F&I and Showroom, February 2014

Letter From the Editor Discrimination takes many forms After suffering the insults of an interviewshy regulator the editor fi nds a way to make his point By Gregory Arroyo W e looked at each other with astonishment Patrice Ficklin assistant director for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau CFPB s Offi ce of Fair Lending and Equal Opportunity had just concluded her 40 minute fi reside chat at the American Financial Services Association AFSA s 2014 Vehicle Finance Conference She had told the audience shed stick around to answer any questions We media guys and gals in the room werent sure if the offer extended to us As Ive written before the CFPB isnt speaking to the media I glanced over at WardsAutos Steve Finlay who looked back and shrugged Meanwhile Automotive News Jim Henry was already circling the spot where Ficklin was holding court My buddy Ted Craig with Used Car News was sure she wasnt referring to us but followed me anyway as I made my way to the dais Already there with his pen and notepad at the ready was Auto Remarketings Nick Zulovich who was only two people away from getting in front of Ficklin I took my place next to Nick who turned to me and asked if I thought shed take our questions I responded by suggesting that we not be so quick to identify ourselves which is a no no in our business Hey it says media on our badge I told him Ficklin fi nally fi nished up with the guy standing between us She smiled and waited to hear what we had to say Nick to my disappointment introduced himself as an editor with Auto Remarketing and Ficklin immediately retreated 6 F I and Showroom February 2014 I cant talk to you she said Finlay grizzled veteran that he is followed up with a question He asked her if she replaced Rick Hackett who left the CFPB last August after serving two years as assistant director for the bureaus Offi ce of Installment and Liquidity Lending Markets He was considered a valuable conduit between the CFPB and the industry and many on our side of the aisle considered his departure a great loss Hackett by the way is set to join Hudson Cook LLP as a partner this March an unbelievable pickup for the law fi rm Ficklin did respond to Finlays question but she said she didnt want to be quoted Thats when she noticed I was jotting down everything she was saying I see you writing Gregory Arroyo only she rolled the R s like my grandmother does I know where to fi nd you Shocked and even a little embarrassed I shot back Im feeling a little discriminated against right now The small group that remained in the room laughed I guess Im not sure why the bureau wont talk to us media people Having worked in newspapers Im used to the standard We can neither confi rm nor deny response I get from regulators but this is different Im not asking about an investigation I just want to know how my readers can meet the bureaus expectations So what did I want to ask Ficklin Well it had to do with her message to the audience See Ficklin spent the fi rst 20 minutes of her address recapping the guidance the bureau issued last March regarding rate participation telling audience members that the bureau is not asking fi nance sources to move to fl at fees She also defended the bureaus method for identifying discriminatory markups in fi nance portfolios But what got me was when she encouraged fi nance sources to communicate with the bureau to help it perfect its formula My question was How can the bureau and the Department of Justice DOJ issue an enforcement action that resulted in Ally agreeing to a 98 million settlement when the formula isnt yet perfected Everyone in that room fi gured that Ally didnt fi ght the bureaus allegations because the enforcement action was issued in December the same month the fi nance company was seeking to become a fi nancial holding company a presumption Jim Henry had already confi rmed in his interview with Ally CEO Michael Carpenter What Ficklin didnt realize is I had an ace up my sleeve Standing beside me was Tony Dupaquier F I and Showroom contributor and director of F I training for American Financial and Automotive Services Automotive Training Academy His badge didnt say media and Ficklin took his question Tony asked her how the bureau accounted for customers who know their credit standing and are prepared to negotiate vs customers who come in blind and take whatever rate is presented because theyre just happy to be able to buy a car Instead of an answer Tony received an invitation to Washington D C Apparently Ficklin thought he could bring some industry insight to the bureau Boy this is going to be interesting Dont Discriminate