the Troubled Asset Relief Program has found that the United States Treasury Department should have carefully considered its decision to order GM and Chrysler to close hundreds of dealerships while the two companies were in the bailout process.

GM and Chrysler both went bankrupt during the financial crisis, forcing the government to step in and take over the companies’ balance sheets. The Treasury Department rejected GM and Chrysler’s plan to close dealerships over a five-year period, calling the measures “too slow,” and instead asked the two automakers to close hundreds of dealerships immediately in an effort to cut costs. Now, many are questioning the decision, as GM and Chrysler have rebounded to the point that they are reinstating many of the dealers.

Special inspector general Neil Barofsky wrote in his recent report that “such dramatic and accelerated dealership closings may not have been necessary and underscores the need for the Treasury to tread very carefully when considering such decisions in the future”

With the closing of so many dealerships, many lightly used cars have found their way onto the pre-owned market. Drivers in areas with a closed GM or Chrysler dealer may want to head to a used car lot in order to find deals and savings.