bauhaus purge: Wolters Kluwer Launches Fair Lending Training

Wolters Kluwer Financial Services today (July 10) launched a new comprehensive fair lending training program targeting the automotive, recreational vehicle, marine and powersports dealer industry, according to a press release.

Developed as a response to increased lender pressure and industry scrutiny of fair lending practices within the dealer marketplace, the training provides dealers with a comprehensive program to educate finance department personnel and equip them with fair lending standards needed to help them ensure compliance and maintain strong lender relationships.

In March, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) published Bulletin 2013-02, Indirect Auto Lending and Compliance with the Equal Credit Opportunity Act. Since then, the CFPB has issued subpoenas in an expansive probe into indirect auto lending practices, and the justice department is investigating auto dealers for their rate markup practices, hinting that further legal action targeting dealers directly may be on the horizon. It has prompted a great deal of analysis, discussion and concern within the network of dealers and their lender relationships.

?While dealers generally fall outside the jurisdiction of the CFPB, recent developments have made it clear the lenders they work with will not escape the scrutiny of regulatory bodies which enforce ECOA compliance. These lenders are certainly starting to exert pressure on dealers to find ways to demonstrate that they are in compliance with fair lending regulations,? says Chip Zyvoloski, senior attorney, indirect lending with Wolters Kluwer Financial Services. ?Our fair lending training is designed to help dealers comply with the law, protect them from risk and at the same time provide them with a way to demonstrate ongoing compliance to their lender relationships.?

The National Independent Automobile Dealers Association (NIADA) has announced their endorsement of the Wolters Kluwer Financial Services fair lending training program.