FADA’s Dealer Encyclopedia is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information on a variety of day-to-day issues that arise in your dealership. It is a quick reference for every department from Sales and F&I, to Service and Administration. Your FADA staff can help you during normal business weekly business hours should you need personal attention, or more clarification. We are always happy to refer you to our legal team for advice and counsel on an as-needed basis.
Below is an alphabetical roster of all ‘DE Articles’…
- Adding a franchise and DMV license application requirements
If you are already an existing VF dealer in Florida and adding an additional franchise to an existing facility...
- Adverse Action Notice Requirements-2011
Due to a requirement under the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010, starting July 21, 2011 an adverse action notice will need to contain additional information about the consumer's credit score, if the credit score was used in the dealer's credit decision. The n...
- Advertising Guidelines
The following guidelines do not list all potential regulatory requirements for dealer advertisements.
- Are deductibles of service warranties taxable?
When repairs are made to a vehicle under a service warranty...
- Are phone authorizations for vehicle repairs allowed under Florida law?
Florida Statutes addresses in the Florida Motor Vehicle Repair Act about phone authorizations...
- Are you allowed to scan documents at the point of sale?
FADA receives questions from time to time about whether a dealer can go paperless in Florida. The answer is yes - as long as you can provide documents at anytime requested by DMV, DOR or other regulators as part of an audit or field audit. Refe...
- Cash Reporting - IRS Form 8300
The IRS has issued an updated Form 8300, effective July 1, 2011...
- Cash Reporting Form 8300
Federal law requires that businesses report cash payments of more than $10,000...
- Checklist: Facility Inspection Items Organized by Frequency
By Peter Zaidel Should the eyewash stations be tested once a week, or once a month? How often should the waste tank storage area be inspected? This helpful checklist of inspection items organized by recommended frequency will help with prioritizatio...
- Damage Disclosures
When a motor vehicle has been damaged prior to delivery, Florida damage disclosure requirements state...
- Dealer Training Schools
In regards to dealer schools, there are two separate issues: the dealer training school requirements for new applications and the continuing education requirement for independent dealers...
- Demonstrators
Demonstrator means any new motor vehicle that is carried on the records of the dealer as a demonstrator...
- Florida Motor Vehicle Repair Act Requirements
This articles covers the primary areas where our firm has seen deficiencies in Repair Act compliance by Florida dealers...
- How to Increase Your Business Twofold in the Service Drive
Would you like to multiply your business in the service drive by 2 or 3 times present dollars? FADA has a new service for your store(s) that can produce new revenues and repeat business for years to come! FADA is drafting the contracts now for a...
- How to Measure the Effectiveness of Your HR Program
By Kathryn Carlson Here are four simple metric that measure the effectiveness of your HR programs. With the average dealership spending 2.5 million on payroll cost, make sure that the money you spend on HR programs goes to hiring and retaining the bes...
- IRS Creates UNICAP Safe Harbor Methods for Dealers!
NADA Advocacy Leads to Revenue Procedure 2010-44 In a major victory for car and truck dealers, NADA has negotiated with the IRS and the result is uniform capitalization (UNICAP) "safe harbor" methods of accounting for franchised car and truck dealers...
- Is it stated that you cannot use a credit card on a finance contract?
Use of the a credit card...
- LIFO Alert - Natural Disasters May Affect LIFO
From Dixon Hughes Goodman Dealer Services Group | November 2011 The March 2011 earthquake in Japan and the more recent floods in Thailand have led to significant production shortages for Japanese brands. Dealer inventories of new vehicles at yea...
- Low-Cost Yearly Training - FADA's VIP Season Ticket
For dealerships serious about providing excellent training opportunities for all of their management team members. All live and recorded sessions available via the new FADA VIP Season Ticket - training for the whole team - for one low yearly fee of $...
- Mahindra Dealer Alert
Dealer concerns regarding the recent Global Vehicles dispute with Mahindra...
- Miscellaneous Shop Supplies
Charges for shop supplies or for hazardous or other waste removal...
- Motor Vehicle Service Agreement Refund Documentation
Referenced here is an Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) Bulletin issued to provide guidance on auto warranty refunds and the documentation that is needed to prove that a customer received a requested refund. In the first sentence and elsewhere i...
- New Notices for Retail Installment Sellers - You!
The Office of Financial Regulation is looking at revisions to their administrative procedures when mistakes are made in retail installment sales contracts.FADA is meeting with the OFR execs to work out the details. Essentially they want dealers, as r...
- Pre-Delivery Service Charge
A pre-delivery service charge is allowed under Florida law. Florida Statutes do not set an authorized amount...
- Previous Use/Branded Title Disclosure
When a vehicle was previously titled a branded vehicle...
- Record Retention Guidelines and FTC Disposal Rule
In general, most will not want to commit an answer for how long records should be retained...
- Renewing your Motor Vehicle Retail Installment Sellers License and Retail Installment Seller License(s)
REMINDER: The renewal deadline for your motor vehicle installment seller and retail installment seller license(s) is December 31. The MVRIS license is required for all dealers who finance customers for vehicles under the RISC and law contract, Chap...
- Sales and Use Tax for Out-of-state Residents
In certain situations, out of state residents can be eligible for a partial or full exemption of Florida sales and use tax...
- Sales Incentive and Warranty Audit Timelines
Florida laws specifies the allowable time frames for sales incentive and warranty audits... F.S. 320.64 (25) allows audits of warranty payments shall only be for the 1-year period immediately following the date the claim was paid. Audit of incentiv...
- Shorts - warranties, non-export agreements, crime, and education
Dept. of Revenue Challenges Goodwill Warranties FADA has been following a lawsuit that involves manufacturers being held liable for the collection of sales and use tax on goodwill warranties in Florida. The test case follows a long ago GM audit of s...
- Solid Waste Taxes and Fees
Dealerships must report solid waste taxes and fees, which include the Lead-Acid Battery Fee, a New Tire Fee and a Rental Car Surcharge
- Surety Bonds are the New Target of Trial Lawyers
FADA is working with a new coalition of dealers and surety representatives due to recent attacks on dealers' surety bonds as part of the trial lawyers' claims against dealers. The trial lawyers are now suing the surety in an attempt to collect the bo...
- Taxability of Service Warranties
A motor vehicle dealer is required to collect sales tax when a customer purchases a motor vehicle service warranty...
- Town Hall Live Recording - 2010
If you missed the 2010 Town Hall meeting - you can now order a LIVE RECORDING! FADA held meetings in five cities around the state: Jacksonville, Tallahassee, Tampa, Orlando, and Fort Lauderdale. The session was recorded live during the Tallahasse...
- UPDATED: HR Alert - Are Service Advisors Not Exempt From Overtime?
April 25, 2011 Update: In a memo to FADA from Charles Caulkins, PA, Fisher & Phillips LLP, he cautions dealers before undertaking any changes due the recent Department of Labor decisions, dealerships would be well served to discuss their propose...
- Use of Dealer License Plates
FADA recommends to put a copy of this DMV memo from Carl Ford...
- Warranty Reimbursement Responsibility
The Florida Franchise Act specifies the warranty reimbursement responsibility of a manufacturer...
- What UNICAP Victory Means to Dealers
As previous reported on the November 2010 E-News, the IRS created UNICAP Safe Harbor Methods for Dealers. Revenue Procedure 2010-44 provides for two safe harbor methods, the Retail Sales Facility Safe Harbor Method and the Reseller Without Production...
- When can credit bureaus be pulled?
A credit bureau can be pulled if...
- Where can I purchase the Buck Stops Here?
Regarding NADA’s publication and video...
- Worthless Checks
Addresses what is considered a worthless check under Florida law and the recovery processes available.
- You're the Judge: Applicant is in Drug Treatment, on Methadone: Do You Have to Hire Him?
Pending Lawsuit EEOC Sues United Insurance Company of America For Disability Discrimination RALEIGH, N.C. – A Chicago-based insurance company violated federal disability discrimination law when it refused to hire an applicant at its in Raleigh, N.C...
