Ontario Appeal Court Sends Repeat Curbsider to Jail

Industry regulators are turning their focus to unlicensed dealers - and it may mean jail time for some prosecuted for the crime.

The Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council announced this morning the Ontario Court of Justice has upheld the decision of a lower court. 

Consequently, Andre Nicholas Campbell of Missisauga, Ontario, is headed to jail for acting as a motor vehicle dealer without registration.

Campbell was charged with acting contrary to the Motor Vehicle Dealers Act, 1990, which states one cannot act as a motor vehicle dealer unless he or she is registered under the act.

Campbell was originally sentenced to 32 days in jail (to be served intermittently on weekends) in January 2013, OMVIC reported.

He then appealed the conviction and sentence to the Ontario Court of Justice.

Justice S.R. Shamai, of the Ontario Court of Justice, upheld the conviction given by Justice of the Peace Delano Europa, and stated that Campbell "had shown a lengthy pattern of misrepresentation."

In fact, Campbell may be regretting the appeal, as the sentence was hardened a bit the second time around.

Shamai said she thought the sentence was "lenient" and ordered Campbell into custory immediately with no provision for serving his sentence on weekends.

OMVIC officials commented on the news, showing approval for the sentence.

"This sentence sends an important message to curbsiders" stated OMVIC director of investigations, Carey Smith. "The retail automotive industry is regulated in Ontario; these regulations exist to create a fair and informed marketplace and to ensure that persons acting as dealers meet the requirements set out by law."

In fact, the charges actually date back to 2006 when OMVIC Investigators found Cambell "routinely sold vehicles as a matter of business while posing as a private individual selling a personal vehicle," OMVIC officials said.

According to evidence presented at the sentencing, Campbell had actually been convicted twice previously for curbsiding: in 2001 and 2004, and the fines imposed were not paid.

OMVIC also reported many of the vehicles Campbell had sold illegally were previously accident damaged or written-off.

"This was not disclosed to the vehicle buyers, one of whom was a driver's education instructor who told Campbell the vehicle would be used by his students," OMVIC officials stated.

Ontario Appeal Court Sends Repeat Curbsider to Jail........... www.redlineautosales.ca/ontario-appeal-court-sends-repeat-curbsider-to-jail.htm 

 

ADESA Index Shows Substantial Used-Price Decline

Auction prices in Canada have remained mostly consistent in 2014 with slight fluctuation, but July told a bit of a different story, according to the ADESA Canada Used Vehicle Price Index.

The index, powered by ALG, fell substantially after being adjusted for seasonality, the company reported, dropping by an average of 0.8 percent month-over-month.

And most all segments saw a drop in price this past month.

In fact, midsize SUVs were the only segment to see prices rise, but the jump was significant. The segment saw prices spike by 2.5 percent, or $305, from June.

Interestingly, another van segment found itself at the other end of the spectrum.

According to the index, minivan prices fell at the fastest rate last month, falling by a whopping 10.4 percent, or $1,067, in July.

This segment was followed - though not closely - by the mid-compact cars, which saw prices drop by 4.7 percent, or $396.

Midsize cars were up next with a price decline of 4.3 percent, or $419.

Lastly, full-size pickups dropped by 1.8 percent ($333), and compact SUVs fell by 2.8 percent, or $343.

Used-car prices were on the way down in July, but new-vehicle sales were heading in the opposite direction, with a reported increase of 11.3 percent year-over-year. This performance marks the best July for new-car sales on record, ALG analysts pointed out.

Year-to-date, new-car sales are up 4.1 percent, a number that could bode well for trade-ins at dealerships, as used supply remains tight.

That said, relief could be on the horizon.

The latest RVI Risk Outlook report indicates that used-car supply will likely increase over the next five years. Consequently, within this time frame, used-car prices - on a nominal level - are predicted to drop by 4 percent from current levels by 2017.

And ALG predicts that between last month and July 2018, used supply will increase by 178,000 units. 

Adesa Index Shows Substantial Used Price Decline........... www.redlineautosales.ca/adesa-index-shows--substantial--used-price-decline.htm  

TRADER Corp. is entering the online auction ring with its new product TRADER Exchange.

The new dealer-to-dealer auction tool gives TRADER's dealer customers a way to wholesale vehicles without leaving the portal they have used to retail units to customers in the past.

In an interview with Auto Remarketing Canada, Gayle Kosokowsky, director of B2B marketing at TRADER, said, "The new tool gives dealers another option to wholesale their vehicles, and it is fully integrated into the TRADER Control Center, which is the same software that they use to get their inventory out on the Web.

"It is the exact same software, so the move to using TRADER Exchange should be seamless and easy for the dealer," she added.

The tool will be available through the TRADER Dealer app, as well, for dealers to buy and sell on the go through their mobile devices.

Kosokowsky explained the reasoning behind the dealer-to-dealer auction launch is an effort to provide a "one-stop shop" for dealers.

"Right now, the dealers don't have the opportunity to purchase and sell directly to dealers through our tools, and this tool allows them to do so," she said.

TRADER Exchange is set to launch in mid- to late September, and will only be available to TRADER customers.

It will be initially available to Ontario dealers only, but Kosokowsky said the auction will be going nationwide in early 2015.

Here's how it works. Posting vehicles on TRADER Exchange requires dealers to go through four steps.

First, of course, dealers will select vehicles from their inventory list to offer in the dealer-to-dealer auction space.

Next up is filling in reconditioning details. TRADER is currently working on a partnership with CarProof to integrate its new RECON tool into the Exchange program. "The recon portion is just so that dealers are fully aware of what is happening with the vehicle, also the vehicle history report, and that's just because in a physical auction you can look at the vehicle and see what is happening, but here this is just building an element of trust for us on our online auction customers," Kosokowsky said.

Next, up dealers will fill out auction details, which includes changes in the inventory information within Control Center. For example, dealers can alter the price from retail to wholesale, and/or make the listing comments more specific for dealer-to-dealer sales, rather than dealer-to-consumer.

Lastly, the dealer must schedule his or her auction. The minimum timeframe for TRADER Exchange auctions is 20 minutes, and auctions can go up to eight hours.

During initial market research and focus groups with dealers, Kosokowsky said dealers said they wanted to keep the auction timelines short.

"The reasoning was a sense of urgency, so they aren't dragging things out over days and days and take up their time and attention when they may or may not get the vehicle," she said. "That was one problem cited with online auctions ... is you never know if you are going to get the vehicle, even if you have the highest bid, because in the live trade scenario, the dealer may only be considering taking a trade-in. So they don't actually have the vehicle yet, and it is still with the owner."

With live trades, dealers are bidding on a vehicle the other dealer may not have his hands on yet, so by making the auction times shorter, dealers are spending less time and investment on individual auctions.

TRADER is only offering the tool to licensed dealers, of course, and is also making it easier for participating dealers to post their registration numbers.

"We have been collecting their registration numbers and including them in the ads for them and their dealer profiles," said Kosokowsky.  "Rather than them having to post them every time, which in some provinces you have to do, we are collecting them so it just happened automatically for the dealers."

Two weeks before launch, participating dealers will be allowed to start posting inventory, as this will give TRADER an idea of the amount of inventory TRADER Exchange will tout when they open the virtual doors and allow for bidding to start.

Trader to Launch Dealer to Dealer Online Auction............ www.redlineautosales.ca/trader-to-launch-dealer-to-dealer-online-auction.htm 

 

KAR Acquires 50% Stake in Toronto-Based TradeRev

Continuing a flurry of significant industry moves, KAR Auction Services announced Tuesday that its business unit ADESA has acquired a 50-percent stake in Toronto-based Nth Gen Software and its online vehicle remarketing system, TradeRev.

KAR officials indicated the total purchase price for the transaction is approximately $30 million in cash.

ADESA also announced that it has entered into a joint marketing agreement with TradeRev to assist in expanding its footprint in the dealer-to-dealer online space in the U.S. and Canadian markets.

The company highlighted ADESA will be the exclusive provider of certain products and services to TradeRev's customers. Officials added that ADESA will also leverage its 65 auction locations across North America and the company's strong online auction presence and dealer network to support TradeRev's diverse dealer offerings.

ADESA president and chief executive officer Stéphane St-Hilaire explained TradeRev is an online automotive remarketing system where dealers can launch and participate in real-time vehicle auctions at any time from their mobile devices or desktop.

"TradeRev allows dealers to obtain instant bids while the retail customer is sitting in the showroom by providing a private, customized network for buyers and sellers that quickly and efficiently moves fresh trades," St-Hilaire said.

"We acknowledge that dealers are using technology more and more to buy and sell cars," he continued. "In that regard, TradeRev is a natural evolution in the dealer-to-dealer space which includes approximately 20-22 million transactions a year."

Mark Endras, the president, founder and creator of TradeRev, and the company's management team own the other 50 percent interest in TradeRev.

"We have long admired ADESA's ability to deliver simple, consistent solutions in the used-vehicle market and the company's capability to provide a broad network of users across Canada and the United States," Endras said.

"TradeRev has always believed in providing dealers and wholesalers cutting-edge technology to enable them to create new efficiencies within their operations," he continued. "Partnering with ADESA will allow us to share our innovative TradeRev technology with even more customers across North America."

Registered dealers list vehicles in a TradeRev auction, and participating buyers get an instant notification of new vehicles as they are posted.

"This system also has a variety of sales tools, as well as immediate analytics for accurate vehicle appraisals," officials said.

Founded in 2009, TradeRev currently operates throughout Canada and in some U.S. states.

www.redlineautosales.ca/kar-acquires-50--stake-in-toronto-based-traderev.htm 

 

Gen Y Outpaces Gen X in New-Car Sales

 

If you haven't started actively considering how to attract more younger buyers, now might be the time to do so.

According to a new study from J.D. Power, Generation Y consumers now make up a larger percentage of U.S. new-vehicle retail sales than their older Generation X counterparts.

 According to data collected by J.D. Power's Power Information Network (PIN) that illustrates that assertion, Gen Y has accounted for 26 percent of new-vehicle retail sales so far this year, compared to Gen X's 24 percent share.

The largest group of buyers remain the Baby Boomers, who accounted for 38 percent of new vehicles sold during the first half of the year.

In comparison, in 2013, Gen Y accounted for 23 percent of new vehicles sold, while Gen X bought 24 percent of new vehicles during the first half of the year.

"As Gen Y consumers enter new life stages, earn higher incomes and grow their families, their ability and desire to acquire new vehicles is increasing," said Thomas King, vice president of PIN. "As new-vehicle demand among Gen Y consumers increases, it will be important for automakers to respond to the needs of these consumers, not only in terms of the vehicle design, but also the marketing, sales and service experience."

And the gap between Gen Y and Gen X car sales will most likely continue to grow.

According to J.D. Power, Gen Y sales volume is expected to grow 17 percent this year when compared to 2013.

On the other hand, Gen X sales volumes are only expected to jump up by 6 percent during 2014.

J.D. Power's PIN data shows which cars Gen Y shoppers are favoring.

According to the data, these younger customers are gravitating toward smaller vehicles, with compact/small vehicle segments accounting for nearly half of all Gen Y purchases.

In fact, the compact car segment is the most popular segment for Gen Y, with 20 percent of all vehicles sold to this group coming from this segment.

Gen X tends to lean toward larger vehicles, as this age group slightly favors midsize vehicles.

For Gen X, compact SUV is the most popular segment, making up 15 percent of sales to this generation.

Gen Y Outspaces Gen X in New-Car Sales............... www.redlineautosales.ca/gen-y-outpaces-gen-x-in-new-car-sales.htm