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Compliance

The Current Climate for Regulatory Compliance

The retail automotive market has found itself in an interesting situation. On one hand, retail sales are rebounding nicely, with strong price pressure coupled with continued low interest rates. On the other hand, all signs are pointing to an increased environment for regulatory scrutiny from an  hyper-focused Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and various local officials.

New leadership within the CFPB has signaled through their rulemaking agenda that automotive lending practices will garner increased scrutiny. New legislative bodies within state and local governments in many areas have followed suit to respond to discriminatory lending practices and perceived predatory consumer behavior.

Couple this renewed regulatory interest and sales environment, with a host of new fraud and cybersecurity schemes that can trip up any company, no matter how big, and the situation gets even more convoluted.

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Compliance

F&I Compliance Training

Contributing Author: David Robertson, Executive Director, Association of Finance & Insurance Professionals
Contributing Author:
David Robertson, Executive Director, Association of Finance & Insurance Professionals

One Size Doesn’t Fit All

Watch a couple of TV programs and you’ll likely catch at least one commercial for an online college degree. The boom in online training is true for our industry, as well. Given the emphasis on formal dealership CMSs, the ranks of online training providers are growing.

E-training can be a cost-effective and convenient instructional tool. However, it’s not a one-size-fits-all proposition.

Online training with self-testing – as a standalone method – appears to be conducive to human resources, occupational safety and administrative procedures. Areas where the focus is directed inward – the implementation of task-specific directives by individual employees.

F&I activities, on the other hand, are directed outward. In addition to the practitioners themselves, other people are key components of the compliance equation. Chief among them are hundreds of prospective customers, as well as funding source paper-buyers, aftermarket product service reps – and sales managers and vehicle sales personnel.

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Compliance

Product Provider Compliance Checklist

Contributing Author: Steve Roennau Vice President Compliance EFG Companies
Contributing Author:
Steve Roennau
Vice President
Compliance
EFG Companies

Did you know that automotive dealerships must comply with roughly 60 retail automotive regulations in addition to the regulations for employers, small businesses, advertisers, general retailers, and finance organizations?

These rules touch a broad range of issues, including environmental, tax and finance rules, and a host of other consumer protections. It’s no wonder that compliance seems overwhelming.

The good news is that there are services available to help dealerships tackle compliance by taking a very methodical, common sense approach.

You’ve probably seen agents and product providers step-up their service model to include more services around compliance. This is actually an objective and cost-effective way in which to tackle improving compliance in your dealership.

Ask yourself:

  • Beyond in-store engagement, what compliance services do they provide?
  • Does my product provider see compliance as important enough to include a head of compliance on their corporate leadership team?
  • What compliance certifications does my product provider have?
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