Portrait of a Good Repo Client

I’ve focused a bit on what’s gone wrong with how some auto lenders are treating the repossession industry. But its not universally true….there are some good clients out there.


What does a good client look like? At least from the perspective of a repossession agency? 


A good repo client gives you information.  Lots of it.  
How many cars are sitting at the “address provided”? Only a fraction of what there used to be. So it’s often what’s being untold that is resulting in missed repo opportunities. The creditor might know why the debtor is in our area (“he’s looking for work…he’s a plumber”….or “he’s down here with girlfriend”…or “he’s really into bowling…”).  There a million little factoids that might be useful for an intelligent investigator to use in his hometown to find more information about the debtor. Cars are often repossessed from locations we surface, and it takes data (even seemingly unrelated data) to do that.  Even knowing the vehicle’s color or tag is huge. It’s in your best interest to tell the repo agency everything you know about the debtor. 


A good repo client treats our staff well. 
Man, I know it would be frustrating being a collector for an auto lender. Customers lying to you all day, upper management pressing for better numbers, a minefield of legal issues to navigate with every collection call.  It would be tough.  But we appreciate it when a collector sets all that aside and relates to our staff as being “on the same side”, because we really are. People in the repo business really do go to the wall for a client they appreciate.  That means more cars recovered, and less loans pushed into charge-off.  Think of the repossessors as your football team, and you, Mr. Client, as the coach. It takes positive motivation and team spirit to get your agents ready to hit the streets.


A good repo client pays a fair fee. 
I am repeating myself from previous posts.  But…paying a reasonable repo fee means that the agency really will give each repo deal their best efforts. Its that simple. 
Trust me……you don’t want to be the client whose accounts get worked “only when we’re in the area”. Priority accounts receive better attention, and clients that pay fairly get prioritized. 
Also paying a close fees justifies the agency’s investment in Accurint reports, or running Carfax’s, or even paying to get a tag number to input into their own ALPR systems…on a no-repo-no-fee basis, agencies will quit spending on those accounts knowing that’s only more money out the window.  You will get more cars from agencies that you pay a close fee, and more of the same if you allow your agent to charge a skip fee on a legitimate find. 


A good repo client says “thanks”.

I know its not your own personal car that we’ve recovered. But when you sense we’ve gone the extra mile, and kept hammering away on an account by checking the address a million times, or recovered the car from some other address we surfaced, please feel free to say “thank you”.  Good will and appreciation pays dividends in any relationship, even business relationships. 


Its not all about the money, although that’s a part of it.  And I’m not saying a good relationship with your repossessor will make or break your organization. But it will make a difference…a huge difference…..in your organization’s bottom line.  But even more importantly, this has to do with cooperation and respect….which are good ways to interact with people no matter what activity you’re engaged in.