Pay heed: For dealers, “the win-lose moment is online,” says LotLinx founder Len Short.  “Consumers are making their dealer destination visit decision when they see the car they want,” Short said in an emailed Q&A. “If dealers are not attracting those ready-to-buy consumers to their site, they will not be in the consideration set of […] [Read More]

Auction Management Solutions Inc. announced it has partnered with Columbus Fair Auto Auction for business development consulting.  AMS, which was founded in early July by industry veterans Tom Stewart and Richard Curtis, provides consulting services to independent auto auctions and others in the auto industry. Greg Levi, chief operating officer for the Columbus, Ohio-based CFAA, […] [Read More]

ARI, a global fleet services provider specializing in complex car and truck fleets, announced several sales-related appointments. Stephen Perkins will serve as vice president, sales and assistant general manager for ARI Canada. In the U.S., Craig Pierce joins ARI as director of sales, while Craig DeCarlo, Joe Henry and Buck Whitman have been named district sales […] [Read More]

Simply put, Manheim St. Louis general manager Victor Ferlaino believes his auction has “the most genuine, caring and talented team in the St. Louis area.” The team about which he speaks so glowingly consists of 130 full-time and 185 part-time employees who help register close to 2,000 cars per week. “Our team makes Manheim St. […] [Read More]

Roger Fields, general manager of Dealers Auto Auction of Huntsville, cites a solid rule of thumb when talking about management priority No. 1. “Always treat others the way you want to be treated and never make a promise that you can’t follow through with, and (I) never ask someone to do something that I myself […] [Read More]

On Thursday, DRIVIN — a service for dealers that utilizes data to help sell, source, acquire and deliver quality used vehicles for its partners — announced that the company is expanding its partnership with Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) with a new $6.5 million senior debt facility. With more than 500-percent growth in monthly transaction volume […] [Read More]

This week, EFG Companies and Northwood University announced the student competitors and F&I mentors participating in the second annual F&I Innovator of the Year competition. Vying for $25,000 in prize money, this year’s 18 contestants hail from Arizona, California, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, and the mentors come from six different franchised […] [Read More]

FactorTrust is looking for finance companies to add another consumer definition to their lexicon, encouraging lenders to examine the underbanked population with a new lens. FactorTrust is advocating that the 113 million U.S. consumers with FICO credit scores currently below 700 should be recognized as CreditClimbers — consumers determined to improve their credit scores in order […] [Read More]

As U.S. commercial bankruptcy filings continue to surge higher, the American Bankruptcy Institute noticed an uptick in consumer filings in August, too. According to data provided by Epiq Systems, total bankruptcy filings increased 1 percent to 68,495 in August, slightly up from the year-ago figure of 67,777. ABI indicated consumer filings constituted 65,296 of last […] [Read More]

The Federal Trade Commission is seeking public comment associated with a pair of statutes often connected with collections, repossessions and recoveries. First, the FTC wants the public to share thoughts on its Disposal Rule, a rule that implements part of the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (FACTA). Officials recapped that the Disposal Rule, […] [Read More]