Pub. 2 2020-2021 Issue 3

Issue 3 2021 15 WVADA c. Verify employment by directly contacting the employer and requiring a paystub. d. Verify insurance coverage by contacting the agent/ insurance company directly and requesting the policy information. e. Request two (2) sources of identification, including one (1) government-issued photo identification. f. Verify that final signatures match all documents. g. Ensure that co-applicants are scrutinized as closely as the primary applicant. h. With business applicants, obtaining a copy of the articles of incorporation or organizational document would be potentially warranted, along with a resolution from the company allowing the purchase or the entering of the transaction. Remember, most basic corporate/business information is available online with the Secretary of State. 4. Verify Funds. Appreciating that this can be somewhat difficult, but if a credit card is used, there should be some time frame of holding the vehicle until the credit card charge is approved. Likewise, verification of sufficient funds at the customer’s bank and date that the account was opened may be warranted. I also recommend requiring a cashier’s check or certified funds for large down payments. While a remote transaction is for the convenience of the customer, I would hope that a reasonable customer would understand that confirmation or receipt of funds and a delay for delivery of the vehicle would occur. It is frequent that individuals engaged in these types of fraudulent transactions may attempt to use a time-sensitive excuse or place pressure for this to occur quickly. 5. Train the Finance Manager. As we have constantly discussed over the years, the F & I department creates the most exposure for a dealership from a variety of fronts, and nothing has lessened this exposure. Make sure that your finance managers are trained on the new risks in this remote world and that safeguards are followed to avoid creating these kinds of exposure. I encourage you to audit the remote transactions regularly to ensure that these checklists are being followed. In fact, I even suggest that you consider a heightened level of approval for remote transactions. I would recommend requiring approval by your general manager or higher. Although more common, remote transactions are not so numerous to create a significant burden on higher management to approve and allow a more unbiased eye to review for areas of concern. As they become more frequent, we may need to consider having the dealership’s Red Flags program coordinator review all remote sales. As you follow these suggestions, I hope you will be able to decrease your exposure and risk from these transactions. The pressure to generate sales is obviously strong but I encourage a balance of trying to create a convenient sales process for the customer and the increased exposure faced by the dealership by losing a motor vehicle to a criminal, which in turn, will be very difficult to recapture. To close, I would like to thank our friend Richard Tilson, Vice President of Property and Casualty of USI Insurance Services for consulting with me on this article and providing background materials from USI’s latest prevention program. As we move forward in an industry in which remote sales and electronic signatures become the norm, it is necessary that we rethink our exposure and the identity theft protection program that we have had in place for the last ten (10) years. As always, the Association stands ready to assist you in this effort to decrease your exposure. t Make sure that your finance managers are trained on the new risks in this remote world and that safeguards are followed to avoid creating these kinds of exposure.