Compliance isn’t a one-time box to check; it’s a business health indicator. For dealers using GPS and starter-interrupt devices, staying compliant protects more than your portfolio. It protects your reputation, your customers, and your long-term growth.

A dealer compliance health check is a proactive way to assess whether your policies, processes, and technology align with today’s regulatory expectations and industry’s best practices.

Why a compliance health check matters

Regulations governing consumer protection, privacy, lending, and collections continue to evolve. A gap in compliance can lead to:

—Customer complaints or disputes

—Regulatory scrutiny or fines

—Operational inefficiencies

—Reputational damage

On the flip side, compliant dealerships operate with confidence, transparency, and trust creating stronger customer relationships and more resilient portfolios.

Key areas for your compliance health check

Let’s break it down into five area.

  1. Written policies & procedures

Standard operating procedures (SOP) are a written set of step-by-step instructions that explain how a task or process should be done, consistently, correctly, and compliantly.

Do you have clear, documented SOPs governing:

—GPS and starter-interrupt use

—Disclosure requirements

—Complaint handling

—Payment reminders and device activation

Written policies don’t just guide staff, they demonstrate good-faith compliance during audits or disputes.

  1. Transparent consumer disclosure

Every customer should clearly understand:

—That a device is installed

—The functionality of their device (SID or GPS only)

—Overrides available to the consumer

—The consumer benefits, including features such as stolen vehicle recovery

Transparent consumer disclosure protects both the dealership and the customer by setting clear expectations from the start.

  1. Employee training & oversight

Even the best policies fail without proper execution. A healthy compliance procedure includes:

—Ongoing staff training

—Clear accountability for compliance oversight

—Professional, lawful collection practices

Training protects both employees and consumers and reduces risk across the organization.

  1. Device usage & activation practices

Ask yourself:

Are grace periods honored?

Are customers notified before activation?

Are vehicles reactivated immediately after payment?

Are devices deactivated, removed or access terminated when contracts are completed?

Consistency and fairness here are critical to compliance and creating customer trust.

  1. Data privacy & security

GPS data can be sensitive to consumer information. In addition to internal policies, Dealers should ensure their GPS providers comply with data privacy and security standards themselves, including:

—Policies protecting the storage of information

—Provide access to tiered permissions for employees

—Defined data retention policies

—Clear privacy disclosures

You need to pick a GPS provider that has your privacy interests in mind. They should be open and honest about their safeguard policies. Strong data security is no longer optional, it’s expected.

The takeaway

A dealer compliance health check isn’t about finding faults; it’s about strengthening your operation. Regular reviews help dealers stay aligned with regulations, reduce risk, and operate at the highest standards.

Data security and Safeguards Compliance isn’t just protection. It’s a competitive advantage.

Corinne Kirkendall is executive vice president of compliance and regulatory affairs at PassTime. More details about the company can be found at https://passtimegps.com.