News

Registration Open for Dealer Summit 2016

Goebel, Ziegler to Headline Dealer Summit

TAMPA — Organizers of Dealer Summit announced that Greg Goebel and Jim Ziegler will speak at the 2016 event, which will be held May 3–5 at the Sheraton Tampa Riverwalk Hotel. “The number of hours Greg and Jim have spent working directly with dealers to improve their operations is incalculable,” said David Gesualdo, show chair ... Read More »

Wise F&I Hires Amy Counts As Account Executive

ST. LOUIS – Wise F&I announced the hiring of Amy Counts as an account executive. Counts is responsible for business and relationship development with independent Agents by growing Wise F&I product penetration. Counts has over 18 years’ experience in the automotive industry working for The Reynolds and Reynolds Company and RouteOne in roles expanding from: ... Read More »

December Auto Sales Soar 9% in Record Year

Automakers posted a solid 9% sales gain in December, an exclamation point that sealed 2015 as the biggest sales year ever for the industry, reported USA Today. All told, automakers sold 17.47 million new vehicles for the year, Autodata reported, besting the previous record set in 2000 by 68,138 vehicles. Low gas prices, cheap credit, low unemployment, soaring consumer confidence and warm weather ... Read More »

Mary Barra Named New Chairman of GM

DETROIT — The General Motors Board of Directors unanimously elected Mary Barra as its next chairman, effective immediately. She succeeds Theodore Solso, who will serve as the Board’s Lead Independent Director. “At a time of unprecedented industry change, the board concluded it is in the best interests of the company to combine the roles of ... Read More »

VW Faces Billions in Fines as U.S. Sues for Environmental Violations

The U.S. Justice Department has sued Volkswagen for up to $48 billion for allegedly violating environmental laws – a reminder of the carmaker’s problems nearly four months after its emissions scandal broke. Although such U.S. lawsuits are typically settled at a fraction of the theoretical maximum penalty, analysts said the size of the claim meant ... Read More »

Last Used-Price Hurrah Before Expected Supply Growth

STAMFORD – Though used-vehicle supply growth is expected to lead to a softening of residual values in the coming years, pre-owned prices were still on the way up as 2015 came to a close. According to the latest RVI Risk Outlook newsletter, used-vehicle prices, after being adjusted for MSRP, showed an increase of 1.9 percent ... Read More »

Wise F&I’s Rob Berger Elected President of GAPA

ST. LOUIS – Rob Berger, executive vice president at Wise F&I LLC, was recently elected to serve as president of the Guaranteed Asset Protection Alliance (GAPA). GAPA, as an organization, was established in 2006 and is comprised of companies who offer Guaranteed Asset Protection (GAP) products. The purpose of GAPA is to monitor and lobby ... Read More »

AFIP Issues Guidance on Reg. Z and M Dollar Thresholds for 2016

COLLEYVILLE — The Association of Finance and Insurance Professionals issued guidance this week on the Federal Reserve Board and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Nov. 25 announcement that 2016 dollar thresholds for Regulation Z (Truth in Lending) and Regulation M (Consumer Leasing Act) exemptions will remain unchanged in 2016. Protections under the TILA and CLA ... Read More »

GWC Warranty Surpasses $375 Million in Claims Paid

WILKES-BARRE, Penn. – GWC Warranty, the best-in-class provider of used vehicle service contracts and related finance and insurance products sold through automotive dealers, has successfully topped $375 million in claims paid to date. “Surpassing $375 million in claims is an important milestone for GWC,” said Rob Glander, CEO and President of GWC Warranty. “Our slogan is ... Read More »