Experian Automotive’s most recent data showed how much more risk captive lenders are taking in regard to loan-to-value (LTV) levels when booking contracts for used models.

Experian indicated LTVs for captives that financed used vehicles in Q4 jumped by 306 basis points to an average of 128.6 percent. That year-over-year increase was far more than what Experian noticed for credit unions (up 136 basis points to 135.8 percent) and finance companies (up 115 basis points to 152.4 percent).

Overall, analysts found that LTVs for used-vehicle financing rose 113 points to 133.8 percent.

On the new-car side, Experian determined credit unions pushed their LTVs up the most during the fourth quarter, increasing them by 212 basis points to 115.3 percent. That basis-point amount recorded by credit unions nearly quadrupled the market average, which moved up 56 basis points year-over-year to 110.4 percent.

Looking at the LTV data by consumer credit category, Experian’s data showed the overall aggression in the market to make deals with buyers with damaged credit histories and more negative equity.

For deep subprime — consumers who Experian said have credit scores below 550 — LTVs soared the most year-over-year for both new- and used-vehicle financing. For new, the increase came in at 301 basis points to 126.0 percent, and for used, the jump registered at 220 basis points to 149.2 percent.

The other credit categories outside of prime posted similar increases during the fourth quarter according to Experian, including:

—Subprime new: up 234 basis points to 125.5 percent

—Subprime used: up 164 basis points to 142.3 percent

—Non-prime new: 143 basis points to 122.2 percent

—Non-prime used: up 110 basis points to 136.8 percent

The LTV data dissected by Experian conveyed a similar trend shared in the most recent dealer survey conducted by KeyBanc Capital Markets.

KeyBanc reported that financing availability remains strong as majority of the dealer respondents — 56 percent to be exact — indicated banks and finance companies were becoming more aggressive in January and the remaining 44 percent indicated no change from a year earlier.

The survey results also showed financing for subprime borrowers continued on a positive trend as 60 percent of the dealer respondents indicated favorable conditions remained unchanged and the remaining 40 percent indicated subprime financing continued to loosen in the month of January.