The National Auto Auction Association’s newly established scholarship has its first winner. Abigail Balk was named the inaugural recipient of the Ron Hope Memorial Scholarship for Auction Academy, the association announced. Balk, the marketing/communications manager for Greater Rockford Auto Auction and Great Lakes Auto Auction, will join the Auction Academy’s Class 9, which begins in […] [Read More]

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently released a special edition of its Supervisory Highlights, focusing a substantial portion of the auto finance industry-specific report on a longstanding issue: the servicing of auto loans with ancillary or F&I products. The bureau couldn’t have sent a clearer message: “We’re serious; lenders need to get this right, […] [Read More]

As we look back on Q3, the automotive market has revealed key trends that highlight the complexities of inventory management for auto retailers. In Q2, dealers experienced a 10% sales increase for new vehicles despite challenges like the CDK Global cyber incident. However, this surge in sales coincided with rising inventory levels, leading to a […] [Read More]

The auto dealership buy/sell market rose to another record high in the first nine months of 2024, according to the Third Quarter 2024 Blue Sky Report by Kerrigan Advisors. With 330 dealership transactions representing 544 franchises sold — a 93% increase compared to pre-pandemic 2019 — the company said the market velocity was fueled by […] [Read More]

It has been a banner rebound year for auto auctions: the market is having its strongest year for wholesale sales volume since before the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s according to the latest AuctionNet data from the National Auto Auction Association, which indicates there were 6.25 million wholesale auction sales in the first 11 months of 2024. […] [Read More]

Auto dealers who add mobile service to their offerings are winning 92% of lost customers back to their service departments, according to data from mobile service technology provider Curbee. In a news release, Curbee said mobile service is a powerful tool for dealers to retain and regain customers by literally meeting them where they are. […] [Read More]

Odometer fraud is on the rise. Data from CARFAX showed more than 2.14 million cars on the road might have had their odometer rolled back in 2024, 82,000 more than last year and up 18% since 2021. The number of vehicles with rolled-back odometers rose this year in nine of the 10 states with the […] [Read More]

While CDK Global recently renewed relationships with Holman in the U.S. as well as with AutoCanada, the technology provider is facing another lawsuit. On Tuesday, Tekion said it filed a federal antitrust lawsuit against CDK Global, accusing the company of engaging in a systematic scheme to thwart competition in the franchised dealer management system market. […] [Read More]

Canadians seem to be feeling squeezed by economic pressures when it comes to their vehicles. AutoTrader’s year-end data on the most searched for and most sold vehicles on its platform shows Canadian consumers choosing vehicles that prioritize affordability, reliability and utility over luxury and aspirational vehicles. With vehicle inventory on the AutoTrader marketplace reaching record […] [Read More]

Being boring is the kiss of death in advertising. Consumers are exposed to far too many ads to pay attention to something boring. Some say consumers are exposed to 5,000 ads per day. That makes it tough to get attention, keep attention, and get someone to take action. Here are some tips to improve each […] [Read More]