Dealers Do Good
Dealers are community supporters, and AIADA is highlighting their efforts through our Dealers Do Good campaign. Read below for recent examples of what dealers are doing to help the cities and towns where they operate. If you know of a dealer doing good, let us know here, or join us on Twitter or Facebook with the #DealersDoGood hashtag.
Toyota of Cedar Park was proud to partner with the Toyota/Lexus Minority Owners Dealer Association (TLMODA) and Austin/Travis County EMS for a free car seat safety check and giveaway event. The evening featured free snow cones, and the Austin/Travis County EMS had their state of the art mobile safety lab on site to help dozens of families keep their little passengers safer on the road. Additionally, any family that was in need of a car seat for their child was given one, free of charge. TLMODA shares Toyota of Cedar Park's passion for giving back, and was honored to collaborate on another worthy event in service to our community. Click here for photos from the event.
September is Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month. Since 1998, Hyundai Hope On Wheels has been supporting pediatric cancer research and creating awareness to help kids in their fight. Piazza Hyundai in of Pottstown and Piazza Hyundai of West Chester was recently featured on FOX29 to highlight its efforts with Hyundai Hope On Wheels in September. Watch the feature here (Source: FOX29).
White House Weighs Invoking Defense Law to Get Chip Data
The Biden administration is considering invoking a Cold War-era national security law to force companies in the semiconductor supply chain to provide information on inventory and sales of chips, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said Thursday. Automotive News reports that the goal is to alleviate bottlenecks that have idled U.S. car production and caused shortages of consumer electronics and to identify possible hoarding, she said in an interview. Her team for months has sought clarity into how companies allocate their semiconductor supply. But previous meetings that convened firms from different industrial sectors haven’t led to increased transparency and many companies have refused to hand over business data to the government. Read more here (Source: Automotive News).
Daimler Expands European Battery Network with 33% Stake in ACC Venture
Daimler's Mercedes-Benz said on Friday it will take a 33% stake in battery cell manufacturer Automotive Cells Company (ACC), expanding its European sourcing of battery cells key to its EV ambitions and currently produced primarily in Asia, reports Reuters. ACC, founded in 2020 by France's Stellantis and TotalEnergies, will begin supplying Mercedes-Benz with batteries from its production locations in France and Germany from the middle of the decade. "Our focus is on Europe," Daimler Chief Executive Ola Kallenius told a press conference. "That is where ACC wants to grow, expand, and develop technologies with us." Daimler, which plans on making exclusively electric vehicles in 2030 if market conditions allow, will invest up to a billion euros ($1.2 billion) in the battery venture starting with a mid-three-digit-million cash investment next year, the company said. Read more here (Source: Reuters).
U.S. and European Economies Slowed by Delta Variant, Supply Chain Bottlenecks
The U.S. and European economies slowed in September as supply-chain bottlenecks and worries over the Delta variant weighed on businesses, adding to signs the global economy is experiencing a soft patch amid an uneven recovery, purchasing managers’ surveys showed. The Wall Street Journal reports that manufacturing and services businesses in both the U.S. and Eurozone reported slower growth in activity this month, although the pullback was more pronounced in Europe. Forecasting firm IHS Markit said its index measuring U.S. business activity, based on surveys on purchasing managers, fell to 54.5 in September from 55.4 in August. That was the lowest level in a year, as activity at services businesses reached a 14-month low. A level above 50 points to an increase in activity, while a level below 50 indicates a contraction. Read more here (Source: The Wall Street Journal).
Volvo Says It Wants All Its Cars to be Leather-Free by 2030
Volvo Cars wants all the models it sells to be leather-free by 2030, a move which represents the latest example of how automakers are looking to make their vehicles more sustainable. In an announcement Thursday, the Swedish firm also said it wanted a quarter of the material used in its new cars to “consist of recycled and bio-based content” by 2025, reports CNBC. One of the interior materials it will look to use, called Nordico, is made up of textiles derived from recycled materials like polyethylene terephthalate bottles as well as “material from sustainable forests in Sweden and Finland, and corks recycled from the wine industry.” While it intends to scrap the use of leather in its vehicles, the company said it would “continue to offer wool blend options from suppliers that are certified to source responsibly.” Read more here (Source: CNBC).
Federated Insurance's Claim of the Month: Could It Happen to You?
A customer purchased a new $75,000 vehicle, with a $25,000 down payment. After providing the cashier’s check and going through the financing process for the remainder, he drove the vehicle off the lot. The dealership later discovered that the cashier’s check and driver’s license presented were fake. The vehicle was never recovered and the suspect has not been apprehended to date.
CLAIM AMOUNT: $60,000
In order to help protect your business from false-pretense schemes please consider the following tips:
-
Verify checks and sufficient funds before accepting them.
-
Finalize financing before releasing vehicles.
-
Check multiple forms of identification, such as a driver’s license and credit card.
-
Consider working with a vendor that provides identity verification services.
-
Credit cards can be fabricated to identify false information. Verification should be made from information obtained from an online search instead of the number on the card.
Visit federatedinsurance.com or contact your local marketing representative for resources you can use to create or enhance your own risk management program.
Around the Web
Best Hybrid Cars for 2021 [Forbes]
All the New Cars You Need to Know About for 2022 [Car and Driver]
Tesla Drivers More Distracted with Autopilot Engaged, Study Finds [Cars.com]
1993 Toyota Truck with Just 84 Miles is Up for Auction [Autoblog]
