news release
Dealers to receive real time finance alerts on their used vehicles for a smoother sales process
Nottingham, 1 Feb 2013 — Experian®, the global information services company, today announced Finance Alerts, a brand new monitoring feature on its award-winning provenance check business tool, AutoCheck. Building on the increasing role dealerships are playing in motor finance1 , they will have access to accurate and real-time alerts generated on vehicles they have checked that still have outstanding finance on them.
Outstanding finance continues to be the prevalent risk when acquiring used vehicles with more than 1 in 4 cars checked by car dealers being identified as having ‘live‘ finance associated with them2 . More importantly, clearance of previous financial agreements is a prerequisite to close a deal and pass vehicle ownership and yet dealers often have to chase for this information, which creates an administrative overhead and delay in the sales process. Having accurate and real-time information on the status of finance agreements is therefore crucial within the purchase and resale of process.
Combining Experian’s comprehensive vehicle and finance datasets and its client centric approach, the new Finance Alert feature enables dealers to monitor the financial status of used cars and be alerted as soon as it changes without having to go through another check or constantly follow up on the financial status. Built on the new AutoCheck platform, the Finance Alert option can be switched on for any vehicle checked and allows tailored configuration, so the user can set the monitoring period and the alerting method that best suits them and their sales and administration process.
Alistair Scullion, Managing Director of Experian’s Automotive Business in UK&I, said: “Building on the great success of our new AutoCheck platform, we have worked closely with our clients to design features that really help them to improve efficiencies.
“With more than a quarter of vehicles offered to dealers being identified as having outstanding finance, they could be spending a lot of time waiting and chasing information on a significant proportion of their stock. Our new and unique Finance Alerts feature is designed to address this, improving used vehicle management and accelerating the sales process by offering real-time updates on vehicle financial status.”
“Motor finance is vital to the industry’s profitability, but so too is finance clearance to enable used cars to be quickly re-sold in showrooms and auctions,” commented Paul Harrison, Head of Motor Finance at the Finance and Leasing Association. “For many years the FLA has been working with its members - including Experian - to improve the accuracy of finance data recording and ensure data is used to create a safer, more transparent marketplace. This new feature will provide valuable insight to dealers and other businesses on the finance status of a vehicle as it passes through the sales process.”
170.8% of all private new cars are now brought using dealer finance provided by FLA members.
2Experian’s data show that of the total number of vehicles checked by automotive trade companies between April and June 2012, more than 26.1 per cent were identified as ‘having outstanding finance’.
Ends
Contact:
Miss Serj Heera
T: 44 (0) 115 992 2773 | M: 44 (0) 7837 652169
E: serjeet.heera@uk.experian.com
About Experian
Experian is the leading global information services company, providing data and analytical tools to clients around the world. The Group helps businesses to manage credit risk, prevent fraud, target marketing offers and automate decision making. Experian also helps individuals to check their credit report and credit score, and protect against identity theft.
Experian plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Total revenue for the year ended 31 March 2012 was US$4.5 billion. Experian employs approximately 17,000 people in 44 countries and has its corporate headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, with operational headquarters in Nottingham, UK; California, US; and São Paulo, Brazil.
For more information, visit http://www.experianplc.com.