American Recovery Association president Todd Case is hoping PAR North America set a precedent this week that other forwarders and service providers follow that could significantly benefit repossession agents.

PAR North America shifted its payment engine that’s now live nationwide for all contracted repo-related fees. Instead of taking 14 business days or more, the company said pay to agents now can land in two business days.

It’s a major company adjustment since the November hiring of Dave Baker, who now is the executive leader of PAR, with oversight of all sales, operations, compliance, remarketing, titles, industry relationships and other functions.

“This is an excellent example of doing the right thing at the right time for the right reasons,” Baker said in a social media post. “Our agent partners shouldn’t have to wait for their pay, be worried about under billing and should never be asked to give up a percentage of what’s owed to them just to get paid in a timely manner.

“Huge thanks to this talented PAR team for mobilizing this project so quickly! Great things are happening here at PAR,” added Baker, who previously served as chief operating officer at American Recovery Service (ARS), where he led company-wide operations, vendor relations, compliance, and remarketing initiatives.

Case and Baker have been on stage together multiple times at industry events including Used Car Week, highlighting tactics to stay safe in the repossession and recoveries industry, leveraging their vast backgrounds in law enforcement.

In a separate industry letter, Case praised Baker and PAR North America for this move that can help agents gain faster payment for the challenges of repossessing vehicles amid today’s sometimes violent circumstances.

“The field of repossession is inherently stressful and carries significant risk. There are no guarantees — agents operate in unpredictable environments, often in the middle of the night, facing safety concerns and volatile situations while providing a critical service to the lending industry,” Case said.

“In addition to those daily risks, agents have traditionally faced another major stressor: cash flow,” he continued. “For decades, repossession companies have been required to wait 30, 60, or even more days to receive payment for services already completed. While expenses such as payroll, fuel, insurance, compliance, storage, and equipment are immediate and ongoing, revenue has been anything but. This created constant financial pressure and, in some cases, limited an agency’s ability to grow or even sustain operations.

“The American Recovery Association (ARA) applauds Dave Baker and the entire PAR team on the launch of the Expedited Vendor Pay Program. This initiative clearly demonstrates Dave’s leadership and their commitment to valuing agents and sets a new benchmark for what a true partnership should look like in this industry,” Case went on to say.

Case closed his letter with a message to other operations involved in repossessions and recoveries.

“ARA also strongly encourages all forwarders and lenders who are not currently offering expedited, fair-pay programs to evaluate their payment practices and follow suit.” Case said. “Timely compensation should not be a premium feature — it should be the standard. This is a meaningful step forward, and we hope it marks a turning point toward stronger, more sustainable partnerships across the industry.”