Retail’s old adage of “you get what you pay for” reappeared as a part of the J.D. Power 2014 U.S. Dealer Financing Satisfaction Study. The report showed franchised dealerships place such a value on the relationship they have with their prime retail credit finance providers that two-thirds are willing to pay a premium for good service

The service and relationship dealers have with their finance providers matters enough that 66 percent of dealerships are willing to pay as much as an additional 0.50 to 0.60 basis points on their loan terms to receive good service from their lenders.

“Auto lending is a relationship business, and the key to success for lenders is to provide dealers with the best support and quickest response times possible,” said Michael Buckingham, senior director of the auto finance practice at J.D Power.

“Dealerships want lenders that focus on building strong relationships and that provide a wide array of financing options for vehicle buyers,” Buckingham continued. “These fundamentals hold true for all auto financing products.”

Buckingham noted that dealers financing the three consumer-facing products — prime loan, leasing and non-prime — covet lenders that offer a dedicated credit underwriter and sales representative in order to maintain a level of familiarity, which they believe provides them better and faster service.

Even if a credit underwriter team supports a dealership, J.D. Power determined that providing a primary contact for the dealership solidifies the relationship.

In the floor planning segment, dealers seek a responsive and knowledgeable servicing team along with a proactive sales team to help them manage their inventory and expense, according to the study.

J.D. Power highlighted three other key findings from the report released on Monday, including:

— E-contracting — a computer-based system used by captive and non-captive finance companies for the credit application, review and approval process — increases dealer satisfaction. When finance companies use e-contracting, overall satisfaction averages 892 (on a 1,000-point scale), compared with 858 when finance companies do not use that service.

Additionally because of the ease and speed it provides, J.D. Power found dealers are more likely to increase their business with finance companies that offer e-contracting (35 percent).

— The study indicated dealers in retail leasing keep 62 percent of their prior leasing customers through retention programs and consumer guidance provided by their finance company.

More than two-thirds (68 percent) of dealers said they increased retail business with their provider because of their floor planning relationship.

— In the non-prime credit segment, the competitiveness of vehicle advance is the most important component of provider offerings, according to the study.

The J.D. Power report examined dealer satisfaction with lenders in four finance segments: prime retail credit, non-prime retail credit, retail leasing and floor planning.

Satisfaction is measured across three factors in the prime and non-prime retail credit segments: finance provider offering, application/approval process and sales representative relationship.

Four factors are measured in the retail leasing segment: finance provider offering, application/approval process, sales representative relationship and vehicle return process.

Three factors are measured in the floor planning segment: finance provider credit line offering, floor plan support and floor plan portfolio management.

Dealer Financing Satisfaction Rankings

In the floor planning segment, the average satisfaction came in at 937, while satisfaction in retail leasing averaged 899. Satisfaction in the prime retail credit segment stood 866, while non-prime retail credit satisfaction settled at 827.

Mini Financial Services ranked highest among finance companies in the prime retail credit segment with a score of 968. Following in the rankings were BMW Financial Services (961) and Alphera Financial Services (952).

BMW Financial Services ranked highest among finance companies in the retail leasing segment for a third consecutive year, with a score of 975. Following in the rankings are MINI Financial Services (970) and Mercedes-Benz Financial (965).

Mercedes-Benz Financial ranked highest among floor planning finance companies for a fourth consecutive year, with a score of 972. Following in the rankings were BMW Financial Services (964) and Hyundai Motor Finance (961).

The 2014 U.S. Dealer Financing Satisfaction Study is based on responses from 3,037 dealers who were surveyed between March and April of this year.

Prime Retail Credit Rankings

Mini Financial Services: 968
BMW Financial Services: 961
Alphera Financial Services: 952
Mercedes-Benz Financial: 948
Ally Financial: 914
Ford Credit: 909
Infiniti Financial Services: 903
Volvo Car Financial Services: 900
Toyota Financial Services: 890
Bank of the West: 884
SunTrust Bank: 884
NMAC: 883
Hyundai Motor Finance: 878
Fifth Third Bank: 876
BMO Harris Bank: 874
BB&T: 870
Huntington National Bank: 869
Kia Motors Finance: 869
Segment Average: 866
Volkswagen Credit: 865
Capital One Auto Finance: 864
Wells Fargo Dealer Services: 858
RBS Citizens: 848
US Bank: 847
PNC Bank: 846
Bank of America: 844
TD Auto Finance: 830
Chase Automotive Finance: 828
Honda Financial Services: 824
GM Financial: 803
Chrysler Capital: 784

Retail Leasing
BMW Financial Services: 975
Mini Financial Services: 970
Mercedes-Benz Financial: 965
Ford Credit: 936
Ally Financial: 931
Volvo Car Financial Services: 918
Toyota Financial Services: 913
Segment Average: 899
Hyundai Motor Finance: 898
Kia Motors Finance: 896
NMAC: 879
Honda Financial Services: 863
GM Financial: 831
Chrysler Capital: 791
US Bank: 763

Floor Planning
Mercedes-Benz Financial: 972
BMW Financial Services: 964
Hyundai Motor Finance: 961
Toyota Financial Services: 945
Ford Credit: 944
Ally Financial: 942
Segment Average: 937
Chase Automotive Finance: 914
NMAC: 885
Bank of America: 879