Just a couple of days after Location Services announced that DigitalDog Auto Recovery was among its five acquisitions, Digital Recognition Network (DRN) said on Friday that it secured a federal court victory involving both of those recovery industry companies.
DRN, an artificial intelligence and data analytics company that provides vehicle location data and analytics to auto finance companies, insurance carriers and other commercial verticals, announced that on Oct. 5, a U.S. District Court Judge in the Northern District of Texas ruled on three key findings. Those rulings included:
—That DRN’s one-year, non-competition contract provision is valid and enforceable.
—That Bay Cities Recovery Inc., which does business as DigitalDog Auto Recovery breached its contract with DRN.
—That Location Services tortiously interfered with the contract by participating with DigitalDog Auto Recovery to breach its agreement with DRN.
“We are grateful to the court for its thorough application of the facts to the law and its thoughtful decision-making in its ruling,” said Todd Hodnett, executive chairman and founder of DRN. “Most importantly, we are pleased with the decision because it helps to reinforce the importance of contracting integrity within the auto recovery industry.
"Contracts are more than words on paper. They create structure and build a foundation of trust between partners in the industry,” Hodnett continued. “At DRN, our word is our bond. We negotiate contracts in good faith and stand behind them. We expect no less from our partners, as well.”
In 2010, DRN said DigitalDog Auto Recovery, a California repossession agency (owned and operated at the time by Michael Eusebio) contracted with DRN to use its license plate recognition (LPR) technology to help locate vehicles subject to repossession. In March 2014, DRN indicated DigitalDog Auto Recovery signed a new contract with DRN, which (just like the 2010 contract) contained a one-year, non-competition provision and increased their share of DRN revenue.
“Most importantly, as an inducement for DRN to enter into the agreement, DigitalDog Auto Recovery represented in the contract that the non-competition language was reasonable in duration and scope,” DRN said.
In reliance on the representations made by DigitalDog Auto Recovery, DRN said it entered into the agreement and paid Eusebio’s company more than $220,000 during the life of the contract.
Then on April 11, DRN said DigitalDog Auto Recovery notified DRN that it was terminating the contract effective May 11 and immediately filed suit against DRN claiming that the non-competition agreement was unreasonable in both duration and scope.
DigitalDog Auto Recovery stated its intention to work with Location Services using different LPR technology after May 11, but DRN said it learned in discovery that DigitalDog Auto Recovery and Location Services had been interacting for several months before that date.
DRN said DigitalDog Auto Recovery and Location Services claimed that those interactions were “legitimate business negotiations,” but the court noted that “the evidence is to the contrary,” and held those interactions both prior to termination of the contract and after to be a breach of the contract between DRN and DigitalDog Auto Recovery.
In ruling that DRN’s one-year, non-competition contract provision is reasonable and that it applies to DigitalDog Auto Recovery, the court noted that DigitalDog Auto Recovery “clearly understood that it would be limited from competing for one year” and had accepted benefits from DRN under the contract.
DRN added that the Court specifically found the one-year duration of the non-competition provision to be reasonable, and noted that the lack of a geographical limitation was not unreasonable because DRN’s business is nationwide.
DRN also mentioned DigitalDog Auto Recovery also unsuccessfully argued that the one-year non-competition period should not be enforceable because its employees would be harmed, but the court specifically noted that claim was belied by the evidence presented to the court.
Additionally, the court found that Location Services “willfully and intentionally interfered” with the contract between DRN and DigitalDog Auto Recovery, writing that
“Clearly third-party defendant (Location Services) was aware of the terms of the agreement” as DigitalDog Auto Recovery “insisted upon an indemnification agreement before it would proceed with communications it knew would violate the agreement.”
Following the court’s ruling, DRN said the only issues remaining for trial, which is currently set for later this year, are the amounts of compensatory and punitive damages and attorneys’ fees to be awarded to DRN based on DigitalDog Auto Recovery’s breach and Location Services’ interference.
Despite the court’s order, DRN pointed out that Location Services issued a press release earlier that it had gone ahead and completed an acquisition of DigitalDog Auto Recovery despite the fact that the non-competition provision in DigitalDog Auto Recovery’s contract with DRN did not expire until May 2019.
“We are very pleased about winning this case and feel vindicated by the Court’s ruling,” said Jeremiah Wheeler, executive vice president and general manager for fintech at DRN.
“This case is important because it tells the auto recovery industry that integrity matters and clearly demonstrates to our recovery community of providers and affiliate agents that we are a leader in this community who is dedicated to honoring our word in our agreements and promoting the highest standards of conduct as a partner,” Wheeler continued.
“We look forward to continuing to ensure that our providers and the recovery agent affiliates who work for them have the best tools in the industry to work with in the field,” he went on to say.
On Thursday, DIMONT welcomed two sales executives to its automotive team who have spent part of their careers at companies such as Black Book, FICO and Exeter Finance.
The Dallas-based provider of insurance claims adjusting and collateral loss mitigation services hired Leland Brewer and Glenn Mitchell as the company’s senior directors of sales in auto.
With more than 17 years of total experience with 12 of those years working in a variety of sales departments, Brewer joins DIMONT after working for Black Book. Prior to that post, he worked for Relevate Auto, another Atlanta-based company that is a provider of consumer data solutions also focusing on the auto industry.
Mitchell has more than 20 years of sales experience and 10 of those years in the auto space. Previously, Mitchell was with FICO, the San Jose, Calif.-based provider of analytics software used to make decisions based on predicted consumer behavior when offering auto financing. Before that juncture, he worked for Exeter Finance.
“Both of these new sales executives for our automotive division have many years of working for data-driven companies serving the auto finance industry,” said Denis Brosnan, chief executive officer and president of DIMONT.
“We look forward to putting that experience to work with our independent and captive auto finance clients as we continue to bring innovative solutions to help them reduce their losses on repossessed collateral,” Brosnan continued.
SubPrime Auto Finance News recently hosted a free webinar that featured Brosnan as well as executives from Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. and Westlake Financial Services for a session titled, “Utilizing Insurance Monitoring Data to Enhance Collections Strategies and Reduce Losses.” A recording of the webinar is available here.
A week after making it official that the company acquired Remarketing of America, Location Services returned to acquisition mode on Wednesday by securing five more operations for its portfolio.
Location Services announced the acquisition of Auto Approve as well as four recovery agencies, including Repossessors Inc., CARS Recovery, Digital Dog Auto Recovery and American Recovery Specialists of Florida.
Management highlighted the offerings now provided by Locations Services can give credit unions, banks, captive finance companies and other financial institutions the ability to have one company manage the entire loss-mitigation outsource process, including auto refinance, recovery, skip-locate, account administration, license plate digital technology, transportation and remarketing.
“We are very excited to announce the acquisition of Auto Approve and the four repossession agencies, which expands our service offerings, making it a seamless process to refinance, secure and monetize vehicle collateral from default to auction,” Location Services chief executive officer Lee McCarty said.
“Our purchase of Auto Approve uniquely positions us to provide auto refinance services and the purchase of the repossession agencies has expanded our reach and our ability to support the boots on the ground, our valued repossession agency partners,” McCarty continued.
“This gives us the ability to provide customers the most efficient, effective and compliant services, no matter their location. Most importantly, we are very proud the business owners will remain fully engaged in our business as partial owners of our company,” he went on to say.
Last week, Location Services announced its strategic partnership with Allied Solutions, one of the largest providers of insurance, lending and marketing products to financial institutions. The company also announced the acquisition of MOXKOR, which previously operated at Remarketing of America.
McCarty explained Location Services’ acquisition of Auto Approve, which offers refinancing options for consumers, as well as the securing of four repossession agencies, sets the stage for significant change in the outsourced servicing industry.
He insisted the partnership and acquisitions positions Location Services to become a vertically integrated, national direct loss mitigation outsource provider, streamlining the servicing process for thousands of credit unions, banks and financial services associates.
“Our team of seasoned auto finance professionals possess in-depth knowledge of state and federal regulatory requirements and we understand the struggles of managing a consistent and compliant service proposition that boasts high recovery rates,” McCarty said.
“We are excited to be teammates with such a strong and successful group of entrepreneurs and look forward to discussing our future with our current and potential clients," he added.
In the days and weeks ahead, Location Services pledged to work closely with clients and business partners to ensure a seamless transition.
“We provide our clients with the most efficient, effective and compliant loss mitigation experience possible. Acquisitions and partnerships like these, drive consistency and optimize performance, allowing financial institutions to realize enhanced resolution rates, reduced losses, and the most compliant services possible,” said Eric Gerdes, president and chief operating officer Location Services.
“We are very excited about these announcements and committed to preparing and equipping our employees and repossession agents with the processes, technology and tools needed to exceed customer’s expectations relative to performance, safety and compliance,” Gerdes went on to say.
Allied Solutions, one of the presenting sponsors of Used Car Week 2018, now has a closer relationship with Location Services, which also just acquired commercial consignor Remarketing of America to enhance its risk management and other offerings to auto-finance clients.
Allied Solutions, one of the largest providers of insurance, lending and marketing products to financial institutions, has entered into a strategic partnership and distribution agreement with Location Services that became effective on Monday.
“We are excited to partner with Location Services as they bring a true ‘best in class’ multi market solution to this area of our business,” Allied Solutions chief executive officer Pete Hilger said.
“Their business model will allow us to offer our clients a direct end-to-end loss mitigation experience that just wasn’t possible before, creating a new level of efficiency for Allied and our clients,” Hilger continued.
To ensure a smooth transition for clients, Allied Solutions indicated that it has appointed a dedicated product support team and is expecting minimal disruption.
“We are honored to be selected by Allied Solutions as their exclusive end-to-end loss mitigation servicing partner,” Location Services CEO Lee McCarty said.
“Allied Solutions is renowned for meeting the needs of their clients, which fits perfectly with our performance and compliance based culture, our focus on analytics and process rigor, and our commitment to deliver the most efficient, effective and compliant services in the loss mitigation industry,” McCarty continued.
Allied Solutions also will have a significant presence during Used Car Week 2018, which begins on Nov. 12 at the Westin Keirland Resort and Spa in Scottdale, Ariz. Anne Holtzman of Allied Solutions will be joined by Jeremiah Wheeler of Digital Recognition Network for multiple discussions and presentations where they will explore the risk strategies they use to monitor contracts for insurance coverage, prevent contracts from going to recovery and build behavior models that predict skip propensity earlier to better predict risk.
Early bird registration discounts are available through Oct. 16. Complete details are available at www.usedcarweek.biz.
More news from Location Services
Along with the partnership with Allied Solutions, Location Services also announced this week the acquisition of MOXKOR, formerly known as Remarketing of America.
McCarty emphasized that the offering now provided by Locations Services can allow credit unions, banks and other financial institutions the ability to have one company manage the entire loss mitigation process including skip-locate, recovery, account administration, license plate digital technology, transportation and remarketing.
“During my time in the banking industry, there was a clear and distinct need for a single service provider to serve as a one-stop-solution that could service financial institutions in a way that reduced compliance risk, while at the same time increasing recovery and liquidation rates,” McCarty said.
“Our team will be positioned with our suite of loss mitigation service offerings to ensure customers in New York are receiving the same efficient, effective and compliant services as those customers in California and Hawaii,” he continued.
Location Services strategically built its team around banking industry leaders; several which came aboard earlier this year.
Shawn White, former director of collections at Exeter Finance, serves as chief operating officer, while Eric Gerdes, former executive director of compliance at Ally Financial, serves as chief risk and compliance officer.
Location Services’ leadership team also includes chief technology officer Henry Kuo and chief digital and work force optimization officer Jeremiah Worthington.
“We are proud that Location Services leadership and management team members have extensive banking industry experience and deep knowledge of state and federal regulatory requirements. This uniquely positions and differentiates Location Services in this highly regulated outsource industry,” McCarty said.
A member of the SubPrime 175 is enhancing its resources to maintain compliance with state and federal guidelines to better serve its auto-finance clients.
Victory Recovery Services, a provider of skip-tracing and national repossession management for creditors with collateral secured contracts, is taking another step in enhancing its risk assessment and due diligence efforts by partnering with VendorInsight.
“We have worked hard at VRS to provide national coverage and seamless recovery effort for our vendor network,” Victory Recovery Services founder and chief executive officer Mark Davis said. “We believe our due diligence is protected by the award-winning risk management platform, VendorInsight, to provide VRS a support system that will monitor, alert, and provide necessary metrics as it relates to our vendor network.
The partnership with VendorInsight will provide VRS a platform to ease the manpower burden required during and after the on-going vendor process, as well as give us a viable vendor research tool for evaluation and due diligence activities,” Davis continued.
“This move will confirm our commitment and confidence in our ability to deliver on our ‘No Risk, Just Results’ mission,” Davis went on to say. “Now with the secure and automated services of VendorInsight at our disposal, we couldn’t be more excited to reaffirm our promise to our clients and demonstrate VRS has a high-quality vendor relations team.”
For more details about the company, go to www.vrs-corp.com.
Two of the largest repossession organizations are set to become one group.
According to an announcement sent to SubPrime Auto Finance News on Tuesday morning, the American Recovery Association (ARA) and Time Finance Adjusters (TFA) are joining together. The statement indicated the new association is expected to launch in January.
TFA president Nicki Merthe believes this development is the most significant event to take place in the repossession industry in modern times. By taking advantage of each other’s strengths, Merthe explained this move forms a unified and restructured organization unlike anything that has existed in the industry’s past.
“At TFA, we’re proud of our TFA Guide, our member communication network through the ‘E-Zines’ and how we’ve fostered the TFA ‘Family Mentality,’” Merthe said. “ARA has led the way with industry-wide events like the North American Repossessors Summit, compliance monitoring and member benefits.
“By merging these two associations and combining our clout, we will enhance our efficiency, efficacy and outreach,” Merthe continued.
TFA’s Patrick Altes discussed how the organizations arrived at Tuesday’s announcement.
“The new organization is being formed with the direct input of many of the best repossessors in the country,” Altes said. “This is the result of two day-long brainstorming sessions held earlier in 2018.
“Men and women from both organizations volunteered their time and resources to help build the framework for this new entity. This has never happened before,” he continued.
As a result of these planning and input sessions, the announcement mentioned the new organization will remain member-owned, with an all-volunteer board of directors. Altes will be named to the executive board of the new organization. TFA will remain as the publishing arm of the new organization, with TFA’s Todd Squires joining the communication and social media team.
“TFA’s heritage has been rooted in its independent ownership by my family” Merthe said. While that worked extremely well in its day, now is the time to restructure and turn the ownership of this new association to its collective members. We think Harvey (Merthe’s father and TFA’s founder) would approve.”
Both Merthe and Altes shared that the underlying theme of those strategy sessions was to build an organization with “One Voice, Strong and United.” They added that premise resonated throughout each of the historic meetings.
“When you look at Washington, you see the inefficiencies caused by the pointless polarization and game-playing by both political parties,” Altes said. “Until today, that could also describe our industry. As a result, we’ve been completely unable to affect any sort of change for our members.
“We’ve had no large collective voice, and this has paralyzed our industry,” he continued. “Unifying is our last, and best chance, for making any long-lasting changes. ARA has shared the vision, and it has been a real pleasure working with Les McCook (executive director of ARA) and David Kennedy (president of ARA) on bringing this initiative to life.”
Merthe went on to say, “The response from membership has been overwhelmingly positive. They know it’s time for a change for the betterment of the industry. We are responding to the call to unite. This is our chance to really make a difference.”
Coming on the heels of establishing a relationship with defi SOLUTIONS, Black Book also announced a development involving its history adjusted valuations (HAV) data and resources being integrated with DIMONT, one of the largest providers of insurance claims adjusting and collateral loss mitigation services.
Under the agreement, the companies highlighted Black Book’s HAV insight and resources are now integrated into DIMONT’s proprietary systems for claims adjusters to help in their work pursuing insurance claims on repossessed vehicles.
History-adjusted valuations are a VIN-specific, analytics-driven resource that can deliver Black Book’s most precise vehicle valuations, helping automotive professionals determine the impact a vehicle’s history has on its value. DIMONT is leveraging HAV as a precise independent data source for its claims adjusters. DIMONT’s team of adjusters will benefit from the increased precision of vehicle values, enhancing their negotiations and leading to better outcomes on vehicles in their portfolio of claims.
“We’re excited to work with Black Book, a company with a rich legacy in accurate valuations for the automotive industry,” said Denis Brosnan, chief executive officer of DIMONT. “For our adjusters, having accurate vehicle valuations is critical to reaching good claim resolutions, which is what we’re all about — proving outstanding service for our customers.”
Black Book executive vice president of revenue Jared Kalfus added, “It’s no longer enough to have vehicle values that are reported just based on make, model and trim level.
“Access to each vehicle’s unique valuation that takes into account its exact historical performance is a critical competitive advantage in the claims adjustment process, and can help minimize risk exposure when evaluating vehicles in accidents,” Kalfus went on to say.
SubPrime Auto Finance News is hosting a free webinar at 2 p.m. ET on Tuesday, when DIMONT will drill deep into the claims process.
Brosnan along with DIMONT’s Steve Garcia will be discussing the importance of an effective insurance monitoring solution on driving more significant recoveries following repossession.
The executives also will discuss how the receipt of automated insurance data can help your organization improve borrower and collection strategies, saving time and resources.
Registration for the free webinar can be completed here.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau concentrated the auto-finance portion of its latest supervisory highlights on two of the most complicated matters when someone needs credit to acquire a vehicle — repossession and the application of insurance proceeds.
Before deploying a repossession agent to find and take back a vehicle, the CFPB acknowledged that many finance companies provide options to consumers in an effort to avoid repossession when a contract is delinquent or in default. The bureau also recognized in the summertime update that finance companies may offer formal extension agreements that allow consumer to forbear payments for a certain period of time or may cancel a repossession order once a consumer makes a payment.
But then, problems came to light, at least according to the CFPB’s investigations.
“One or more recent examinations found that servicers repossessed vehicles after the repossession was supposed to be cancelled. In these instances, the servicers incorrectly coded the account as remaining delinquent, or customer service representatives did not timely cancel the repossession order after the consumer’s agreement with the servicers to avoid repossession. The examinations identified this as an unfair practice,” bureau officials said in the supervisory highlights.
"The practice of wrongfully repossessing vehicles causes substantial injury, because it deprives borrowers of the use of their vehicles and potentially leads to additional associated harm, such as lost wages and adverse credit reporting,” officials continued.
“Such injury is not reasonably avoidable when consumers take action they believed would halt the repossession, and there is no additional action the borrower can take to prevent it,” the CFPB went on to say.
The bureau made one more point about the ramifications of errors happening during the repossession process, stating a financial injury is not outweighed by countervailing benefits to the consumer or to competition.
“No benefits to competition are apparent from erroneous repossessions. And the expense to better monitor repossession activity is unlikely to be substantial enough to affect institutional operations or pricing,” the CFPB said.
In response to the examination findings, the bureau indicated finance companies are stopping the practice, reviewing the accounts of consumers affected by a wrongful repossession and removing or remediating all repossession-related fees.
Insurance issues
Before delving into the repossession world, the CFPB recapped what’s happened when it’s investigated finance companies in connection with insurance.
The bureau shared in the supervisory highlights that one or more examinations observed instances in which notes required that insurance proceeds from a total-vehicle loss be applied as a one-time payment to the contract with any remaining balance to be collected according to the consumer’s regular billing schedule.
However, in some instances after consumers experienced a total-vehicle loss, the CFPB said finance companies sent billing statements showing that the insurance proceeds had been applied to the loan payments so that the loan was paid ahead and that the next payment on the remaining balance was due many months or years in the future.
“Servicers then treated consumers who failed to pay by the next month as late, and in some cases also reported the negative information to consumer reporting agencies,” bureau officials said.
“The examination found that servicers engaged in a deceptive practice by sending billing statements indicating that consumers did not need to make a payment until a future date when in fact the consumer needed to make a monthly payment,” they continued. The billing statements contained due dates inconsistent with the note and the servicer’s insurance payment application.
Such information would mislead reasonable consumers to think they did not need to make the next monthly payment. The misrepresentation is material because it likely affected consumers’ conduct with regard to auto loans,” the bureau went on to say.
Had the information been presented differently?
“Consumers would have been more likely to make a monthly payment if they knew that not doing so would result in a late fee, delinquency notice or adverse credit reporting,” the bureau said in its latest compliance update.
In response to examination findings, the CFPB state that finance companies are sending billing statements that accurately reflect the account status of the contract after applying insurance proceeds from a total-vehicle loss.
As summertime unofficially winds down, Spireon is celebrating a number of corporate milestones secured during the first half of the year.
Spireon attributed product innovation, “white-glove” customer service and key industry partnerships to increases in revenue, active subscriptions and customer service metrics.
“Results for the first half of 2018 show market demand remains extremely strong for our best-in-class connected vehicle solutions,” Spireon chief executive officer Kevin Weiss said. “Across the core markets we serve — auto dealerships, transportation companies and local fleets — a growing number of customers and partners are selecting Spireon based on the quality of our products and outstanding customer service.
“We have made significant investments to scale the business and those investments are paying off,” Weiss continued.
In the franchised dealer segment, Spireon increased Kahu device shipments by 65 percent and boosted revenues by 38 percent during the first six months of the year, compared to the same period in 2017.
The company highlighted Kahu continues to attract large dealer groups for its ability to improve sales effectiveness, operational efficiency, risk management and customer service scores. In Q1, the company showcased unique capabilities of Kahu, such as advanced analytics for test drives and aging inventory, car-sharing with Drive On Demand and consumer mobile app features designed to grow service retention and add-on revenue.
The significant, rapid business impact of Kahu to dealerships has gained 73 new dealer customers for Spireon in the first half of 2018.
Kahu generates meaningful profit for dealers while delivering compelling consumer benefits including stolen vehicle recovery and connected car features. During the first half of the year, consumers used the Kahu app on average 11 times per month to locate their vehicle as well as set geofence and speed alerts.
Spireon mentioned the Kahu app has maintained ratings of 4.6 out of 5, or higher, on both Apple and Google app stores, illustrating the high value of Kahu to car buyers.
The company continues to innovate and grow market share in the subprime sector as well, with device shipments to buy-here, pay-here dealers growing 4 percent year-over-year.
In June, Spireon released Quick Locate, a new feature for its GoldStar solution that can provide dealers and finance companies with instant visibility to vehicle location and status.
Spireon insisted GoldStar customers remain extremely loyal, with an average customer rating of 8.9 out of 10, and 94 percent likely to recommend GoldStar, according to a TechValidate survey of BHPH dealers published in March.
A leader in the trailer management space, Spireon achieved a significant milestone surpassing 200,000 trailer telematics subscribers for its FleetLocate asset and trailer intelligence solution.
The rapid growth of Spireon’s market share in the trailer segment is due in part to continued innovations that streamline operations and increase profitability for customers. In the first half of 2018, the company introduced FL Flex, the industry’s first modular trailer tracker designed for mixed fleets. The compact, power-efficient tracker can be configured with a wide range of sensors, such as the new FleetLocate Cargo Sensor with patent-pending IntelliScan sensing technology, announced in early July.
In the first half of this year, trailer revenues increased 36 percent versus the same span a year earlier, and Spireon secured or grew business with several notable enterprise customers including Transervices, Contract Leasing Corp. and Ryder System.
Spireon’s fleet business in the small and mid-market segments also grew in with a 45-percent increase in device shipments year-over-year.
Partnerships with leading brands and resellers extended the reach of Spireon fleet solutions, and included:
• General Motors: Spireon launched their FleetLocate Connected by OnStar solution in mid-2017, enabling customers with OnStar-equipped GM vehicles to gain instant access to the FleetLocate platform without added costs or installation time associated with aftermarket devices. In the first half of this year, the company achieved 27 percent growth in activations versus the second half of 2017.
• Ford Commercial Solutions: In June, Spireon partnered with Ford Commercial Solutions for FleetLocate to access data through Ford’s Transportation Mobility Cloud. As a result, fleet operators with Ford vehicles will be able to utilize FleetLocate with no aftermarket hardware required.
• FleetLocate Resellers: In the first half of this year, Spireon experienced 53 percent growth in fleet channel revenue from its largest reseller partner, and a 73-percent increase in active subscriptions year-over-year. Overall, device shipments through the company’s reseller channel have increased by 39 percent.
Furthermore, Spireon in August was among six companies to join Automotive Grade Linux (AGL), a collaborative cross-industry effort developing an open platform for the connected car. With the addition of these companies and organizations, the project is 130 members strong.
Automotive Grade Linux is a collaborative open source project that aims to accelerate the development and adoption of a fully open software stack for the connected car. Leveraging the power and strength of Linux at its core, AGL is uniting automakers and technology companies to develop an open platform that offers OEMs complete control of the user experience so the industry can rapidly innovate where it counts.
“Spireon has nearly 4 million vehicles connected to our NSpire platform, and data from more than 326 billion driving miles under our belt, so we fully understand the challenges of a fragmented telematics ecosystem that the AGL project seeks to overcome,” Spireon chief technology officer Rick Gruenhagen said.
“A standardized software stack will accelerate autonomous and other connected vehicle benefits by helping solution providers like Spireon gain secure access to in-vehicle functions and data that have been locked in OEM-specific implementations until now,” Gruenhagen continued.
And among other developments, Spireon improved its Net Promoter Score (NPS), a key measure of customer satisfaction and loyalty, to 71, far surpassing the industry average of 21.4 for business-to-business technology companies. Reinforcing the company’s commitment to outstanding service and support, Rashid Ismail joined the company in March as senior vice president of customer success.
Ongoing third-party recognition continued to underscore the excellence of Spireon’s service, support and technology. Awards won in the first half of 2018 include:
• Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service: Silver Award for Customer Service Department of the Year in the 2018
• Compass Intelligence Awards: IoT Vehicle Telematics Company of the Year in 2018
• American Business Awards: Silver Award for Spireon’s NSpire version 3.0 IoT platform in the New Product of the Year category
“The Spireon team continues to raise the bar on achieving key business metrics — whether that is devices shipped, revenue, new customers or NPS scores — which is not an easy feat when looking at the company’s substantial transformation in recent years,” Weiss said.
“Our unrivaled commitment to customer service, aggressive technology roadmaps and thriving partnerships have set us up for a strong finish to 2018,” he went on to say.
It might only be August, but the American Recovery Association (ARA) already has April on its radar.
ARA in conjunction with headline sponsor, Harding Brooks Insurance, announced the theme, secured keynote speakers and early bird registration details for the 11th annual North American Repossessors Summit, which is set to take place at the Omni Mandalay Hotel in Irving, Texas, on April 18-19.
Seeking to address the ever-changing business environment and to help attendees conquer the fear of change, the NARS 2019 theme has been coined: “Adapt, Conquer and Overcome: Accept the Marketplace, Face your Fears and Make Money.” The NARS planning committee swiftly and unanimously chose this theme for NARS 2019, thanks to their combined experiences from the lending, recovery agent and vendor sides of the industry.
“With the way the industry is structured today, it’s truly an ‘adapt-or-die’ situation for small business owners,” ARA president Dave Kennedy said. “The speakers and education sessions at this year’s NARS will be heavily business-focused. We want to arm recovery professionals with the tools they need to change their strategy, embrace new practices and build a business they can eventually retire from or pass on to the next generation.”
Breaking records of past summit timelines, the committee has already secured two keynote speakers: Bob Burg, motivational speaker and bestselling business author; and Mike Sarraille, a former Navy SEAL officer.
A highly acclaimed speaker and the author of "The Go-Giver", a Wall Street Journal and BusinessWeek Bestseller, Burg will deliver a three-hour business workshop at NARS 2019. Through this workshop, Burg will teach NARS attendees profitable, business-building skills they can immediately take back to their businesses. He was named one of the 30 Most Influential Leaders by the American Management Association and one of the Top 200 Most Influential Authors in the World by Richtopia.
In addition to serving 15 years as a Navy SEAL officer and five years as a U.S. Marine and Scout-Sniper, Sarraille is a graduate of the University of Texas McCombs Business School. Not only is he a leadership instructor and strategic adviser for Echelon Front, a management and consulting firm, but he’s also a recipient of the Silver Star, six Bronze Stars, two Defense Meritorious Service Medals and a Purple Heart.
According to Echelon Front, Sarraille and his fellow SEAL members in the program “creatively interweave edge-of-your-seat SEAL and Top Gun combat stories with practical leadership concepts and principles.”
Early bird registration is now open for $375, a savings of nearly 25 percent off the normal registration fee. Individuals can sign up for early bird registration at reposummit.com.
ARA members also can purchase tickets for up to four additional staff members at a rate of $250 per person. Registration for exhibiting and sponsorship opportunities for NARS 2019 will be announced and open to the public soon.
