Enhancements improve auto finance sales

Equifax Inc. introduced new features to its Lost Sales Analysis tool for guiding auto lenders' business decisions based on analysis of their lost opportunities.

Through a partnership with Black Book, Lost Sales Analysis from Equifax now incorporates vehicle values, which aid auto financers when calculating loan-to-value ratios to better match loan terms to the depreciated value of the collateral.

In addition, the new version of Lost Sales Analysis provides lenders with greater flexibility to synthesize the specific attributes they are most interested in. Auto lenders can submit up to 50 custom fields for analysis, and they will receive the information tailored to their specific business needs.

First launched in April 2014, Lost Sales Analysis uses auto loan application data, DMV title and vehicle registrations, and credit attributes to evaluate the deals lenders lost to competitors and how those lost opportunities are performing.

The information includes the financing source that booked the application; deal metrics such as customers' annual percentage rate, amount financed, type of loan, term, etc.; performance metrics; payment history as reported by the booking lender; and vehicle description. Equipped with these insights, lenders have been able to evaluate lost sales applications and determine how their credit offers compared to the competition. As a result, many lenders have been able to enhance their lending practice within 30 days of losing the sale.