Best Practices

The Hudson Cook team has been in writing mode, and the results are its latest resource to help dealerships and finance office professionals.

CounselorLibrary.com, the publisher of multiple products and resources for the consumer financial services and privacy industries, on Thursday announced that it has updated its popular CARLAW F&I Legal Desk Book. Winner of the Axiom Business Book Award, the book gives readers 363 things to know about auto, boat and RV dealer finance laws and regulations. 

This is the brand-new eighth edition of this compliance resource.

The book presents a law-by-law, regulation-by-regulation guide through the legal maze that dealers face every day. Authored by Thomas Hudson, Michael Benoit, Ralph Rohner and the attorneys at Hudson Cook, this new edition reflects the latest updates to the federal laws and regulations affecting F&I practices. 

Formatted in a straightforward Q&A design, the book is crafted to address many of the everyday compliance issues dealers face and includes links to the actual laws and regulations discussed in each chapter.

The 390-page book is designated as the official textbook for the Association of Finance and Insurance Professionals’ Certified F&I Professional Program, and is available for $49.95 (plus shipping and handling) by going to this website. 

Reynolds and Reynolds has featured earlier editions of the book, and is pleased to announce that once again it will be hosting a book signing of the latest edition at its booth at the NADA 2019 Convention in San Francisco beginning on Jan. 24. Both Hudson and Benoit will be signing these books at the convention. Attendees of the book signing will receive a complimentary copy.

Black Book responded to auto finance companies and buy-here, pay-here dealers still looking for help on how to comply with upcoming accounting changes in connection with reserving for losses.

On Wednesday, Black Book released a new educational white paper titled, “Analytic-Driven Data Helps Auto Finance Lenders Mitigate Risk & Become CECL Compliant.”

To recap, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) is looking to ensure that financial institutions have solid measures in place to ensure they have appropriate reserves for any future losses based on the life of each auto loan. As a result, the board has instituted its new Current Expected Credit Loss model (CECL).

The new model will require higher levels of loan loss reserves and lead to changes in lending practices and portfolio management. It will also require a significant amount of data capture, analysis and modeling to meet the implementation deadline of Dec. 15.

With CECL’s requirement that finance companies perform life-of-loan loss forecasting, as soon as the provider says yes to a contract, Black Book explained the company must begin reserving for potential losses on that loan. Black Book emphasized this requirement means each finance company must have a much better understanding of the borrower’s financial condition, as well as accurate historical and residual collateral insight, when they make the loan.

The Black Book white paper discusses how auto finance companies have the opportunity to rely even more on having the most accurate and up-to-date credit and collateral data on their portfolios in order to meet these new requirements.

“Auto finance companies can leverage this opportunity to convert this compliance need into a competitive advantage,” said Anil Goyal, executive vice president of operations for Black Book.

“By leveraging granular data and building loan-level analytic models, auto lenders will have a better understanding of risks and improve return on capital,” Goyal continued.

 The white paper also addresses the following topics:

• Probability of default methodology

• Estimations of probability of default and loss given default with model samples

• CECL modeling and data readiness

• CECL’s effect on loan strategies

• How varying economic scenarios can impact lender strategies for CECL

To download the new white paper, go to this website.

Pegasystems revealed results of a consumer study about extended vehicle warranties that likely reinforce the value proposition finance managers present to their customers, but also probably reiterate store frustrations over sales penetration rates for these products not being higher.

Pegasystems, a software company, said its survey revealed the majority of drivers (63 percent) do not have active extended warranties despite seeing their value. In fact, the survey showed 60 percent of participants agreed that warranties provide value, and 62 percent of consumers with active warranties reported benefitting from them within the past year.

The survey included more than 1,000 U.S.-based consumers with Pegasystems trying to answer a question that’s perplexed F&I professionals for decades. Why are so many consumers driving without extended warranties?

The company explained that its survey results reveal a clear disconnect between appreciating the importance of an extended warranty and actually purchasing one. Results showed the biggest barriers to consumers purchasing a warranty are:

— Cost (35 percent)

— Not thinking they need one (32 percent)

— Lack of availability at the time of purchase (29 percent)

Furthermore, Pegasystems noted that nearly half of those individuals surveyed (48 percent) only somewhat understand their existing manufacturer’s warranty, and 7 percent say they don’t understand it at all.

“It’s imperative that manufacturers and dealers understand these factors to better educate buyers and provide appropriate recommendations on how they can protect their vehicle purchases, as well as what’s included with that protection,” survey orchestrators said.

While it’s important to understand why people do or do not purchase extended warranties, Pegasystems suggested that dealers also should understand who is making these purchases and how they can provide more personalized recommendations.

According to the survey, younger consumers are the primary buyers with 54 percent of 16- to 24-year olds having an extended warranty, while only 25 percent of those 55 and older have an extended warranty.

Survey orchestrators mentioned generational differences also surfaced when respondents were asked how well they understand their existing manufacturer’s warranties.

Nearly 40 percent of 16- to 24-year-olds said very well, while only 22 percent of those participants 65 and older said the same.

“By understanding buyers’ needs on an individual level, manufacturers, their captives and dealers can provide better education on the warranty options that will provide the most benefits,” survey orchestrators said.

Pegasystems emphasized a suggestion perhaps already familiar to dealerships and finance companies — a collaborative approach to creating more loyal customers.

When it comes to loyalty, 54 percent of those surveyed are loyal based on a past experience with a brand, and 47 percent are loyal because of a positive experience with a dealership.

Only 28 percent answered they are loyal because of price or vehicle performance, with Pegasystems noting that the level is revealing just how much rides on the combined experience the manufacturer and dealership provide.

“A strong product combined with a quality in-person dealership experience are almost equally responsible for a customer coming back,” survey orchestrators added.

Pegasystems added that another opportunity for manufacturers, their captives and dealers lies in vehicle-data sharing.

The survey indicated that 54 percent of respondents either agree or strongly agree that they see value in a connected app experience using data from their vehicles to enhance the overall in-vehicle experience. However, many (45 percent) remain concerned about how their data will be exploited.

Combined with product quality, Pegasystems went on to note a key element consumers want in aftermarket experiences — transparency — whether it’s transparency from a dealer on what a warranty covers or how to purchase one, or transparency about how their data is used for better in-vehicle experiences.

“When it comes to aftermarket owner and user experiences, there is an urgency for auto manufacturers, their captive finance divisions and dealer partners to intelligently orchestrate the fragmented channels, processes, decisions and data necessary to cultivate more loyal customers – whether it’s helping consumers with extended warranty purchases or providing more seamlessly-connected ownership and user experiences,” said Steven Silver, vice president and industry market leader or manufacturing at Pegasystems.

“By understanding buyers’ experiences on a deeper level, the industry can provide more personalized recommendations and effortless interactions that protect customers’ automotive purchases long-term, as well as better experiences every time consumers use their vehicles and dealers service them,” Silver added.

At a typical dealership, the finance office might only be a few paces from the service drive. But if stores large and small want to improve their performances in 2019 and beyond, EFG Companies emphasized that personnel in both dealership departments must be aligned shoulder to shoulder and proceed in lockstep to generate enhanced customer retention.

EFG Companies recently examined these store elements, explaining that profit can be generated when the F&I office and the service drive are working in tandem like the atmosphere at Star Auto Group based in Abilene, Texas.

Owner Mike Dunahoo said his dealer group placed significant emphasis on customer service that involves training the sales and service team members on the benefits of the F&I products sold in finance to both the dealership and consumers.

“Unit sales has always been priority number one in our industry,” Dunahoo said. “While that priority remains, never before in history has the service drive been potentially the greatest lever for future success.

“Now, the service drive is as important as sales to continuously and genuinely please customers through value-driven information and motivating incentives for service,” he added.

John Kane shared the F&I point of view about the matter. Kane is co-founder of Empire Dealer Services, which took home EFG’s Top Agent Award at this year’s agent council meeting.

“Our dealership clients are under pressure from the OEMs to increase customer retention,” Kane said. “However, even if you take out that pressure, it’s still clear that the most successful and cost-effective way forward is customer retention.

“And, the best road that I’ve seen toward achieving repeat business is by aligning all dealership departments with this goal,” he continued. “In the next few years, F&I administrators and dealers need to work together to fully realize the potential these tools provide when it comes to customer service and retention.”

Additionally, Kane mentioned the industry can expect to see a resurgence of maintenance programs in terms of both implementation within the dealership as well as an evolution of the programs’ features and offerings.

“While maintenance programs have always been around, our dealer clients are asking for support in how to best utilize them,” Kane said. “Most dealers fail to recognize that a maintenance program’s sole purpose is to foster customer retention. That means selling the product at, or near cost to increase product penetration, and therefore, customer retention.”

EFG Companies president and chief executive officer John Pappanastos outlined the path he believes both F&I agents and dealerships can navigate that can lead to reinforced customer relationships and a more robust bottom line.

“Dealers don’t have to reinvent the wheel to remain competitive. Integrating operations between the service drive and the F&I office creates a natural customer retention cycle,” Pappanastos said. “However, this integration will take more than selling F&I products. It will require dealers to invest in the service center by providing service managers more comprehensive training around customer service and sales.

“For example, EFG has taken proactive steps to build out a full portfolio of training services for virtually every aspect of the dealership, including service manager training,” he went on to say.

More details about EFG’s offerings are available at www.efgcompanies.com.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday might have already passed, but GWC Warranty contends that dealerships still can leverage consumers’ enthusiasm for spending to rake in some retail revenue via their finance departments.

“There are two ways to look at the holiday season,” the company said in a post on its blog, "Accelerate". “You can chalk it up as the slow time of year, or you can go big and use the last month to provide a jolt to the year’s profits. The choice is yours.”

With that decision ahead for dealers large and small, GWC Warranty offered four recommendations operators can try in order to breathe some life into the final days of the year.

“It’s the season for deals, giving and new beginnings, and your business is no exception,” the company said.

1. Social media advertising

If your store hasn’t tried social media advertising, GWC Warranty said the operation may be missing out on the deal of the century. Ads on Facebook, for instance, can be relatively affordable and allow you to target by age, location, gender and even interests.

“If you have a specific car for a specific audience that you need to get off your lot, social media ads might be your ticket to a quick, profitable sale,” the company said.

2. Contests

GWC Warranty emphasized that customers love to win, and they love a deal.

Promoting contests that can get customers engaged with your dealership don’t just reward the winner, but also get more foot or internet traffic for your dealership, according to the company.

“You can try discounts, free service vouchers, gas cards or similar giveaways for customers that help get conversations started during a season when they might otherwise not happen,” GWC Warranty said.

3. VSC second chance

If your customers didn’t bite on service contract coverage the first time around, GWC Warranty suggested that dealerships could try getting them back in to see if they might be interested now that they’ve been in the vehicle for a few months.

“Especially during the holiday season, you’d hate to see an unexpected repair hurt a customer’s monthly budget,” the company said. “You can use this to position a VSC as the perfect gift to give themselves this holiday season.”

4. Test a new lead tool

If this time of year is typically slow, GWC Warranty acknowledged that it couldn’t hurt to try something new.

“You can pilot the use of a tool like Covideo that uses video communication to help nurture leads and get customers on your lot,” GWC Warranty said. “Give it a shot with a few leads that come in and if it works well, you can build it into your regular processes for the new year.”

FNI Inc. president David Bafumo spent part of his Thanksgiving holiday dissecting the potential pitfalls that resulted in Santander Consumer USA reaching a settlement with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over a GAP product.

Two days before the country carved turkeys and passed around pie, the CFPB described a consent order detailing how the bureau found Santander violated the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 by not properly describing the benefits and limitations of its S-GUARD GAP product, which the finance company offered as an add-on to its auto finance products.

The regulator also stated SCUSA failed to disclose the impact properly on consumers of obtaining a contract extension, including by not clearly and prominently disclosing that the additional interest accrued during the extension period would be paid before any payments to principal when the consumer resumed making payments.

Under the terms of the consent order, the CFPB said Santander must, among other provisions, provide approximately $9.29 million in restitution to certain consumers who purchased the add-on product, clearly and prominently disclose the terms of its contract extensions and the add-on product, and pay a $2.5 million civil money penalty.

Meanwhile, Bafumo did not doze into a turkey-induced nap this past week. Instead, he examined the consent order that’s available here and offered his analysis in an attempt to help dealerships and finance companies not have to fork over millions to their customers and the bureau.

“The bureau hangs their enforcement hat on just one element of the S-Guard GAP program, basing the entire ‘unfair and deceptive’ finding on a 125 percent loan-to-value benefit limitation found in the S-Guard consumer contract,” Bafumo wrote in his latest Take Action newsletter that he shared with SubPrime Auto Finance News.

“The cap means that no GAP benefit coverage is provided for the amounts financed over 125 percent — potentially leaving those customers partially unprotected,” he continued in the newsletter available here.

“In the bureau’s opinion, the limitation makes the S-Guard GAP marketing materials deceptive, as they do not specify the limitation and instead, make multiple references to ‘true full coverage,’ implying that a customer’s complete deficiency balance would be covered by the GAP contract benefits," he went on to say.

Bafumo explained that the CFPB first delved into regulating GAP coverage in 2012 and 2013. As a result, he noted that many providers modified their marketing material. Providers often changed the wording from, “In the event of a total loss, GAP pays the difference in what you owe on your loan and what your insurance company settles for,” instead to “GAP helps pay the difference in what you owe...”

Bafumo emphasized that this modification recognized there are exclusions to coverage and to imply the possibility of a balance still due.

“Missing this well known, industry-wide adjustment in GAP marketing was a mistake by Santander’s due diligence team and by the S-Guard GAP administrator who provided both the product and the marketing materials,” he said.

Bafumo closed his latest update by stressing some of the points and strategy offered via his firm that’s online here. He included:

• Document your product vendor and marketing due diligence.
• Establish a standardized, compliant marketing process.
• Implement a product-specific consumer disclosure form.
• Require product vendor agreement terms that protect you.

Lisa Scott took charge of PAR North America (PAR) last August with a specific objective near the top of her agenda as she began to oversee this segment of KAR Auction Services.

“One of my goals was to enhance the customer experience by creating the leading compliance platform in the recovery industry,” Scott told SubPrime Auto Finance News via email.

Well, now the industry can begin its evaluation of the robustness of PAR’s compliance endeavors. On Wednesday, the company launched its new web-based, self-service portal with real-time access to PAR’s compliance data and the compliance data of more than 600 vehicle recovery vendors across the U.S.

PAR — a provider of vehicle transition services in the U.S. with coast-to-coast solutions for recovery management, skip-tracing, remarketing and title services — indicated that Platinum Compliance offers this transparency tool in one easy-to-use dashboard. 

“Our customers are facing increased scrutiny and heightened regulatory requirements,” Scott said in a news release. “Platinum Compliance gives our customers the peace of mind that only qualified, experienced and trained recovery vendors are working their assignments.

“Never has our industry had a more comprehensive real-time database of due diligence and compliance documentation — including current state-level recovery vendor requirements across all 50 states,” she continued.

In the email exchange with SubPrime Auto Finance News, Scott explained that vice president of compliance and operations Jessie Herdrich has been key on this project, working closely with the company leadership team to develop PAR Platinum Compliance. Herdrich is among the executives set to appear during Used Car Week 2018, which begins on Nov. 12 in Scottsdale, Ariz.

“We know that our customers are feeling the pressure as the industry faces increased regulatory scrutiny. We have always had a robust vendor management program but didn’t have a streamlined database or a real time point of access for our clients,” Scott said.

“Our biggest vendor management challenge is gathering and organizing information for our network of more than 600 recovery vendors,” she continued. “In the Platinum Compliance system, we have supporting documentation for all recovery vendors — a comprehensive database of state-level requirements, and PAR and vendor due diligence, including insurance certificates, relevant licensing, operational and enterprise policies and even employee-level compliance.

“This is all information our clients review during routine audits and it is now accessible to our clients at any time via a secure login,” Scott added.

Through the Platinum Compliance portal, customers can access due diligence and supporting compliance documentation for all recovery vendors. The comprehensive real-time database includes state-level recovery vendor requirements, and all PAR and vendor due diligence including insurance certificates, relevant licensing, operational and enterprise policies.

Scott reiterated that streamlining what was once an onerous process for collecting, reviewing and storing information, audits are now faster and more efficient. 

The all-inclusive dashboard automates reminders and facilitates fast and easy uploading of updated compliance documentation allowing recovery vendors to remain in good standing. Only recovery vendors who are Platinum Compliant with PAR’s compliance checklist may receive recovery assignments.

Scott explained how critical that stipulation is to clients. 

“We have earned our customers trust and want to keep it. So when we list recovery vendors as being PAR Platinum Compliant, our customers can trust that they are up-to-date on all required documentation and in good standing,” Scott said.

“That’s why we have developed an efficient, easy to use portal that ensures the compliance of recovery vendors. A comprehensive dashboard empowers every vendor manager to check the status on our checklist of due diligence items. The new system also automates reminders and facilitates fast and easy uploading of updated compliance documentation — making it simpler than ever for agents to remain in good standing,” Scott went on to say.

Scott closed the email exchange by reinforcing a message to finance companies about PAR’s commitment to excellence via this latest endeavor.

“Customers now have direct, self-service access to a single, user-friendly system housing all due diligence and compliance documentation for both PAR and our third-party recovery vendors,” Scott said.

“As a result, customer audits will be faster and more efficient. Customers will also be able to quickly reference state-level statutes and regulatory requirements,” she concluded.

With the interest rates connected to a retail installment sales contracts becoming more pronounced thanks to actions by the Federal Reserve, Carleton recently revisited a topic the compliance firm often discusses with clients.

Carleton reiterated official definitions as well as shared best practices regarding how best to achieve accuracy in Truth in Lending Act (TILA) disclosures for annual percentage rates embedded in those contracts.

To address the corresponding regulatory requirements, Carleton explained there are three key considerations, including:

—TILA’s Regulation Z states the annual percentage rate is “to be determined,” meaning calculated.

—Appendix J to Regulation Z contains 15 pages of definitions, variables and algorithms to accurately calculate an APR value.

—Yet, nowhere within Regulation Z is there any guidance that “in the absence of fees included in the finance charge, the resulting APR will be the same as the interest rate.”

To be clear, Carleton recapped the federal explanation included within Regulation Z to define the determination of annual percentage rate.

“The annual percentage rate is a measure of the cost of credit, expressed as a yearly rate,” the act states. “Creditors may use any other computation tool in determining the annual percentage rate if the rate so determined equals the rate determined in accordance with Appendix J to this part, within the degree of accuracy set forth in paragraph (a) of this section.”

Carleton acknowledged that it is a common practice of loan origination and dealer management systems to pass the contract interest rate to populate the TILA APR portion of the “Fed Box” for retail installment sales transactions. In those instances, Carleton explained there is no actual “calculation” of an APR but it is simply a reiteration of the interest rate.

“The frequent assumption is that with no fees included as part of the TILA finance charge, the interest rate will always be within the 0.125-percent tolerance allowed by Regulation Z when measured from an accurately calculated TILA APR,” Carleton experts said.

“However, to assure compliance — despite the interest rate value being within the tolerance most of the time — Carleton’s recommendation is to always compute an accurate and precise APR to absolutely ensure compliance for both regulatory and civil liability needs,” the firm continued.

Carleton went on to mention that oftentimes the two resulting rates (the APR and the interest rate) may legitimately be represented by identical values.  More often than not, Carleton noted that any differences are driven by differences in the calendars used by the system(s) to compute the actual interest.

“In today’s world, ‘simple interest’ has become quite prevalent and incorporates an interest charge based on the actual calendar days existing between scheduled payments,” Carleton said.

“But the actuarial method of computing a TILA APR disregards the fact that months have varying numbers of days and treats each ‘month’ as 1/12 of a year. Thus, the two rates in comparison may actually be derived from disparate and divergent principles,” the firm continued.

Carleton emphasized that it is important to note that the 0.125-percent tolerance requirement is only a TILA “regulatory safe harbor” within a lending transaction.

“The more critical concern is often litigation and defending an ongoing ‘pattern of practice,’” the firm continued.

Should an accurately-computed APR be slightly larger than a base-computed interest rate on a regular basis, a claim of consistently under-stating the APR value on the contract to consumers may be problematic, according to Carleton.

“The chosen methodology is ultimately driven by a lender’s tolerance for risk pertaining to compliance,” Carleton said.

“Carleton’s best practice recommendation is for lenders to adopt an accurately computed TILA APR as their ‘no-risk’ solution,” the firm concluded.

For more details, go to carletoninc.com.

As we approach the holiday season, our thoughts turn to families and friends sitting around their living rooms. What are they talking about? Probably politics, little Joey’s grades, the football game, etc.

What would it take for your customer to talk about your dealership during Thanksgiving dinner?

When you offer the same-old-boring-message, boring services, boring offers, people will NOT talk about your business at Thanksgiving dinner.

Where I live, the Las Vegas City Council is voting on whether to allow fish pedicures. Yep. You read that right.

This is a pedicure in which a garra rufa carp, or doctor fish, nibbles on the toes. I don’t know if it works for others, but I am way too ticklish for that to work for me. It would feel like a new kind of Chinese water torture in which I could be coaxed into giving all my top-secret marketing strategies to the enemy.

And yet. This ticklish pedicure does get people talking. 

At dinner with a client in South Dakota after a consulting day, I asked the server about dessert. The server was like a robot. He handed me the dessert menu and did zero selling.

I ordered the dessert seen in the image at the top of this page. The picture doesn’t do it justice. This was a s’mores plate with ice cream in a bowl that was filled with dry ice. I could see the smoke from the dry ice all the way from the kitchen until it was delivered to our table.

 It was a great tasting dessert with a unique presentation. It was an attention-getter for sure, one that got me talking.

I ordered this dessert in spite of the server’s lack of enthusiasm for any after-dinner sweets.

Two things to do to get people talking about your dealership

No. 1: Have or do something worth talking about. Don’t be boring.

No. 2: Make sure your employees are excited about your products and services — unlike the server at the restaurant in South Dakota.

Perhaps when he first started, this server was excited about the smoking s’mores dessert. People’s energy tends to fade when they get used to something. Keep their energy and excitement up — your customers will benefit from your exciting offers and their unique experience.

Kenny Atcheson is a business strategist, marketing consultant, customer service/sales trainer, and author of Marketing Battleground: How to Deploy Under-the-Radar Strategies to Explode Your Profits. He teaches workshops and speaks at conventions all over the country. His website can be found at www.DealerProfitPros.com.

Both Spireon and AUL Corp. added to their award collections this week.

Spireon was named Internet of Things (IoT) Innovator in auto dealer management by Compass Intelligence for 2018. And AUL was named winner of both a Gold and Bronze Stevie Award in the Employer of the Year category at the third annual Stevie Awards for Great Employers competition.

Spireon highlighted the technology company was chosen for its leadership in providing new insights to dealers via automotive analytics to enhance dealer operations, customer engagement and profitability with its Kahu offering — the connected vehicle solution specifically designed for dealerships. The awards comprise 20 IoT innovation categories and are voted on by a team of over 30 independent analysts, editors, consultants and advisers.

Spireon’s Kahu solution can connect any vehicle to Spireon’s cloud-based NSpire IoT platform, empowering dealers nationwide with vehicle visibility and actionable data analytics to manage inventory, enrich the consumer purchasing experience and increase customer loyalty.

Standard features like geofencing, speed alerts, battery management and stolen vehicle recovery mitigate risk for dealers and make Kahu a profitable add-on when sold through to consumers. Dealers can also utilize mileage data from customer vehicles post-sale to realize new revenue streams, as they’re able to identify and target them for servicing, lease renewals and trade-ins.

“We are honored to receive this recognition from Compass Intelligence as an innovator in delivering new insights and analytics to improve dealer management with Kahu,” said Jason Penkethman, chief product and strategy officer of Spireon.

“The rapid growth of Kahu across the country, specifically with the largest dealer groups, is a true testament to Spireon’s commitment to advancing the automotive IoT industry with powerful and practical vehicle intelligence solutions,” Penkethman continued.

This award, given on behalf of Compass Intelligence, adds to Spireon’s corporate accolades in 2018, which include: IoT Vehicle Telematics Company of the Year in the 2018 Compass Intelligence Awards, a Silver award in the 2018 Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service and a Silver for New Product or Service of the Year in the 2018 American Business Awards, awarded to Spireon’s NSpire IoT platform.

Workforce honor for AUL

Meanwhile, AUL president and chief executive officer Jimmy Atkinson announced the warranty provider was named winner of both a Gold and Bronze Stevie Award in the Employer of the Year category at the third annual Stevie Awards for Great Employers competition Corp. The Stevie Awards for Great Employers recognize the world’s best who help to create and drive great places to work.

Named the Stevies for the Greek word meaning “crowned,” the competition received more than 550 nominations this year from organizations in 21 nations for consideration in a range of human resources-related categories. AUL was nominated in the Employer of the Year category for Other Industries, for which it won Gold, and in the Insurance Industry, winning Bronze.

“Since AUL’s founding in 1990, we have dedicated ourselves to establishing a culture of excellence, teamwork and integrity,” Atkinson said. “To be honored by the Stevie Awards, with two wins no less, is a tremendous validation of our hard work and the quality of our people.”

AUL HR manager Helen Van Deren added, “The reason AUL is the premier vehicle service contract in the United States is simple. AUL fosters a culture where our people come first — a culture of caring. From providing leading benefits packages, to encouraging personal time off, and enriching professional and educational development, AUL truly believes that thriving employees go above and beyond to ensure a thriving business.

“These awards are further validation of our core convictions,” Van Deren went on to say.