Pub. 1 2018-2019 |Issue 4

4 Craig Bickmore Executive Director THE TRICK TO COMPLIANCE IS GETTING YOUR DUCKS IN A ROW... … the problem with ducks, however, is that they are, at times, all over the place. When it comes to the term “compliance,” dealers tend to brace for impact. Automotive compliance, as we all know, is a broad umbrella term for any and all laws and regulations that dealerships are subject to. It includes laws in selling, buying, financing, insuring, and even things like customer communication formats for voice, text and email. More laws are being made every day that can gravely affect car dealerships, and with more laws comes more complication. Navigating the labyrinth of regulations is a fulltime job, and the demands placed on dealers to be compliant can be overly burdensome – especially for smaller dealerships. As dealers, we want to do the best job we can for our customers, our employees and our businesses, but a big part of doing our best is being compliant. That puts the topic of compliance at the forefront in every dealership. As an association, we want to use our combined voices and focus on the issues at hand. The strength that comes from our combined efforts is one of the many value propositions of NCDU. This past month, we pulled together a small group of thought leaders for a discussion on the subject of compliance and how we as an association can help find solutions. For those who spent their time with us – thank you! Our round- table discussion was productive and we appear to have a path forward. However, our work is not done. There will be more discussion and more meetings because compliance is a topic that we as an industry will continue to be focused on. 3