F&I and Showroom, Industry Summit 2014
On the Point A Bustle in Your Hedgerow I n Led Zeppelins Stairway to Heaven Robert Plant sings If theres a bustle in your hedgerow dont be alarmed now its just a spring clean for the May Queen More than a light dusting or even a major spring cleaning the Federal Trade Commission FTC has our industry in the crosshairs and its coming after some dealers with a vengeance They are targeting dealers who have created allegedly deceptive and misleading advertising Over the last few years nearly 20 dealerships and groups have been penalized and sanctioned with 10 lawsuits fi led to date under the current campaign The current scourge was offi cially announced in a press release on Jan 9 Using language befi tting a military operation they described the campaign as a nationwide sweep focusing on the sale fi nancing and leasing of motor vehicles It even has an offi cial name Operation Steer Clear You can fi nd the full story under the News Events tab at FTC gov Most of the dealerships charged have agreed to settle with the agency in 20 year consent orders Far from a slap on the wrist this means that if any of the dealerships involved commit any advertising misconduct in any newspaper television or radio spot or in direct mail or online in the next 20 years they will be fi ned 16000 per violation for every day the violation occurs How that relates to a 10000 piece mailer or a broadcast commercial Im not sure This story is not new news but now the other shoe is about to drop Theres a lot of informed speculation right now that another campaign is intensifying 66 F I and Showroom Industry Summit 2014 and another round of investigations will begin soon The smart money says theyre coming and retailers need to be aware The G men are more sophisticated and intense and theyve stepped up these operations dramatically in the last few years especially concerning online advertising What theyre looking at centers around disclaimers in ads omission of information non disclosure and small print or unreadable print in the disclaimers I once joked that the asterisk was created just for car dealers and furniture stores Its appearance at the bottom of an ad is a clear signal that all the information above it is bull crap The simplest rule is this If the ad is intended to trick or confuse the customer that is illegal and a decep Da Man lists a few of the hits on the FTCs latest album Deceptive Dealer Advertising By Jim Ziegler
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