Posted on: 11/05/2015

New car dealerships depend on the income from the finance & insurance departments (F & I) to survive.

Automotive News reported that in 2014 the median same-store compensation for F&I managers was $122,692 vs. $118,388 for sales managers. This is somewhat odd when you consider that without a vehicle being sold, the F&I department cannot generate revenue.

On average, F&I managers’ annual compensation in 2014 was $131,417 on a same-store basis, up 1.1 percent from 2013.

Automotive News article quoted Ted Kraybill, president of ESI Trends, the research firm that prepares NADA’s annual work force studies. "Dealers have been pushing to improve gross F&I margins to replace shrinking new-car sales margins."

AutoNation, the largest dealer group in the U.S., averaged $1,549 per vehicle sold in the third-quarter.

It’s the choice of the consumer to decide what vehicle they purchase and what, if any, after-market products to purchase. Many consumers save by visiting the credit union prior to the auto purchase and reviewing any after-market products available. Most often the same type product from the credit union will be less expensive than through the dealer.