New car dealer recommendations are the most influential concerning lender choice at 48% luxury and 50% mass market, but nearly one-fourth (24%) of luxury customers and nearly to one-third (32%) of mass market customers now consider multiple lenders before selecting their finance provider.
According to a new study, overall satisfaction is higher for captive lenders than for non-captive lenders. Luxury segment captive lenders score 851 (on a 1,000-point scale), compared with 793 for non-captive lenders. Mass Market segment captive lenders score 836, compared with 805 for non-captive lenders, according to the J.D. Power 2013 U.S. Consumer Financing Satisfaction Study released today.
Satisfaction rates are higher when lenders provide information that customers completely understand, compared to when they do not provide clear information (+131 points in the luxury segment and +115 points in the mass-market segment). Providing tools for customers to self-manage their account, particularly setting up auto-payments, increases satisfaction more than 150 points in the luxury and mass-market segments (+157 points and +152 points, respectively).
There is a relationship between higher levels of overall satisfaction and future intent, with 95% of highly satisfied automotive financing customers (overall satisfaction scores of 800 and above), indicating they are likely to choose their lender again. Overall satisfaction among automotive financing customers in the luxury segment is 835, compared with 820 among those in the mass-market segment.
“When you consider that most consumers finance indirectly with a lender and the only face-to-face contact a lender may have with a customer is at the point of the vehicle purchase or lease with the finance manager at the dealership, first impressions really matter,” says Mike Buckingham, senior director of the automotive finance practice at J.D. Power. “It’s extremely important for lenders to get the servicing experience right from the start by providing a superior welcome letter and first billing statement that are rich with information to begin the onboarding (sic) process. This provides a solid foundation for continued customer satisfaction.”
