MSADA, One McKinley Square, Sixth Floor, Boston, MA 02109
auto M a s s a c h u s e t t s
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FIRST CLASS MAIL US POSTAGE PAID BOSTON, MA PERMIT NO. 216
July 2018 • Vol. 30 No. 7
The official publication of the Massachusetts State Automobile Dealers Association, Inc
The Dividends of
Giving Back
Ma s s a c h u s e t t s
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S ta f f D i r e c t o r y Robert O’Koniewski, Esq. Executive Vice President rokoniewski@msada.org Jean Fabrizio Director of Administration jfabrizio@msada.org Peter Brennan, Esq. Staff Attorney pbrennan@msada.org Jean Harris Administrative Assistant/ Membership Coordinator jharris@msada.org Auto Dealer MAgazine Robert O’Koniewski, Esq. Executive Editor Tom Nash Editorial Coordinator nashtc@gmail.com Subscriptions provided annually to Massachusetts member dealers. All address changes should be submitted to MSADA by e-mail: jharris@msada.org. Postmaster: Send address change to: One McKinley Square, Sixth Floor Boston, MA 02109 Auto Dealer is published by the Massachusetts State Automobile Dealers Association, Inc. to provide information about the Bay State auto retail industry and news of MSADA and its membership.
Ad Directory Bellavia Blatt & Crossett, P.C., 22 BlumShapiro, 23 Boston Herald, 32 Ethos Group, 2 Leader Auto Resources, 25 Lynnway Auto Auction, 24 O’Connor & Drew, P.C., 31 R.E.D Alert, 20 Southern Auto Auction, 21
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The official publication of the Massachusetts State Automobile Dealers Association, Inc
Table of Contents
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From the President: Going the Extra Mile ASSOCIATE MEMBERS DIRECTORY THE ROUNDUP: Biennial Tradition - Legislature Coming Down the Stretch
8 9 10
TROUBLESHOOTNG: Monitoring Employee Phone Calls
11 12
LEGAL: The Grand Bargain – Not So Grand for Your Dealership
legislative scorecard ACCOUNTING: Why Dealers Need to Learn About Vulnerability Assessments
AUTO OUTLOOK
16 Cover Story: The Dividends of Giving Back
20 26 28 29
NEWS From Around the Horn nada Market Beat TRUCK CORNER: ATD Celebrates America’s Trucking History nada update: Looking at Tariffs
ADVERTISING RATES Inquire for multiple-insertion discounts or full Media Kit. E-mail jfabrizio@msada.org Quarter Page: $450 Half Page: $700 Full Page: $1,400
Back Cover: $1,800 Inside Front: $1,700 Inside Back: $1,600
Join us on Twitter at @MassAutoDealers www.msada.org
Massachusetts Auto Dealer
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From the President
MSADA
Going the Extra Mile By Chris Connolly, MSADA President As we have seen in the past few months, our industry is never boring. Whether we are encountering issues with our manufacturers, our State House, or the possibility of being put in the middle of a trade war, it can take quite a bit of extra effort to look outside our own lanes. Of course, that is exactly what we do as dealers. We care about making our corner of the planet a better place, whether that means spending time volunteering as a business or financially supporting a worthy cause. The work of an auto dealer does not end when we clock out for the day. We are integral parts of the communities we serve. MSADA is here to help. Your Association offers members up to $1,500 in matching funds for a charitable contribution made in their hometown. This is an important point to remember: As businessmen and women who operate one of the most important economic engines in our communities across the Commonwealth, we all have a special opportunity to lend a helping hand. The contribution can be as small as sponsoring a Little League team or as large as funding entire programs. But whether we are donating hundreds, thousands, or millions to charity each year, or even giving our time and effort to good causes, our work has a ripple effect throughout our communities. In this month’s feature story, we have again checked in with a few of our member dealers who go the extra mile to be a part of their cities and towns. Our matching program continues to gain popularity among our ranks, but MSADA is always looking to have more dealers participate. If you have not taken advantage of the funds, I hope you will consider doing so this year. And for those of you already participating, you are always encouraged to send information, photos, and write-ups to be shared in these pages. This time of year is a perfect chance to take a moment to think about what plans you might be able to make for the coming holiday season, which will be here before we know it. I encourage you to reach out to me if you have any questions about doing this type of work. My family’s annual charitable golf tournament is one of greatest joys of being in business, and I would love to share as much as you need to know about how to get started. For more details about our matching program, please give Executive Vice President Robert O’Koniewski a call at (617) 451-1051, or email him at rokoniewski@msada.org. Preparations for Our Hall of Fame Ceremony As we near October, you will see more in this magazine about our first ever MSADA Dealer Hall of Fame induction ceremony. I encourage you to join us for what promises to be a memorable event recognizing the greats of our dealer community. The event will take place at the Chatham Bars Inn on Cape Cod, October 3–5. For details about reservations, please email Jean Fabrizio at jfabrizio@msada.org. t
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Massachusetts Auto Dealer www.msada.org
Msada Board Barnstable County
Brad Tracy, Tracy Volkswagen
Berkshire County
Brian Bedard, Bedard Brothers Auto Sales
Bristol County
Richard Mastria, Mastria Auto Group
Essex County
William DeLuca III, Woodworth Motors Don Sudbay, Sudbay Motors
Franklin County
Jay Dillon, Dillon Chevrolet
Hampden County
Jeb Balise, Balise Auto Group
Hampshire County
Bryan Burke, Burke Chevrolet
Middlesex County
Chris Connolly, Jr., Herb Connolly Motors Frank Hanenberger, MetroWest Subaru
Norfolk County
Jack Madden, Jr., Jack Madden Ford Charles Tufankjian, Toyota Scion of Braintree
Plymouth County
Christine Alicandro, Marty’s Buick GMC Isuzu
Suffolk County
Robert Boch, Expressway Toyota
Worcester County
Steven Sewell, Westboro Mitsubishi Steve Salvadore, Salvadore Auto
Medium/Heavy-Duty Truck Dealer Director-at-Large [Open]
Immediate Past President [Open]
NADA Director
Scott Dube, Bill Dube Hyundai
Officers
President, Chris Connolly, Jr. Vice President, Charles Tufankjian Treasurer, Jack Madden, Jr. Clerk, Steve Sewell
Associate Members
MSADA A ssociate M ember D irectory ACV Auctions Will Morris (860) 670-7867 ADESA Jack Neshe (508) 626-7000 Albin, Randall & Bennett Barton D. Haag (207) 772-1981 American Fidelity Assurance Co. Dan Clements (616) 450-1871 American Tire Distributors Pamela LaFleur (774) 307-0707 Armatus Dealer Uplift Joe Jankowski (410) 391-5701 AutoAlert Jessica Gates (816) 506-0515 Auto Auction of New England Steven DeLuca (603) 437-5700 Auto/Mate Dealership Systems Troy Potter (877) 340-2677 Automotive Search Group Howard Weisberg (508) 620-6300 Bank of America Merrill Lynch Dan Duda and Nancy Price (781) 534-8543 Bellavia Blatt & Crossett, PC Leonard A. Bellavia, Esq (516) 873-3000 Bernstein Shur PA Ned Sackman (603) 623-8700 Blum Shapiro John D. Spatcher (860) 561-4000 BMO Harris Bank Chris Peck (508) 314-1283 Boston Globe Anthony Merullo (617) 929-2337 Broadway Equipment Company Fred Bauer (860) 798-5869 Burns & Levinson LLP Paul Marshall Harris (617) 345-3854 C-4 Analytics LLC Rob Stoesser (617) 250-8888 Capital Automotive Real Estate Services Daniel Garces (703) 394-1313 CDK Global Chris Wong (847) 407-3187 Construction Management & Builders, Inc. Nicole Mitsakis (781) 246-9400 Cox Automotive Ernest Lattimer (516) 547-2242 CVR John Alviggi (267) 419-3261 Dealer Creative Mike Otis (315) 382-3675 Dealerdocx Brad Bass (978) 766-9000 Dealermine Inc. Jane Webb (800) 304-3341
DealerSocket Shelly Del Rosario (949) 900-0300 Downey & Company Paul McGovern (781) 849-3100 Eastern Bank David Sawyer (617) 897-1125 EasyCare New England Greg Gomer (617) 967-0303 Ethos Group, Inc. Drew Spring (617) 694-9761 F & I Resources Jason Bayko (508) 624-4344 Federated Insurance Matt Johnson (606) 923-6350 First Citizens Federal Credit Union Joe Ender (508) 979-4728 Fisher Phillips LLP John Donovan (404) 240-4236 Joe Ambash (617) 532-9320 Gatehouse Auto Jay Pelland (508) 626-4334 Gulf State Financial Services Tom Foster (832) 628-1916 GW Marketing Services Gordon Wisbach (857) 404-0226 Hireology Kevin Baumgart (773) 220-6035 Huntington National Bank John J. Marchand (781) 326-0823 JM&A Group Jose Ruiz (617) 259-0527 John W. Furrh Associates Inc. Kristin Perkins (508) 824-4939 JP Morgan Chase Bank Alex Khademi (404) 375-4504 Key Bank Mark Flibotte (617) 385-6232 KPA Tim Whelan (303) 802-3019 Leader Auto Resources, Inc. Curt Murray (978) 201-4797 Lynnway Auto Auction Jim Lamb (781) 596-8500 M & T Bank John Federici (508) 699-3576 Management Developers, Inc. Dale Boch (617) 312-2100 Micorp Dealer Services Robert Calhoun 617-285-4833 Mid-State Insurance Agency James Pietro (508) 791-5566 Mintz Levin Kurt Steinkrauss (617) 542-6000
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Murtha Cullina Thomas Vangel (617) 457-4000 Nancy Phillips Associates, Inc. Nancy Phillips (603) 658-0004 Northeast Dealer Services Jim Schaffer (781) 255-6399 O’Connor & Drew, P.C. Kevin Carnes (617) 471-1120 Performance Management Group, Inc. Mark Puccio (508) 393-1400 PreOwned Auto Logistics Anthony Parente (877) 542-1955 R.L. Tennant Insurance Agency, Inc. Walter F. Tennant (617) 969-1300 Reflex Lighting Daryl Swanson (617) 269-4510 Resources Management Group J. Gregory Hoffman (800) 761-4546 Reynolds & Reynolds Mike O’Connor (860) 462-7958 Robinson Donovan Madden & Barry, P.C. James F. Martin, Esq. (413) 732-2301 Samet & Company John J. Czyzewski (617) 731-1222 Santander Bank Richard Anderson (401) 432-0749 Schlossberg & Associates, LLC Michael O’Neil, Esq. (781) 848-5028 Sentry Insurance Company Eric Stiles (715) 346-7096 Shepherd & Goldstein CPA Ron Masiello (508) 757-3311 Southern Auto Auction Joe Derohanian (860) 292-7500 Sprague Energy Robert Savary (603) 430-7254 SunPower Christie McCarthy (408) 457-2357 Kristin Hodges (707) 694-7759 SunTrust Bank Michael Walsh (617) 345-6567 Target Dealer Services Andrew Boli (508) 564-5050 TD Auto Finance Marc Gerhart (781) 697-1525 TrueCar Pat Watson (803) 360-6094 US Bank Vincent Gaglia (716) 649-0581 Wells Fargo Dealer Services Deb Hogan (508) 951-8334 Zurich American Insurance Company Steven Megee (774) 210-0092
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The Roundup
Biennial Tradition Legislature Coming Down the Stretch By Robert O’Koniewski, Esq. MSADA Executive Vice President rokoniewski@msada.org Follow us on Twitter • @MassAutoDealers
Like a broken record that repeats itself, if it is July of an election year, the mad legislative dash is on. Count on it. Like the not-so-dutiful student who waits until the night before to do the book report, hoping that the book is in fact read by then, our solons take pride in pushing the time limit to complete work on all controversial matters. As we go to press the Massachusetts legislature has turned for home and is poised for the stretch run on the completion of its formal sessions, scheduled by the rules for midnight on July 31. Once we achieve that deadline, legislators will be forced to get their legislative wants passed in the informal sessions, which will continue until Tuesday, January 1, 2019, when only matters receiving unanimous consent can be approved. You may recall the legislative saga for the current two-year session commenced in January 2017 with bill filings and committee referrals, plus the traditional setting of joint House-Senate rules and the naming of committees and their chairs. Unlike past years when the start of a session was highlighted by House-Senate rules infighting, this time around the process was complicated with the leadership chaos in the Senate, surrounding what Senate President Stan Rosenberg’s husband may or may not allegedly have done to sexually intimidate lobbyists and legislators and what President Rosenberg may or may not have known regarding those alleged actions. In the end, once the Senate’s ethics committee investigation of the Rosenberg matter was underway, which included the resignation of Sen. JULY 2018
Massachusetts Auto Dealer www.msada.org
Rosenberg from his leadership position as well as from his senate seat, the Senate’s top spot went to Sen. Harriette Chandler (D-Worcester), who was seen as a calming influence in the chamber and who pledged to guide the body, albeit temporarily, through its troubled waters. So, as one can imagine with any type of blood in the water when leadership chaos is involved, a handful of senators began lobbying their colleagues to take over the top spot for good. By the time the dust quickly settled, Sen. Karen Spilka (D-Ashland), the chair of the powerful Senate Ways and Means Committee, declared she had garnered the support of enough senators to be the next Senate President. Strangely enough, Senators Chandler and Spilka announced that the transfer of power would occur the week before the July 31 session end. And so, as we go to press, Sen. Spilka now holds the gavel for the upper chamber – the Senate’s third president this year. While this was all taking place, the Legislature finally sent the fiscal year 2019 budget to Governor Baker, three weeks past the July 1 start of the fiscal year. Further, as the budget compromise was being hashed out, ten House-Senate conference committees still were working on agreements regarding increased consumer data protection, civics education, environmental bond spending, expanded veterans benefits, voter enrollment reforms, short-term rental (AirBnB) regulation, health care, education funding formulas, animal welfare, and clean energy. To top it off, the two chambers finally decided to take up the governor’s economic development
MSADA bill in July with the goal of doing a preagreed upon bill so as not to fall short of the July 31 deadline. Nevertheless, we have several matters of interest to our dealers still kicking around, which we are working to get over the finish line this year (they do not necessarily need to be done by July 31, but could get accomplished in the informal sessions over the next five months.) • Used Vehicle Record Book (Senate 2269). This bill would allow new car dealers to maintain in a dealer’s DMS the information demanded of the used vehicle record book without having to duplicate the recording of the info into a hand-kept book or the electronic version of the book. The Senate passed the legislation earlier this year, and the House referred it to the Ways and Means Committee. Our next steps are to get it out of this committee and approved by the full House. • Inspection Station Licensure (Senate 2261). We have been working with the Baker Administration and the Registry of Motor Vehicles to address the problem of new dealerships not being able to be licensed as vehicle inspection facilities. As a result of the intransigence of the RMV to recognize that a problem exists and that dealerships need to be able to inspect vehicles they are selling in order to maintain high customer satisfaction scores, your association asked legislators to file legislation to grant franchised dealerships a license upon request. Senate 1911, filed by Sen Vinny deMacedo (R-Plymouth), and House 3433, filed by Rep Chris Markey (D-Dartmouth), received favorable reports from the Joint Committee on Transportation and were referred to each’s respective committee on ways and means. The Senate subsequently approved Senate 2261, and then the House referred it to the Ways and Means Committee. Our next steps are to get the Senate-passed bill out of this committee and approved by the full House. We continue to work on our legislative matters through July and into the remaining months of the legislative year. We will
have a full recap of the Legislature’s work in our August edition.
FTC Buyers Guide Enforcement Sweep The Federal Trade Commission on July 12 announced results of a recent nationwide “compliance sweep of car dealerships” reviewing used cars offered for sale by those dealerships for inclusion of the recently-revised version of the “Buyers Guide.” The FTC conducted their compliance sweep in April and June, “jointly with 12 partner agencies in seven states.” The federal Used Car Rule requires dealers to display on each used car offered for sale a window sticker, called a “Buyers Guide,” that includes warranty and other important information for consumers. The FTC recently revised the Used Car Rule and issued a revised Buyers Guide that dealers have been required to use since January 28, 2018. The FTC and local compliance inspectors “found Buyers Guides on 70 percent of the more than 2,300 vehicles inspected, with almost half of those displaying the revised Buyers Guide. Of the 94 dealerships inspected, 33 had the revised Buyers Guide on more than half of their vehicles, and 14 had revised Buyers Guides on all of their used cars.” It is unclear whether the dealerships visited were franchised new-car dealers. What is clear, however, is the need to remind all dealers to be vigilant with this new requirement. If you are not yet using the revised Buyers Guide, it is important that you start using it today, and make sure a copy is on every used vehicle you offer for sale. Your Association sells the new Buyers Guide through its form program with Reynolds & Reynolds. To order, call (800) 344-0996 or visit www.ReySource.com Dealers with questions about the rule or the revised form should review the NADA Dealer Guide to the Used Car Rule and the Revised Buyers Guide, as well as several NADA revised Buyers Guide webinars. The FTC has additional information about the Used Car Rule at its website www.msada.org
at www.ftc.gov: Dealer’s Guide to the Used Car Rule; and in an FAQ document that the FTC issued in conjunction with NADA, “Answering Dealers’ Questions about the Revised Used Car Rule”.
MSADA Dealers Hall of Fame, October 3-5 Your Association cordially invites you to attend the inaugural induction of our honorees for the Massachusetts Auto Dealers Hall of Fame, October 3-5, 2018, at the Chatham Bars Inn on Cape Cod. At its June Board meeting, based on nominations made by you – our member dealers – the directors selected the following five individuals to represent our first class in the Hall: Paul Balise; Ernie Boch, Sr.; Raymond Ciccolo; Herb Connolly; and Alvin Fuller. Over the 78-year existence of our Association, thousands of individuals and their families have contributed to build what our industry is here today in the Commonwealth. At the same time, dealers across this great country have been known to be the most giving benefactors to charitable causes of all stripes – from the local Little Leagues and soup kitchens and food pantries, on up to building orphanages and hospital wings. To celebrate the success of our industry in Massachusetts, your Association is excited to announce the unveiling of the inaugural class of the Massachusetts Auto Dealers Hall of Fame. To help celebrate this ceremony with our honorees and their families, we invite you to attend the events at the Inn. Please use the registration materials we have sent you. Your Association will pick up the cost of our member dealers’ hotel room during their stay. Your Association is humbled to honor these first five individuals who played a vital role in building our industry in Massachusetts. We are looking forward to celebrating their induction with their families and you – our member dealers who helped create the honorees list. Should you require additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me. t Massachusetts Auto Dealer
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Troubleshooting
MSADA
Monitoring Employee Phone Calls By Peter Brennan, Esq.
MSADA
Staff Attorney To review customer service practices and ensure compliance with dealership protocol, some dealerships have installed systems that monitor employee phone calls on the dealership’s phone system. If your dealership has installed, or is looking to install, such a system, you will need to keep the considerations covered in this article in mind. First and foremost, Massachusetts is a “two-party consent” state when it comes to surreptitiously recording a conversation, whether that conversation be in-person, over the phone, or through another means. (See the Massachusetts Wiretapping Law, M.G.L. ch. 272, § 99). Under the law, all parties to a conversation that is being recorded must be informed, at the outset of the conversation, that some means of recording is taking place. Once a party to the conversation has been informed that it is being recorded, it is up to that party to leave the conversation if they do not wish to be recorded. As a practical matter, this means that the dealership must ensure that all callers who contact the dealership hear a recording that we are all familiar with: “This telephone conversation may be monitored and or recorded for quality assurance and training purposes.” If the technology is available, it would be advisable to set this recording to play at the beginning of every outgoing call as well. However, even if the technology does exist, it may not be JULY 2018
practicable, as many people will hang up the phone if the first thing they hear is a recording. Another method of compliance would be to train employees to inform every person that they call that the call is being recorded. This method may be fraught with peril, as one forgetful or lazy employee could result in a lawsuit. Ask yourself, how well do I trust my employees to remember to notify the person who they call that the call is being recorded every single time? For this reason, many dealerships only monitor incoming calls to avoid the risk of litigation. Another factor to consider is the privacy rights of your employees. Generally, an employee’s right to privacy must be balanced against the employer’s legitimate business interests, and whether an employee has a “reasonable expectation to privacy” under the circumstances. On a dealership phone line, employees should have no reasonable expectation of privacy. However, federal law may still prohibit employer monitoring of telephone calls unless certain exceptions are met. The federal Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) prohibits the intentional and nonconsensual interception of any wire, oral or electronic communication. Two exceptions to the law allow employers to monitor their employees’ telephone and email communications. First, the Business Extension Exception to the ECPA excludes from the law communications that happen over telephone-company-provided equipment in the ordinary course of business. An employee using a dealership phone system would likely be covered by this exception. However, this exception can prove difficult to administer in practice without the following exception also in place. Second, the Consent Exception to the ECPA provides that interception of a communication is allowed when one party to the communication has given prior consent. So if an employee consents to
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having his or her phone calls monitored, that employee will not have a cause of action against the employer under the ECPA when the calls are indeed monitored. Accordingly, the dealership should give notice of his or her phone monitoring system to all employees and should get each employee’s written consent to have his or her phone calls monitored. While an employee may consent to having his or her “work” calls recorded, he or she may not consent to having personal calls recorded, and courts have ruled that consent to have “work” calls recorded will not suffice to protect an employer from litigation under that ECPA if the employer records personal calls as well. Accordingly, certain steps should be taken to ensure compliance with the ECPA. If monitoring all calls, the dealership must cease monitoring any call that appears to be of a personal nature (even if it is on company time and through the company phone system). Employees should be warned not to make any personal calls on the phone line that is being monitored and should sign a consent form that explicitly states that all phone calls on the dealership phone system may be monitored, and that employees are prohibited from using dealership phones for personal business. At the dealership’s discretion, the dealership can offer an unmonitored phone line for employees to use if they must make a personal call. The penalties for violating the ECPA are severe, and can include criminal penalties, the greater of actual damages plus profits or statutory damages, injunctive and declaratory relief, punitive damages, attorneys’ fees and costs. t If you have questions regarding the topics covered here, or any other issue, please contact Robert O’Koniewski, MSADA Executive Vice President, at rokoniewski@ msada.org, or Peter Brennan, MSADA Staff Attorney, at pbrennan@msada.org, or by phone at (617) 451-1051.
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ACCOUNTING
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Why Dealers Need to Learn About Vulnerability Assessments Nick DeLena O’Connor & Drew, P.C
Nick leads engagements across the division’s primary practice areas, including audit, security, and advisory services. He is an 18-year veteran of IT and IT risk management, having audited, consulted, and managed IT teams in a variety of industries. Contact him at ndelena@ocd-tech.com.
We are coming up on the one-year anniversary of the massive Equifax data breach. Over 143 million Americans had their personal data stolen in this attack. Many people at Equifax lost their jobs, and the company has spent millions of dollars defending itself in thousands of lawsuits. Before Equifax, we were reeling over the two Yahoo! breaches that impacted all of its three billion user accounts. Why do these breaches keep occurring? If you have not followed the story that closely, you might be surprised to learn that Equifax was not breached through some technical wizardry. Instead, a hacker exploited a known software bug in Equifax’s web server. The fix for the bug was released months earlier by the web server’s software vendor but was never installed by the Equifax team. To draw a parallel with the auto industry, this would be akin to a significant safety issue discovered in a car, resulting in a recall, with the owner ignoring all attempts to be notified. If the result of the owner’s inaction was a fatal accident, would you be surprised? Software and hardware are not perfect. JULY 2018
These products are made by tired and distracted humans, often under hurried deadlines. Problems are often identified after a product has shipped. Many of the leading vendors will issue software and firmware “patches” - or fixes (think of patching a rip in fabric). Bigger vendors like Microsoft bundle all but the most critical patches into monthly releases, dubbed “Patch Tuesday” - distributed for customers to apply to their systems.
network on a weekly or more frequent basis to identify potential vulnerabilities. There are many scanners available from free, open-source scanners to premium commercial products that can be quite expensive. These scanners maintain a database of known vulnerabilities to match against what they see on your network. They can generate alerts or reports when they find a system on your network they identify as vulnerable. These alerts or re-
“Software and hardware are not perfect. These products are made by tired and distracted humans, often under hurried deadlines.” Many systems can easily be configured to apply patches automatically or at least alert and report on systems that are missing patches. Given all these tools and capabilities, how is it that Equifax missed something so simple, especially with hundreds of millions of dollars spent on IT systems? The answer appears to be simple: They did not take it seriously. Vulnerability management is such a critical process; it is listed in the top three critical IT security activities by the Center for Internet Security. They recommend all organizations scan all systems on their
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ports can then serve as to-do list for your IT support staff to take action upon. The National Cyber Security Alliance found that as much as 60% of hacked small- and medium-sized businesses close their doors permanently within six months of a data breach. The consequences of inaction are staggering. Do not lose everything you have built over something as simple as failing to apply a simple update. Build your vulnerability management program today. t
MSADA
Legal By Joseph W. Ambash and Jeffrey A. Fritz
The Grand Bargain – Not So Grand for Your Dealership In late June, Massachusetts set in motion a plan to increase its minimum wage to $15 per hour and create a paid family and medical leave program as part of a “grand bargain” between employee advocates and business community representatives. The plan also will eliminate premium pay for Sundays and holidays and make the annual sales tax holiday permanent.
Minimum Wage Up, Sunday Premium Pay Out The new law will raise the minimum wage gradually to $15 per hour by January 1, 2023. It will increase to $12 on January 1, 2019, $12.75 on January 1, 2020, $13.50 on January 1, 2021, $14.50 on January 1, 2022, and $15 on January 1, 2023. The law also will update the Massachusetts Blue Laws to gradually eliminate the obligation to pay retail employees time-and-a-half for hours worked on Sundays and holidays by 10% each year until it is eliminated in 2023.
Paid Family & Medical Leave The law also establishes paid family and medical leave, with the first payouts beginning on January 1, 2021. The leave may be used for bonding with a newborn child (or child placed for adoption) within 12 months of birth or adoption, as well as a qualifying exigency related to a family member’s service in the armed forces. Medical leave is available to care for an employee’s own or a family member’s serious health condition. While largely based on the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, the Massachusetts statute is much broader: • Covered employees are eligible for up to 12 weeks for family leave and 20 weeks for medical leave (with a combined maximum of 26 weeks in any year); • In addition to spouses, children, and parents covered by FMLA, Massachusetts has expanded “family” to include parentsin-law, domestic partners, grandchildren, grandparents, and siblings with respect to
for whom covered leave may be used; • Employers cannot require employees to exhaust other forms of paid time off before or during the use of paid family and medical leave; and • Former employees remain eligible for leave within 26 weeks of separation from their employer. The newly created Department of Family and Medical Leave is charged with implementing a trust fund as the depository for all employer contributions. Employers with 25 or more employees must contribute 0.63 percent of each employee’s wages starting on July 1, 2019. Employers are responsible for paying 60 percent of the contribution for medical leave, and can deduct the remaining 40 percent from an employee’s wages. However, employers are not obligated to pay any part of the family leave contribution, because the law permits them to deduct 100 percent of the contribution from the employee. The benefit rate is based on a calculation involving the “state average weekly wage” and the individual’s average weekly wage, with a maximum weekly benefit of $850. The amount of an employee’s average weekly wage that is less than or equal to 50 percent of the state average weekly wage is replaced at 80 percent, and the amount of an employee’s average weekly wage greater than 50 percent of the state average weekly wage is replaced at 50 percent. The law prohibits employers from retaliating against employees for using paid family or medical leave and subjects employers to serious liability for doing so, including triple damages and attorneys’ fees. The law also creates a presumption that any “negative change in seniority, status, employment benefits, pay or other terms or conditions of employment” within six months of an employee’s return from paid leave is presumed to be retaliatory. To overcome the presumption, an employer must be able to demonstrate with “clear and convincing” evidence it would have done the same thing in the absence of the www.msada.org
employee’s leave. Finally, employers will also be required to post a notice created by the Department of Family and Medical Leave and inform all employees of the law and the rights afforded by it.
What to Do Now In anticipation of the law’s effective date, you should prepare to take the following steps to make sure you stay on the right side of the law: • Evaluate employees’ pay and work schedules to ensure that, as the minimum wage increases, affected employees’ rates of pay are increased; • Monitor Sunday and holiday work and be cognizant of the annual changes work so you are calculating premium pay properly; • Review employee payroll to determine the proper family and medical leave contributions and make arrangements to cover the employer’s contribution; • Update your handbook and policies to comply with the law’s new requirements; • Train your managers and HR staff on compliance with the new leave law.
When Does This Start? The bulk of the “grand bargain” is effective on January 1, 2019. Contributions for paid family and medical leave will begin in July 2019, and the first payouts will not occur until January 2021. t
Joe Ambash is the Managing Partner and Jeff Fritz is a partner at Fisher Phillips, LLP, a national labor and employment firm representing hundreds of dealerships in Massachusetts and nationally. They can be reached at (617) 722-0044.
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AUTO OUTLOOK
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COVER STORY
The Dividends of
“While our contributions to the economy in jobs and tax dollars amount to hundreds of millions each year, as an Association we want to help dealers do more.” –Robert O’Koniewski, MSADA Executive Vice President
Giving Back Dealers make ideal advocates for charities, and MSADA is ready to assist them. By Gabi Gage What makes a good corporate citizen? Just ask any dealer that gives back to his or her community. For decades, Massachusetts auto dealers across the state have led by example, supporting charities from small local groups to large international organizations. Part of what makes dealers ideal advocates for charities are the unique set of skills developed by every successful dealership in the industry. An ability to build relationships across all walks of life, access to local communities, and strong communications skills are just a few of a dealer’s attributes that can make a unique, positive impact on charitable causes.
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Building Relationships “I want to make an impact and lasting difference, strengthen the community, and meet others with similar interests, so I can form lifelong relationships,” explains Gary Rome of the Gary Rome Auto Group on his own dedication to charitable giving. The group recently participated in its “Year of Excellence” campaign, giving away a new 2018 Hyundai Accent to a deserving high school senior planning on commuting to college in the Fall. Prior to the final selection, the Gary Rome Auto Group had selected 15 finalists from a group of about 130 students who had maintained a 3.0 GPA, further encouraging academic excellence within the community. They also have partnered with Rays of Hope, a local organization dedicated to fighting against breast cancer through the Drive Pink Campaign. “We are giving away free pink license plate frames to anyone who visits our dealership with the promise that we will donate $5 per plate to Rays of Hope,” says the Gary Rome Auto Group’s Irene Costello. “It is our goal to donate $25,000 by the end of 2018. Thus far, we are about halfway to our goal.” Collaboration within the community extends to local charities, as well. “Many of the relationships we have built in our local communities span years,” explains Alexa Napolitan, Marketing Communications Coordinator for Balise Automotive Group. “Once the initial partnerships are born, it’s so wonderful to see them strengthen year-after-year. These relationships are what you make of them, so the more time you are willing to dedicate, the greater the impact.”
Balise has partnered with Hasbro Children’s Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island, over the last three years as their local beneficiary. In June, Balise delivered two motorized ride-on vehicles for patients at the hospital’s Pediatric Cancer Unit. The vehicles transport children “from their rooms to the operating room in effort to give the children joy during a stressful, nerve-wracking time,” she says. Balise also donated nearly $100,000 to the Subaru “Share the Love” campaign to the Hospital to date. Other philanthropic endeavors include Big Brothers Big Sisters, the Boys & Girls Club of Cape Cod and Rhode Island, Junior Achievement of Western MA, a number of youth sports programs, and hosting their fifth Always Adopt Super Dog Adoption Day at Balise Toyota of Warwick in which more than 350 dogs found forever homes. “It is one of our favorite days of the year,” adds Napolitan, who credits the event with finding more than 2,000 dogs homes since its inception.
Spreading the Word, Inspiring Change The work done by dealerships not only benefits a charity through an individual gift, it has the potential to spur and inspire other giving. Village Automotive Group owner Ray Ciccolo is one exemplar of how individual efforts and relations can grow over time to make a huge impact. After many decades of philanthropy, what began as Ray Ciccolo wanting to give back is now the Ciccolo Family Foundation. The foundation works extensively with both local and global charities, serving as a lifeline of resource and giving. Ciccolo estimates the foundation contributes more than $300,000 a year on local charities alone, such as the Greater Boston Food Bank, Crossroads, Charles River Conservancy, and international organizations, including Global Smile. Global Smile includes volunteers and medical professionals “who have been actively involved with global outreach programs for 20+ years in countries in Latin America, Africa, and the Indian Subcontinent.” www.msada.org
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RACEDIVIDENDS TO THE FINISH THE OF GIVING BACK Ciccolo is a GSF Board member and has traveled as a GSF volunteer for many years. The Foundation has sponsored a trip to countries like Ecuador to provide corrective surgical and dental procedures to patients born with cleft lip and palate deformities. Other recent philanthropic activities include underwriting a school for orphans in Haiti through Needham-based Alliance for Children Foundation and a recent gift of $25,000. Media footprint and relationships built within the community uniquely position dealers to advocate and build awareness for issues and charities that might otherwise go unnoticed. “If dealerships make impactful alliances with local charities, the benefits will be bigger, resulting in greater awareness and a longer shelf life,” explains Gary Rome. “I am so lucky to be able to see the impact our community action has on these organizations first-hand,” adds Balise’s Napolitan. “It is especially meaningful when children and families are involved. To see the joy, the smiles, and sometimes, joyful tears, shared during moments ...it’s just so powerful.” Ciccolo’s advice for dealers who want to get started with charity work, but are daunted by the sheer number of worthy causes: start small and local, even if it begins with one individual. “Ask your employees who they might like to contribute to and start exploring local charities in your neighborhood,” Ciccolo says. “You will find out very interesting things— like a neighbor or family member has cancer and cannot afford the treatment, or the personal story of someone in need. A small amount of money can go a very long way and get you started with giving back.” The legacy of giving can even become multigenerational. For the TommyCar Auto Group, giving back to the community is a part of their legacy. TommyCar Auto Group’s Carla and Thomas Consenzi follow in their late father Thomas E. Cosenzi’s footsteps by making sure they give back to the community, like their father did before them. This year they continued by naming the 2018 recipients of the Tom Cosenzi Scholarship, which awarded each of two graduating high school seniors demonstrating “excellence in the classroom and in the community” a $1,000 scholarship towards college in the Fall. This year’s recipients are Alli Zadworny, graduating from Northampton High School, and Benjamin Andersen of Hopkins Academy. “The quality of the applications we received has been amazing,” said Carla Cosenzi, president of Tommy Car Auto Group. “We are pleased to award these scholarships to the students to support their pursuit of education and exploration of career paths,” says Consenzi.
Strengthening the Whole Finally, giving back also strengthens the whole, as a community and as a dealership. Dialoguing with communities about social issues furthers the role of a dealership within a particular community, and strengthens the bonds between employees and JULY 2018
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owners, both seeing the investment in a community as a longtime member. “It sends a message to the employees as well that as a business we want to be responsible to the community. If you want them to be responsible to you (as employees), then you have to be responsible to the community,” says Ciccolo. MSADA has stepped in to help dealers make this type of work stretch even further, with a program that matches up to $1,500 in dealer donations made in their communities. While the program continues to grow each year, Executive Vice President Robert O’Koniewski is always looking to help more dealers participate. “Each of us has a responsibility to make our hometown a little better than it is right now,” O’Koniewski says. “MSADA’s core mission is to advance the best interests of our industry, and we realize that our industry thrives only when our local communities thrive. While our contributions to the economy in jobs
and tax dollars amount to hundreds of millions each year, as an Association we want to help dealers do more.” These dealers known for their charitable work all agree, that once you get started, you will be hooked. “We are lucky to be in the position we are in to be good corporate citizens, and it is our duty and absolute honor to support our communities,” says Napolitan. “It feels good to give back! It is so important to give back to the community we live in. This is where we chose to live and work. It is our responsibility to plant, fertilize, and grow something greater,” explains Rome. “It is probably the most fun of anything you can possibly do,” Ciccolo notes. “To see how you turn people’s lives around and give them another opportunity, what could be better than that?” t For more information about MSADA’s matching program, email rokoniewski@msada.org.
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NEWS the NEWS from Around Around the Horn Horn from Around NEWSfrom
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Tracy VW Earns 50th Anniversary Recognition Brad Tracy, fourth from left, dealer principal of Tracy Volkswagen, recently received a 50-year award from Volkswagen of America. Also pictured are, from left, Brian Morrison, VW sales operations manager; Michael Tocci, VW northeast region vice president; Jim Helgerson, Tracy Volkswagen general manager; Jay Tracy, founder; and Jeff Tracy, vice president. The distinction was featured in Automotive News.
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NEWS from Around the Horn
BOSTON
Herb Chambers Companies Receives J.D. Power Dealer of Excellence Award Twelve Herb Chambers dealerships in Massachusetts have received the prestigious J.D Power Dealer of Excellence Award for the Customer Sales Experience for 2018. The J.D. Power brand is a stamp of approval that provides customers with confidence when shopping for new and used vehicles. These Herb Chambers dealerships were the first in Massachusetts to receive this coveted J.D. Power award. The following dealerships were distinguished as trusted partners for purchasing a vehicle, by J.D. Power:
● Herb Chambers Lexus of Sharon ● Herb Chambers Lexus of Hingham ● Herb Chambers Honda of Seekonk ● Herb Chambers Honda of Burlington ● Herb Chambers Ford of Braintree ● Herb Chambers Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, RAM, Fiat of Millbury ● Herb Chambers Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, RAM, Fiat of Danvers ● Herb Chambers BMW of Sudbury ● Herb Chambers Lincoln of Norwood ● Herb Chambers Toyota of Auburn ● Herb Chambers Volvo Cars Norwood ● Herb Chambers Mercedes-Benz of Boston “This award is one of the highest honors our dealerships can receive,” Herb Chambers said. “It is truly a reflection of the entire team’s dedication and ability to work together.”
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Marcotte Ford Nears Completion of New Dealership As profiled in the Springfield Republican this month, the new food-centered Marcotte Ford is almost complete. The dealership, still putting on finishing touches, will feature the Lugnutz Cafe as its centerpiece. “We did something crazy,” Bryan Marcotte told the paper. “It’s a relaxed place to come, eat and talk about cars. Marcotte broke ground last year on a $8.2-million, 40,000-square-foot dealership building at 1025 Main St. The new building covers most of the old footprint of the 1962 building. Some of the structure, from what was the service department, survived. Marcotte Ford includes 142 employees, and hired eight workers for the expansion. That number includes three new employees who will work at the cafe.
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MSADA HYANNIS
Balise Ford Acquires New Manager Jasen O’Neil was recently named general manager of Balise Ford of Cape Cod. A resident of Marstons Mills, O’Neil comes to Balise after 12 years of employment with Hyannis Honda, most recently as general sales manager. He has worked in the auto sales industry for 19 years. “This was a career path that just seemed to make sense for me,” O’Neil said. “I have always been comfortable in leadership roles and, probably more importantly, I have always loved cars. I am very much looking forward to this new endeavor and a rewarding future with Balise.” A graduate of Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania, O’Neil earned certification in General Dealership Management from the NADA Dealer Academy in McLean, Virginia, in 2015.
BROOKLINE
Swedish Car Day in August The Village Automotive group is again sponsoring Swedish Car Day, August 26, at the Larz Anderson Auto Museum. Owners of Saab, Volvos, and Koenigsegg of every vintage are encouraged to come and display their favorite car. The event includes Swedish cars displayed on the lawns of the museum, guest speakers, raffle prizes, vendors, and “people’s choice” judging of the assembled cars. This is the 19th year the event has been held.
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NEWS from Around the Horn SOMERSET
Jagolinzer Completes Sale to Stern Auto Group Jonathan Stern, Ed Kardon, and Laddie Stern of the Stern Auto Group have acquired Somerset Subaru and Somerset Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram from Barry Jagolinzer. The Stern Auto Group has dealerships in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New York. New Hampshire-based Nancy Phillips Associates, an MSADA associate member, facilitated the deal. t
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ACCOUNTING MSADA
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Patrick Manzi
NADA Senior Economist
Boyi Xu
Economist
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TRUCK CORNER
ATD Celebrates America’s Trucking History By Jodie Teuton Chairwoman, American Truck Dealers ATD Chairwoman Jodie Teuton is vice president of Kenworth of Louisiana and Southland Truck Leasing in Gray, Louisiana.
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I hope you, your families, and your employees had a wonderful Fourth of July holiday. In the past week of celebrating our stars and stripes, I could not help but contemplate how lucky we are to be in a country that pioneered freedom and democracy. Those tenets, after all, are the reason we as dealers have the opportunity to engage in entrepreneurship and build the lives we imagine for ourselves. The conviction to fight for a bright future in a free nation, arising nearly three centuries ago, lives on in the truck dealers of America today. Like revolutionaries and progressive citizens, dealers are also moved to participate in the democratic process— such as engaging with our elected officials— for the betterment of our businesses and for a greater society. While we took time to honor those in uniform whose sacrifices, past and present, made this country great, we can continue to honor their heroism by contributing to this great industry of which we are lucky to be a part. Let us not forget that most of the brick and mortar going into the infrastructure of this great nation arrives via truck, which come from thousands of dealers who work hard to bring heavy- and medium-duty trucks from assembly lines to communities everywhere. The truck industry moves America forward. And just like the sweat equity required from those building a budding nation, we must continue to work hard to make sure this business is here and stable for future generations to come. There is always a great lesson in the holidays we know and love, and it is not simply centered around barbecues, days off, and sales numbers. It is vital that we all remember our roots and cherish the rich legacy of our origins. In that regard, I salute and honor the great leadership that has come
before me at ATD. Since 1970, our association has been led by 24 amazing ATD chairmen, each having unique perspectives and skill sets and each contributing to the greater good of the truck industry and the members they have represented. I find Alexis de Tocqueville’s words to be quite fitting. In his 1835 opus he said: “One of the compelling attributes of associations is their embodiment of the best values of self-government. The active participation of members in creating the vision, overseeing the activities, and guiding the governance of the association is necessary to the health and relevance of the organization.” As a proud truck dealer serving as your 25th ATD chair—and an even prouder American—I am honored to pick up the torch and continue where our own founding fathers (beginning with Chairman Reed Draper) left off. If we all think about it, our amazing military, our hard-working business community and our future generations are all working toward a mutual goal: that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. ATD and our fellow truck dealers of America contribute to this cornerstone in our own unique way. Finally, I want to thank all our ATD Board of Directors, state association executives, and member dealers who attended our fourth Annual Washington Fly-In on June 20-21. We had almost 50 participants and attended around 200 meetings with our U.S. representatives and senators, with the main topic being the repeal of the Federal Excise Tax (FET) on heavy-duty trucks. We have grown this event each year and look forward to continued success with next year’s Fly-In. t
“We must continue to work hard to make sure this business is here and stable for future generations to come.”
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NADA Update
By Scott Dube
Looking at Tariffs Scott Dube, President of Bill Dube Hyundai and MSADA Immediate Past President, represents NADA’s Massachusetts members on the NADA Board of Directors. The past few months have been a lesson in never taking politics for granted. As NADA joins manufacturers in urging the President to reorient his trade ambitions, you will see that our association is among the leading voices in the media and on Capitol Hill. This is just one of the many ways that we can show how hard NADA works for its member dealers day in and day out. We do hope, however, that you will join us in Washington in September to make sure that the grassroots core of our organization is not forgotten. We are the Main Street businesses affected when policy does not match up to reality. And while it is great to be on the same side of the trenches as manufacturers, we need to make sure the true nature of our side of the business never gets forgotten. Below, you will find NADA’s letter to President Trump calling for action, as well as other updates on this important front.
A Letter to President Trump Dear Mr. President, From your first days in the Oval Office, it has been clear that one of your priorities is keeping a vital auto industry in America. We know you are a strong advocate for America’s auto sector and dedicated to creating more auto jobs. And we know you care deeply about keeping new cars affordable so more Americans can buy them. On behalf of the almost 10 million auto workers we employ and support in this country and everyone aspiring to buy a new car or truck, we thank you. Yet for all this, your Administration is now considering the possibility of increasing import tariffs on autos and auto parts, including imports from countries where we have long-standing, mutually beneficial trading relationships. While we understand that you are working to achieve a level playing field for trade to create more jobs, raising tariffs is the wrong approach. We have come together as a united U.S. auto industry — domestic and international automobile manufacturers,
suppliers, dealers, and auto care businesses — to urge your Administration to achieve fair trade through policies that won’t jeopardize American jobs, our economy or U.S. technological leadership. Raising tariffs on autos and auto parts would be a massive tax on consumers who buy or service their vehicles, whether imported or domestically produced. These higher costs will inevitably lead to declining sales and the loss of American jobs, as well as increasing vehicle service and repair costs that may result in consumers delaying critical vehicle maintenance Mr. President, we are engaged in a high-stakes global race to drive the next generation of cutting-edge vehicle technologies. Higher auto tariffs will leave less capital for investments in innovation and less competition to promote creative and beneficial technologies. At this pivotal and transformative moment for mobility, misguided U.S. policies affecting advanced vehicle technologies will be damaging to America’s auto sector. We share your commitment to producing more auto jobs, affordable vehicles, and technological leadership. To reach these goals, we urge the Administration to takes steps to strengthen the U.S. auto industry and create American jobs by growing U.S. exports. This is the winning formula for continuing the resurgence of our auto industry, and we look forward to partnering with you to accomplish these shared goals.
NADA’s Peter Welch Warns of ‘Serious Unitnended Consqueneces’ of Tarifs NADA President and CEO Peter Welch warned of higher prices and fewer choices for consumers if the Trump Administration imposes tariffs on imported automobiles and automotive parts in a message released in July. “New tariffs on imported autos and parts, if broadly implemented, would hurt the auto industry, and our customers and our economy as a whole,” Welch said in a video released this month. “Broad-based tariffs on autos and auto parts will result in serious unintended consequences. Ironically, some domestic brands could get hit harder than international brands. And, ultimately, American customers will be confused with fewer choices and pay higher prices.” Welch added that a 25-percent tariff on cars and light-duty trucks, which could result in average prices increasing by thousands of dollars, would be the worst-case scenario. “At NADA, our priority is preserving consumer choice and affordability,” he said. “Our customers are already strapped to make car payments because of rising interest rates, rising commodity prices and other regulatory www.msada.org
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schemes, such as increased CAFE standards.” On June 29, NADA filed written comments with the U.S. Department of Commerce concerning its investigation that will determine if the importation of automobiles and auto parts are a threat to U.S. national security. “Our message has been clear: We support the president’s goals, but the imposition of tariffs on imported autos and auto parts is not the right tool to achieve his goal and may in fact trigger a trade war of retribution that could be bad for our economy as a whole and even worse for our customers,” Welch added. Welch is scheduled to testify at a Department of Commerce hearing later this month. NADA has also met with officials from the Department of Commerce and the White House, and is discussing the issue with members of Congress. “The key to diffusing this issue is educating policymak-
tomotive Industry Event of the Year” includes educational workshop sessions, dealer franchise meetings, an Expo with more than 500 top-industry exhibitors, and many networking events. Attendee registration and hotel selection open Monday, July 23, 2018. For more details, visit NADAshow.org.
FTC Conducts Nationwide Used Car Rule Buyers Guide ‘Compliance Sweep’ The Federal Trade Commission announced results of a recent nationwide “compliance sweep of car dealerships” reviewing used cars offered for sale by those dealerships for inclusion of the recently-revised version of the “Buyers Guide.” The FTC conducted their compliance sweep in April and June, “jointly with 12 partner agencies in seven states.” The FTC characterizes this effort as the “first” such compliance sweep, which indicates a likelihood of addi-
“We have worked to make dealer adoption and implementation of the voluntary NADA/NAMAD/ AIADA Fair Credit Compliance Policy & Program as straightforward as possible.” – Peter Welch
ers and the public that tariffs on imported autos and parts is a bad idea and has more down side than up,” he said urging dealerships to get involved. “Let your local city and county managers and your local and state elected officials know what kind of sales tax hit they could take if vehicle sales suddenly drop because of import tariffs. Likewise, the next time you visit with your member of Congress, let them know that auto tariffs are a bad idea.”
NADA Show Announces Keynote Speakers The keynote speaker sessions are among the numerous attractions of NADA Show 2019, which returns to the newly-renovated Moscone Center in San Francisco from January 24-27. The 2019 speaker lineup includes: ● Friday, Jan. 25: Wes Lutz, 2018 NADA chairman, and Kat Cole, FOCUS Brands’ chief operating officer and president, North America; ● Saturday, Jan. 26: Charlie Gilchrist, 2018 NADA vice chairman, and Dana Carvey, Emmy Award-winning actor and comedian; and ● Sunday, Jan. 27: inspirational speaker Major Dan Rooney, a decorated U.S. Air Force fighter pilot, professional golfer, and philanthropist. In addition to the keynote speakers, the four-day “AuJULY 2018
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tional such efforts in the future. The federal Used Car Rule requires dealers to display on each used car offered for sale a window sticker, called a “Buyers Guide,” that includes warranty and other important information for consumers. The FTC recently revised the Used Car Rule and issued a revised Buyers Guide that dealers have been required to use since January 28, 2018. The FTC and local compliance inspectors “found Buyers Guides on 70 percent of the more than 2,300 vehicles inspected, with almost half of those displaying the revised Buyers Guide. Of the 94 dealerships inspected, 33 had the revised Buyers Guide on more than half of their vehicles, and 14 had revised Buyers Guides on all of their used cars.” It is unclear whether the dealerships visited were franchised new-car dealers. What is clear, however, is the need to remind all dealers to be vigilant with this new requirement. If you are not yet using the revised Buyers Guide, it is very important that you start using it today, and make sure a copy is on every used vehicle you offer for sale. Dealers with questions about the rule or the revised form should review the NADA Dealer Guide to the Used Car Rule and the Revised Buyers Guide, as well as several NADA revised Buyers Guide webinars. t
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