Congress Cracks Down On Lending, But Car Dealers Squeeze Through Page 2

By Bengt Halvorson

Bengt Halvorson

Deputy Editor BIO

Bengt Halvorson is Deputy Editor of High Gear Media's portfolio of car sites, overseeing the production of reviews, evaluating vehicles firsthand... More

LATEST ARTICLE
Nissan Rogue Vs. Honda CR-V: Compare Cars
For small families, the vehicle of choice is no longer the minivan or the SUV; it's the compact... Read More

• #2LEADERBOARD RANK
• 2655ARTICLES CONTRIBUTED
• 108COMMENTS POSTED

7 1,439 views Jun 25, 2010

Follow Bengt

Add to circle

Sleazy Car Salesman

Enlarge Photo

Both the House version of the bill, which was passed in December, and the Senate version, passed last month, included the provision exempting dealers. Although the Senate version had less specific language (non-binding), it did include an instruction for committee members to leave dealers out of the new rules.

Obama, consumer advocates don't get what they want

The Obama administration, as well as a number of consumer advocacy groups and even civil-rights advocates, had rallied to include auto dealers under the new regulation, but in the end the administration said that it wouldn't be a deal-breaker.

"Auto dealer-lenders" make up about 80 percent of the U.S. auto-loan industry. However there's a good and a bad in this; while dealerships can sometimes get you a slightly better deal than what you'd be able to swing through a bank or credit union on your own, the kickbacks that are commonplace in the loan industry often lead salespeople to steer low-income customers or those with bad credit toward high-fee loans that aren't in the buyer's best interest.

No relief for sketchy loans targeting military families

Officials at the Pentagon were especially vocal about adding more oversight, as members of the military and military families, as well as low-income customers, are frequently targeted by sketchy financing schemes that simply wouldn't exist with more regulation.

While there are no doubt a lot of high-fives and toasts happening at car dealerships today, it is likely, however, from the consumer side, that the new agency will reel in a few aspects of the loan industry that apply to cars: Namely, the new regulations will likely signal the end of the line for car title loans.

The only concession—admittedly a very slight one—was that the committee negotiators made provisions to allow the FTC to more quickly write new standards for dealership financing.

[New York Times, Automotive News]