New Year’s Resolution for Dealers: How to Reduce Your Risk in 2017

Tax season. Think receipts, paper and electronic files, credit write-offs, calculators, post-it notes with reminders and cars.

Yes, we said cars.

According to a recent article from Fox Business, four in five taxpayers are expected to receive a refund from their tax returns, that’s 80 percent of Americans. And tax returns are no small chunk of change, with the average refund in 2016 totaling around $2,700. With that kind of cash, Americans across the country are planning on how to best utilize their newly acquired money, and many (some 5 percent reported by GOBankingRates) are planning to make a major purchase – such as a car. That’s millions of Americans ready to invest in their future with a major investment. Plus, with 2016 showing a record year for used car sales according to CNBC, this upcoming tax season is sure to be a whirlwind.

So, the question begging to be asked, is your dealership ready?

Previously, many dealers saw a rapid rise in sales towards the end of January through March. In 2017, dealers will continue to see the rise in sales during tax season. However, with the latest regulations, some tax refunds may be delayed a few weeks, making this sales period potentially a few weeks longer. None the less, the short time frame is sure to bring a rush of customers, some with less than stellar credit. To capitalize on the tax season rush, you need to be prepared for all types of customers and their range of credit scores.

Let’s talk preparation.

When the customers come, you and your staff will be rushing to put those customers into cars as quickly as possible. The last thing you need are stipulations slowing you down.

Taking the time to manually call references — often multiple times — is a massive drain on your resources and time. That time could be better spent on the floor, selling cars to your tax season customers. What’s more, your customers don’t always appreciate calls to their employers and landlords, asking to verify information they’ve provided. It’s intrusive and instantly sets up a tone of distrust.

But you can’t simply stop doing stipulations. It’s more important than ever to do your due diligence when it comes to verifying your customers’ home addresses and employer information. The more you can verify, the lower your risk. Spireon’s Goldstar provides numerous benefits and solutions for your dealership, including Reference Genie which automates stipulations verification — saving you countless hours so you can keep the sales process running smoothly. Reference Genie automatically conducts background analysis based on defined reference criteria, then auto-generates the results allowing you to file away the reports and only focus your time on those that raise a red flag. You can then move on to closing your stipulations quickly so loans can be sold or processed, and faster loans processing means faster cash flow and inventory turnover.

Mitigating your risk.

With GoldStar you can be comfortable with selling a higher ACV vehicle because you have the confidence and tools needed to recover it rapidly should the need occur. Think about if you could sell more vehicles, expand your customer database by writing more loans every month, and dramatically increase revenue. Would you turn that opportunity down? Didn’t think so.

GPS tracking for customers that have marginal or questionable credit, lack of employment history, or those who would otherwise be denied a loan, are now less of a risk with the implementation of GoldStar. Plus, you’re providing your subprime and deep subprime customers an opportunity to build or rebuild their credit.

Make your New Year’s resolution to prepare for tax season and reduce your risk in 2017. Contact us today for a free demo.

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