Reporting strong performance in the “no-score” segment of the credit spectrum, Equifax pointed out in a release this week lender vigilance is helping to drive auto loan market success.

According to the latest National Consumer Credit Trends Report from Equifax Inc., the auto finance market is growing at a rapid pace, and balances are reaching all-time highs month after month. Not to mention, write-off rates remain low.

Take this stat into account:

Total auto originations came in at $341.2 billion through July, which marks a 9.4-percent rise in balances over the same time last year. Equifax analyst mentioned this is also the highest level seen for the period since the company began tracking the data. And auto write-offs were at 20.4 basis points as of September.

When taking a look at these impressive stats, Equifax came to the conclusion that auto lenders are remaining “vigilant” in making sure their customers have the financial ability to pay an auto loan by leveraging alternative data to identify consumers’ monthly payments that are not found on one of the credit bureaus. Furthermore, lenders are also verifying income and job tenure using employment data services in the qualification process.

“Traditionally lenders have used consumer-provided pay stubs to confirm income or conducted no verification at all,” said Lou Loquasto, auto finance Leader for Equifax. “Utilizing verified income and alternative data provides the complete picture of a consumer’s financial standing, allowing lenders to see consumers’ true income, payment obligations and other attributes such as job tenure to determine if they have the ability and stability to keep up with payments.”

The company also found there has been success in the “no-score” credit category. In fact, auto originations to consumers in this segment are performing better than they have in the past. According to Equifax data, median write-off rates for “no-score” originations from 2012 to 2014 were 22.8 percent lower than from 2007 to 2009.

“Alternative data, verified income and other new tools to evaluate this very fast growing ‘no-score’ segment have enabled rich margins and good loan performance,” said Loquasto. “Lenders are using the tools available to make great lending decisions and give consumers the chance to establish their credit and acquire much needed transportation. Lenders are also using verified income and different sources of alternative data that exist throughout the industry to dramatically increase auto-decision rates.”