THE WATERS ARE TREACHEROUS

"Squalls out on the Gulf Stream, big storms coming soon"

Jimmy Buffett - Trying to Reason with Hurricane Season

We've been protecting vehicle and other dealers for a long time, but we can't recall another period of such direct risk to our clients. Last week, the FTC published its FAQs to help dealers understand its position on vehicle pricing advertisements. This certainly drove home the need to ensure pricing is transparent and that the old ways of using asterisks and catch-all disclaimers are over. Here's a link to the FTC's content, if needed: https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2026/09/ftc-publishes-price-transparency-faqs-auto-dealers

Pay special attention to FAQ 14, in which the public, including other dealers, are encouraged to report potential violations at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and to include details about potential violations, such as attachments like screenshots and documents.

This hasn't happened in a vacuum, though. For the last month, we've been writing about several other challenges that dealers are already facing, and here are a few more:

Consumers using AI to attack them and in many cases attempting to hold them hostage with unreasonable settlement demands or face expensive litigation;
State regulators stepping up their investigations and attacks;
Private attorneys using the latest FTC guidance to ramp up their attacks on dealers. In our opinion, it won't be long before the FTC receives Freedom of Information Act requests from attorneys looking to uncover wrongful activities and then trace back to find consumers who may have been wronged.
Private consumer shopping companies are marketing their services to consumers and using social media in a way that presents dealers in a very unfavorable light, even sharing website content, text, and email communications with dealership personnel.

We could go on, but you get the idea. Dealers who stubbornly cling to old business methods and adopt a "we're too small, this will never happen to me" approach are particularly vulnerable. It's time to get your houses in order, folks. Reviews of deal jackets, advertising, training, scripts and marketing campaigns are not a luxury, they are now a MUST DO. It's time to batten down the hatches and prepare for the scrutiny that is coming.

Ignite is here to help, but we can't do it for you. Reach out to us TODAY and let's get started. info@ignitecp.com