TORRANCE, Calif. — F&I and Showroom magazine is proud to announce the selection of Kevin Westfall, senior vice president of sales for AutoNation, as a keynote speaker for the 2010 F&I Conference and Expo.

The announcement marks the return of Westfall to the F&I Conference and Expo. In 2007, he delivered an address that detailed the steps AutoNation has taken to ensure compliance at each of its rooftops. This time around, Westfall will have host of issues to speak on.

In February, Westfall served as a panelist at the 2010 Vehicle Finance Conference, where he joined dealers Ed Tonkin and Stephen Wade in discussing the challenges dealers face in today’s still-tight lending environment. He also addressed the possibility of lenders eliminating dealer participation.

“We provide a convenience to consumers and the banks,” he told the room full of lender representatives. “I think we deserve to charge at least 1 percent reserve.”

As an executive of one of the nation’s largest dealer groups, Westfall is responsible for developing strategic plans that support and grow the new- and used-vehicle sales, finance and insurance, service, parts and collision departments at AutoNation’s retail dealerships.

He previously served as president of AutoNation’s former wholly-owned captive finance company, AutoNation Financial Services from 1997-2001. He is also the founder and former president of BMW Financial Services for North America.

Scheduled for Sept. 14-15 at the Paris Las Vegas Hotel, the 7th annual F&I Conference and Expo will feature an expanded agenda and more than 30 educational sessions. For more information or to register for the show, visit www.fi-conference.com or call (800) 576-8788.