Two service providers now are working together to help consumers land a revamped installment contract and perhaps new vehicle insurance, too.
Polly, a leading embedded insurance marketplace for automotive retail, and Gravity Lending, a rapidly growing fintech providing low-cost interest refinancing options, announced a strategic partnership on Wednesday that can give car owners the opportunity to lower their total monthly vehicle expenses.
According to a news release, Gravity Lending’s customers will now have access to personalized and competitive insurance quotes from Polly through direct customer outreach.
The companies said this partnership can gives consumers the potential to save more money on their monthly insurance premium in addition to any savings gained during their refinance.
“We’re thrilled to be able to provide additional savings opportunities alongside refinancing,” Polly president and COO Wayne Pastore said. “By combining the power of Polly with Gravity Lending, we are elevating the overall experience of refinancing a car by providing competitive rates from Polly’s industry-leading carrier network.”
The companies reiterated that offering insurance choice alongside the refinancing process provides customers with an additional opportunity to save money on car ownership.
A forthcoming Polly car and insurance shopper study shows that total cost of car ownership — including insurance — is top of mind for car shoppers and owners, with more than 86% stating it was important to them.
With access to a vast carrier network and “white glove treatment” with real insurance agents throughout the process, Polly said it is uniquely positioned to help Gravity Lending’s customers compare and potentially save on their car insurance, ultimately lowering their overall cost of ownership by ensuring consumers have the right coverage that fits their budget.
“Gravity Lending prides ourselves on providing our customers with a vast array of options to lower their car payments,” Gravity Lending founder and CEO Brian Jones said. “Our partnership with Polly extends that value proposition, while also providing car owners a better customer experience by offering insurance options alongside the refinancing process.”
For more information about Polly, visit polly.co.
This month has included a significant milestone for iLending and its auto refinancing endeavors.
After hitting the $1 billion mark in September 2018 and $2 billion last July, iLending recently discovered that it now has surpassed $3 billion in refinanced contracts, saving users an average of $145 on their monthly payments.
“The ground we have gained these past few years is truly remarkable. This $3 billion mark is the result of following the guidelines of our core values. We treasure our clients, team members, lenders, and partners, and we’re always looking to do the right thing,” iLending’s chief executive officer Tom Holgate said in a news release. “It’s exhilarating to witness and be part of this celebration, and to keep evolving each day to best serve our clients.
“We speak with hundreds of families every day that have been hit hard by these high inflation levels, so we have a deep understanding of the very real hardships being experienced right now,” Holgate continued. “Reaching the $3 billion milestone means we’ve provided some breathing room to over 127,000 American families, and that means something.”
Refinancing firm iLending recently announced that Jason Oswald has been named director of sales at the company’s office in Columbia, S.C.
In this role, Oswald will be responsible for all sales functions for the company’s growing office in South Carolina’s state capital.
According to a news release, the facility began operations last September and currently employs 50 team members, with many to be added by year’s end and into 2023.
“The robust growth iLending has experienced this past year is the result of the combined efforts of our teams in Denver, Austin, and now Columbia,” iLending chief executive officer Tom Holgate said in the news release. “We are extremely fortunate to have Jason’s wealth of sales and operations experience to guide and strengthen our team in Columbia.
“We’re delighted with the progress we’ve made in South Carolina in such a short amount of time. Jason will deliver the leadership that will anchor iLending’s continued role as the innovator in auto refinance,” Holgate continued.
Prior to joining iLending, Oswald was with Global Lending Services as its Eastern region director of sales where he led sales, operations and training for five years. He also spent more than three years as regional sales manager and national sales trainer at American Credit Acceptance in South Carolina
“I love working with a company that’s looking to challenge the norm and change the way an industry looks and thinks,” Oswald said. “This is an incredibly passionate group of individuals, from the executive team to the loan consultants and staff.
“iLending’s deep commitment to help customers improve their financial outlook is what drew me to leading the future growth of the Columbia refinance center. I’m grateful for the opportunity,” he went on to say.
In August and September, iLendingDIRECT gained a new chief executive officer, raised $35 million to fuel its refinancing efforts and bolstered its workforce and infrastructure in South Carolina.
On Monday, the company launched a brand refresh and new logo designed to highlight its mission of “paying goodness forward by empowering consumers.” The company now is known as iLending.
CEO Tom Holgate said in a news release, “iLending was founded in 2006 and as the company enters 2022, we have shortened the company name from iLendingDIRECT to iLending to simplify our brand for the consumer. In addition, we introduced a new icon and wordmark to better reflect and showcase our values.”
The company explained careful consideration went into the new logo to ensure it represented infinite opportunities, paying it forward and the easy refinance process iLending looks to provides clients.
“We feel infinite opportunities exist to help one another in this world, and to make things that seem hard, easy,” iLending chief marketing officer Renee Brown. “By driving positive impact on our clients’ lives by saving them money and reducing their anxiety, the positive energy created will spread to affect others around them.”
“Those stories of savings will be shared with friends and family, expanding iLending’s purpose of creating a virtuous cycle of financial freedom,” Brown added.
The new logo features a stylized check mark, signifying the ease of service provided by a dedicated loan consultant at a level “that most consumers don’t think is possible,” according to iLending.
The company estimated it will save consumers more than $50 million in monthly payments this year.
Holgate said, “iLending is more than a refinance company, we change the world by helping one client at a time to perpetuate a virtuous cycle of savings and helping deliver financial freedom.”
When Tresl started its operations in 2007, there were just three employees.
Now as a firm involved in auto refinance, vehicle lease buyout and fleet vehicle purchase financing and transactions, the company has grown to more than 230 associates who are all part of celebrating Tresl’s 15-year milestone in 2022.
“One of our proudest achievements has been the opportunity to have successfully completed tens of thousands of auto refinance, lease buyout, and fleet purchase transactions for our customers,” Tresl chief executive officer Christine Pierson, who was among the 2020 Women in Auto Finance honorees.
“Tresl’s success is a direct reflection of our associates and their hard work, enthusiasm and engagement,” Pierson continued. “They’ve been instrumental in all of our big wins, including Tresl being named an Austin American Statesman Top Workplace in 2021, and in being recognized in three out of four categories in the Top Workplaces National Awards for professional development, employee well-being and remote work.”
Tresl pointed out that it has been able gain these accomplishments by working many financing partners that offer extremely competitive rates. Customers are given the rates they pre-qualify for in seconds, with no credit impact, and the entire process, from pre-qualification to contract approval, processing and titling can all be completed online with few exceptions.
“Offering a fully digital customer experience became an even bigger convenience to Tresl customers during the pandemic, when sheltering in place became the new norm,” the company said.
Tresl has continued to build upon their financing partnerships and affiliate marketing programs, as well as add new lines of business, including BankingAmplified.
This new product, offered in partnership with SaaS fintech CreditSnap, can enable banks and credit unions to offer a direct auto refinance program to their members through customer service, and innovative processes all under a white-label program.
“It is a unique solution designed to support banks, credit unions and lending institutions in achieving their digitization and customer growth goals in a turnkey approach,” Tresl said.
Tresl is beyond thankful for their talented and passionate teams who’ve made the last so special, Pierson stated,
Tresl also gives credit to their first-class lending partners, affiliate marketing partners, and invaluable vendors & service providers who have continued to take care of their needs throughout the years, enabling to better take care of, and support their valued customers.
With 15 years of experience thus far, Tresl is looking forward to the next 15 years and beyond.
“It’s been an incredible journey thus far, and we sure are enjoying the ride,” Pierson said. “We hope everyone will join us in celebrating this amazing 15th year anniversary.”
Now as the newly installed chief executive officer of iLendingDIRECT, Tom Holgate is looking for the company fueled by resources from private investment firm J.C. Flowers & Co. to continue to leverage the refinancing marketplace aided by strong used-vehicle prices.
“The heightened used-vehicle prices have helped draw awareness to the opportunity of refinancing a car loan,” Holgate said in a message to Auto Fin Journal. “There are a number of reasons that consumers are keeping their cars for longer than ever before and continuing to pay on their original loan. Many consumers could substantially benefit from a refinance if they’re planning to keep the same car for an extended period, especially if they’ve made their payments regularly.
“We estimate that at least one out of every four car loans is overpriced, meaning borrowers are leaving serious money on the table by staying in those loans. Now is a great time for consumers to take advantage of the opportunity,” Holgate continued.
And iLendingDIRECT wants to be that service provider with Holgate directing the operation.
According to a news release, Nancy Fitzgerald, iLendingDIRECT founder and the previous CEO, has transitioned to the role of chief strategist and will continue to be active in the long-term planning for the company.
In the news release, Holgate said, “iLending has a demonstrated track record of leadership in the automotive refinance space and is well positioned to bring greater value and service to even more customers looking to save money on their auto loans. I am honored to lead those expansion efforts.
“To demonstrate our commitment to serving our customers and saving them money, we are putting a stake in the ground with a pledge to deliver $50 million in annual savings for the nationwide customer base iLending will serve this year. My expectation is that number is just the beginning, and will only increase each year as we continue to grow,” he continued.
Prior to joining iLending, Holgate served as COO of BFS Capital where he implemented strategies that resulted in significant improvement in loan request response time, developed a quality control program, and grew recovery collections revenue; all of which drove significant revenue growth.
Before BFS Capital, Holgate worked at Southern Auto Finance Co., American Credit Acceptance, Freedom Financial Group, Wells Fargo Financial and American General Financial Group.
In the message to Auto Fin Journal, Holgate shared what he sees as the vital ingredients to keeping refinancing active for the remainder of the year and into 2022.
“We’re focused on two factors: continuing to offer our customers excellent service so that they can refinance easily and improve their financial picture and increasing consumer awareness that refinancing their car loan is an option,” Holgate said.
“We hear from consumers every day that they didn’t even know an auto refinance was possible, so with greater awareness in the market will come more opportunity to refinance loans and save consumers money,” he went on to say.
