Protective Asset Protection is celebrating 60 years of service this month as a provider of F&I products that help protect each vehicle investment while equipping dealers with the F&I products they need to instill confidence and trust in their customers.

The company began by protecting cars and trucks 60 years ago and then added motorcycles, powersports, marine and specialty vehicles. Protective has covered more than 43 million vehicles from every kind of mechanical breakdown possible.

Through a news release, the company recapped how it all began.

Western Diversified (WD) opened its doors in the early 1960s and started writing vehicle service contracts (VSCs) around 1980. The original administrator was Western Diversified Services. 

In 1987, Western Diversified Casualty was formed as the underwriting insurance company and about the same time, WD was bought by John Alden Life, where it introduced GAP in the mid-1990s.

In 1997, WD was sold from John Alden to Protective Life Insurance Company.

The company’s first RV program was taken in-house by Protective in 2004 (from GE-General Electric) and marketed as Xtra-Ride.

In 2006, Protective purchased the vehicle service contract and limited warranty assets of Western General Insurance Co., followed by their purchase of Prizm in 2009.

In 2015 Protective Life Insurance Company and its subsidiaries, including Protective Asset Protection, were acquired by Dai-ichi Life Insurance Co. In 2016, Protective purchased the automotive vehicle service contract, GAP and ancillary product assets of United States Warranty Corporation (USWC) of Pompano Beach, Fla. The DOWC-dealer owned warranty corporation type of participation came with this acquisition.

In quick succession, subsequent acquisitions have included Revolos Corp. in 2021 and AUL Corp. this year.

Company leaders highlighted the addition of DOWC was critical because participation programs allow dealers to own, market, sell and support their own branded F&I program by owning their own company.

Besides greater profit potential on F&I sales, Protective pointed out that another advantage is that dealers can customize their own F&I offerings. For example, a dealer can build a portfolio of F&I products that caters to a variety of branded vehicles, not just one. These F&I products can range from service contracts to ancillary products and enable optimum profit potential for participating dealers, all administered by Protective.

Earlier this year, Protective’s acquisition of AUL provided additional resources to further support dealers with premium F&I product offerings, especially for higher-mileage cars and trucks which are in great demand in today’s automotive marketplace.

“Over the last few decades, our company has experienced tremendous growth and our team has increased significantly, creating quality opportunities for employees around the country,” Protective Asset Protection president Scott Karchunas said in the news release. “But we have not done this alone.

“Our journey has been made possible by the outstanding support of our committed agent and dealer partners who have put their trust in Protective,” Karchunas continued. “As partners we have worked alongside our agents and dealers to continuously meet the needs of our evolving markets and grown together. It is fitting that we express our gratitude and share our success with them.

“With their continued confidence in our longstanding partnership, we are encouraged and inspired to continue serving them even better in the future,” he went on to say.