I recently bought a new car. I got a good deal and decided to help the F & I lady with her regulatory exams. She failed four times writing through Moonstone, and felt that the Moonstone exams were too tough. She then wrote through someone else and passed. She would not accept that you all worked off the same bank of questions.
The difference, I know, was that I gave her some basic exam technique training and showed her how to prepare. In addition, this was the 5th try and that is why she passed. She helped me, and it was a pleasure to help her.
I thought you might find it interesting as well that all these ladies had to pre-sign letters of resignation. If they didn’t pass the RE, they had to resign. This is far tougher than on most reps, in my view.
Lastly, given the limited nature of their advice – it seems odd that the current level 1 RE should apply to them? Surely they should have had a less complex exam?
Thanks John.
We had a similar experience with nearly 200 reps from a leading life office who wrote with another exam body, and almost all failed. The next time round, they wrote via Moonstone, and all but 2 passed. It then became common knowledge in that company that the Moonstone REs are much easier to pass. While we did not mind the perception, it is of course totally untrue. As you correctly point out – there is one database of questions, and all the exam bodies draw their questions from it, so it does not matter where you write.
The two major factors were better preparation, and knowing what to expect.
It must be very tough to prepare for these exams, knowing there is an undated resignation letter waiting like a guillotine if you do not make it. Those employers have obviously not taken the trouble to investigate alternatives, e.g. simply removing them from the reps register until they passed the exam.
Lastly, the matter of easier exams for those offering limited advice: a reprieve was given to certain categories of reps, including many in the motor industry. This required application for exemption from the current deadline for level 1 REs until such time as a new exam was developed which was more attuned to the kind of advice they furnish.
Many of our compliance clients in the motor trade made use of this lifeline, and are happily trading while waiting for the new exam.
