6:15 am, December 24, 2014
DEALERS are not worried about the impact of the new FCA regulations, according to a new survey.
Auto Trader polled the views of 150 dealers about the Financial Conduct Authority rules – and 43 per cent felt the regulations would have ‘no impact’ on finance sold in showrooms.
A further 19 per cent expect the impact of the changes to be positive.
One of the most significant requirements of the regulations is for dealers to ensure customers can make repayments for any loan agreement. But more than half the dealers interviewed for the survey (52 per cent) said they felt comfortable asking their customers sensitive financial questions, compared with 35 per cent who said they were not.
Paul Harrison, Auto Trader’s head of finance (pictured above) said: ‘We know the FCA changes have been challenging for some, but the reality is most dealers have embraced the changes without too much disruption to their business.
‘On the whole, experience with the FCA itself has been positive. However, perhaps a little more needs to be done in terms of communication to help dealers confidently navigate the new finance landscape.’
A total of 56 per cent of dealers said they were either ‘very satisfied’ or ‘fairly satisfied’ with the FCA itself. But 52 per cent said they would welcome more guidance relating to car finance sales, and 13 per cent would welcome more training to feel comfortable asking customers sensitive financial information.
Sixty-five per cent urged more support from finance company partners.
- The Auto Trader survey was run in the first week of December. 76 per cent of respondents work within the independent sector, three per cent for car supermarkets and 21 per cent for franchised retailers.
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