Dealership advertisements have of course long been a compliance issue that agents have helped guide their clients on. Today, it’s a particularly immediate one.

Since the Federal Trade Commission warned nearly 100 automotive groups back in March about what it considered deceptive advertising, auto retailers have been on alert out of concern they’ll run afoul of the law on ads.

Though industry compliance experts discourage agents from serving as their dealer clients’ compliance cops, as Gil Van Over of Automotive Compliance Education puts it, today’s climate serves as an opportunity to guide them toward the right road.

During a panel discussion among F&I Hall of Fame inductees at this year’s Agent Summit, hall of famer Van Over described what compliance auditors like himself used to do when it came to correcting dealers on advertising regulations.

“We’d get out the Sunday paper and see what they’re advertising for, see if there were any issues with the Truth in Lending (Act) requirements of the advertising.”

Of course, Truth in Lending law is still very much in play. It’s just that auditors – and regulators – go about checking for all categories of compliance differently today. In some ways, their job is easier, making dealers’ adherence all the more urgent.

Now auditors – and dealers’ competitors – check out dealership websites for violations.

“It also creates some evidence when a fellow dealer decides to blow the whistle because it’s not a fair playing ground in their opinion,” Van Over said, “if they’re advertising the correct way, and the dealer across town isn’t, and they’re getting their share of the business.”

Jim Ganther of Mosaic Compliance Services, who moderated the Hall of Fame panel, pointed out the legal risk of the dealer website and the importance of it being vetted by those in step with the law.

“… because so much advertising goes through dealership websites, if there is an error in how you’re advertising, you’re literally advertising the violation,” he said.

Auditors that dealerships wisely retain go about their scans in various ways. Van Over’s ACE starts audits at a score of 100, deducting points as it spots no-nos.

“Believe it or not, there have been nine dealerships over the years that have scored a negative number,” he said. “You’ve got to try really hard to do that.”

Agents, if any of your dealer clients haven’t seriously examined their advertising presences, now is an opportune time to lead them in that direction and be the ones to keep them out of the compliance ditch.