F&I and Showroom, Industry Summit 2014
tive trade practice Theres never a need to lie cheat sneak or deceive to sell cars Here are a few examples of subtle and not so subtle tricks that have put dealers in hot water Aggregate Discounts Have you ever seen an ad that included a disclaimer listing every combination of manufacturer and lender incentive from military rebates and college grad programs to senior discount brand loyalty and lease loyalty rebates I have seen as many as eight or nine programs in a single disclaimer totaling thousands of dollars in discounts even though we all know there is no way anybody can qualify for every program Used Car MSRPs One of the dealers charged by the FTC was advertising a pre owned car as 25 off of MSRP The ad implied that the unit was new and included a small disclaimer explaining that it was not No asterisk could save that campaign The Payoff I happen to disagree with this one Then again theyre the law and Im not You can no longer say If we make a deal well pay off your trade no matter how much you owe In other words you cant advertise rolling the trade inequity into the new loan Yes you can still do it when the customer is fully disclosed You just cant say so in your advertising The Loss Leader Heres one that has burned a number of dealers in the past You cant advertise a loss leader on a specifi c stock numbered vehicle if you only have one or two that meet the ad price The old joke in the car business used to be that youll be fi red if you sell the ad car Well they will prosecute your dealership if you put an ad up on a loss and you only have one or two I assume this is intended 68 F I and Showroom Industry Summit 2014 to regulate new vehicle sales but if you have a row of similar used units proceed with similar caution Hidden Balloon Most of the charges against the dealers center around Truth in Lending violations Regulation Z and Regulation M Outliers include the dealer who neglected to mention a 5000 balloon payment just what was he thinking No Contest Another new standard that struck me as a no brainer has to do with contests If you advertise a contest and every piece you On the Point
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