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EFG Companies

BenchmarkPortal Names EFG Companies a Center of Excellence for Three Years in a Row

Company Ranked in the Top 10 Percent Across all Industries Nationally

Benchmark-Portal-Customer-Service-Center-of-Excellence-Seal-WallmonkeyEFG Companies, the innovator behind the award-winning Hyundai Assurance program, announced today that it has been certified as a Center of Excellence by BenchmarkPortal for the third year in a row. For more information, visit: http://bit.ly/2lztMvm.

Each year, researchers from BenchmarkPortal audit and validate best-practice metrics drawn from the world’s largest database of objective and quantitative data to determine which contact centers should be awarded this designation. Only contact centers that rank in the top ten percent of those surveyed achieve the award.

“Contact center leaders who seek this certification demonstrate an ongoing commitment to achieving service excellence in the most cost-effective ways possible,” said Bruce Belfore, CEO of BenchmarkPortal. “This certification means that EFG’s center has reached an optimized balance between efficiency and effectiveness.”

EFG has long recognized the importance of providing the highest level of customer service to its clients through high quality employees. In 2016, the company made its mission to better equip those employees with the tools and processes that only enhance their ability to service their clients and customers.

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Compliance

The Cost of Compliance

Contributing Author: John Stephens Executive Vice President EFG Companies
Contributing Author:
John Stephens
Executive Vice President
EFG Companies

Since July 2010, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has made significant waves in the auto finance space. In 2013, they issued their bulletin titled “Indirect Auto Lending and Compliance with the Equal Opportunity Act” stating that they would regulate lenders on unanticipated discriminatory practices. With very little guidance on how to be compliant, lenders and dealers scrambled to revamp their anti-discrimination practices to little avail.

Between 2013 and 2016, the CFPB filed 13 enforcement actions totaling upwards of $165.17 million against auto financiers, such as:

  • Toyota Motor Credit Corporation
  • Fifth Third Bank
  • American Honda Finance Corporation
  • Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.
  • JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.
  • DriveTime Automotive Group
  • First Investors Financial Services Group

Beyond the restitution and civil penalties leveraged against lenders, the increased compliance oversight also had direct impact on dealer profit margins, consumer prices, and the national GDP.

According to a 2014 study of the auto finance regulatory environment by the Center for Automotive Research (CAR), regulations pertaining to employment, accounting and vehicle financing made up more than 63 percent of all estimated federal regulatory compliance costs. The administration of vehicle financing alone accounted for 71 percent of all vehicle finance compliance costs and 26 percent of total dealership compliance costs.

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Featured

EFG Companies and Northwood University Announce F&I Innovator of the Year Competition Winner

Team Vigilance Meets Consumer and Dealer Demands with 401Karrs

EFG Companies, the innovator behind the award-winning Hyundai Assurance program, together with Northwood University, today announced the selection of Team Vigilance as the winner of the 2016 Innovator of the Year Award competition, and the recipient of $25,000.

Team Vigilance utilized their millennial mindset, ongoing dealership research, and F&I mentor input to create “401Karrs”. The product addresses Millennial and Gen Z concerns around financial security, and delivers on dealership goals around customer retention. In addition to the team’s monetary reward, they will potentially see 401Karrs developed by EFG for market availability. Team Vigilance is made up of three team members:

  • Alec Bond from Lindin, MI
  • Houston Huff from Tuscon, AZ
  • Lucas Myrhe from Austin, TX

“We want to thank all the teachers and mentors from this competition and across Northwood who’ve been a huge inspiration and motivation throughout this project,” said Lucas Myrhe.  “With their guidance, we were able to deliver a product that is beneficial to customers and dealerships, increasing dealership profit, retention, and customer satisfaction.”

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