• Stop being a LURKER - join our dealer community and get involved. Sign up and start a conversation.

DMS Data Extraction Audit

Regardless of whether it was legal or not, the vendor suddenly has access to the dealer's data and the DP has no idea...

Am I just being paranoid, or is this an actual problem?

Hit the nail on the head Tom! I bet most of the dealers on TrueCar are oblivious to how it really works. They hear "free leads" and "you only pay if you sell." Seems like a win win until you realize what they are doing to the automotive industry. It's going to get 10 times worse once they launch the Yahoo partnership.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 people
Not sure, but from what I've seen it's possible for anyone to sign up a dealer agreement.. Even if it's not legit. I could even claim I'm an owner and they wouldn't check into it further.. BUT in order for it to hold up in court, the owner, principal, etc must sign the agreement him or herself. So If I signed up the company for a website for a 12 month contract and 6 months and became angry with the company, I could easy explain that the dealer principal or owners never signed it and get out every-time.

Cool story bro.


The individual who signs below on behalf of the Dealership represents to [company name redacted] that he/she is fully authorized to sign this Agreement and to bind the Dealership to the obligations described herein. This Agreement and the Order Forms constitute the entire agreement between the parties regarding the subject matter hereof, and shall supersede all prior understanding and documents in connection with such subject matter, and may not be amended except by an instrument in writing signed on behalf of both you and [company name redacted]. No delay by either party in exercising any right, power or remedy under this Agreement shall operate as a waiver thereof, nor shall any single or partial exercise of any such right, power or remedy preclude any other or further exercise of that or any other right, power or remedy. No provision of this Agreement shall be construed in favor of or against either of the parties by reason of the extent to which either such party or its counsel participated in the drafting hereof. Section headings have been inserted for convenience of reference only, are not a part of this Agreement and shall not be used in construing this Agreement. You agree to pay any tax (other than income or any equivalent tax) imposed by governmental taxing authority as a result of the rendering of the Services. [company name redacted] and Dealership are independent contractors in connection with this Agreement, and nothing shall be deemed to make them partners or joint ventures. This Agreement is non-transferable and is non-assignable by you without prior written approval by [company name redacted]. This Agreement and the rights and duties of hereunder may be assigned by [company name redacted] to any of its affiliates without notice to you. [company name redacted] may engage any of its affiliates and subcontractors selected by [company name redacted] in its sole discretion to assist in performing services under this Agreement.

The few dealer agreements that I've seen at my dealership have all had a section that says something to this extent. Even if you managed to get your dealership off of the hook, you would be sued for damages and or falsifying a contract. You can't sign a form that says
"The individual who signs below on behalf of the Dealership represents to [company name redacted] that he/she is fully authorized to sign this Agreement and to bind the Dealership to the obligations described herein"
and then 6 months later say "just kidding!!"... That's not how the real world works, champ. I've said some outlandish things on this forum, but what you wrote can only be discribed as a work of fiction and it's terrible advice to put on a forum who's sole purpose is to provide advice to others.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
Cool story bro.

The few dealer agreements that I've seen at my dealership have all had a section that says something to this extent. Even if you managed to get your dealership off of the hook, you would be sued for damages and or falsifying a contract. You can't sign a form that says
"The individual who signs below on behalf of the Dealership represents to [company name redacted] that he/she is fully authorized to sign this Agreement and to bind the Dealership to the obligations described herein"
and then 6 months later say "just kidding!!"... That's not how the real world works, champ. I've said some outlandish things on this forum, but what you wrote can only be discribed as a work of fiction and it's terrible advice to put on a forum who's sole purpose is to provide advice to others.

cece_ugh_greddy.gif