Snap-on Credit LLC is a 50 percent-owned joint venture between Snap-on Incorporated and CIT Group Inc. Snap-on Incorporated is an S&P 500 company and a leading global innovator, manufacturer and marketer of professional tools and equipment. Working in conjunction with Snap-on Tools Company LLC and its affiliates, Snap-on Credit has established itself as a premier provider of financing solutions for Snap-on dealers and customers.
The approximately 4,200 nationwide Snap-on dealers sell innovative tools and equipment directly to shop owners, managers and professional service technicians who work in automotive dealerships, body shops, independent repair shops, marinas, airports and wherever cars, trucks, boats and other vehicles are repaired and maintained. In order to process a financing application, dealers complete credit applications and then, fax, mail or phone them into Snap-on Credit, which then processes the requests and responds to dealers directly.
Incorporating a continuous improvement approach that is central to Snap-on’s Driven to Deliver™ framework, Snap-on Credit senior management saw an opportunity to improve the credit application process based on the high volume and quick turnaround requirements. At the time, credit analysts were manually reviewing all requests for new and existing customers. This required a large underwriting staff and support personnel to process the high volume of applications each day. There was clearly an opportunity to improve the process, while integrating credit scoring methodology, to speed approvals and allow dealers to devote more time to providing value-added service to customers.
Snap-on Credit used an older version of the APPRO Consumer Lending System, a DOS MP-100 version, strictly as a mechanism to pull credit bureau reports, but did not utilize any of the other functionalities that the system offered. After reviewing the opportunity to increase the efficiency of the credit underwriting process, Snap-on Credit investigated leveraging the full functionality that APPRO’s technology had to offer. As a result, Snap-on Credit chose to upgrade from their existing MP-100 system to APPRO’s LoanCenter Consumer™, a fully-automated loan-processing and decisioning system. Because of the unique nature of the customer base, Snap-on Credit worked with CIT’s Management Science team and developed custom credit scoring models to be installed within LoanCenter Consumer. APPRO was then interfaced with Snap-on Credit’s internal account servicing system to allow for the expeditious transferring of data.
“As we evaluated the way our credit analysts were reviewing credit applications, we realized that Snap-on Credit could benefit from fully automating the process to speed up the decisioning time and ensure that from a risk management standpoint, we were operating proficiently,” said Steve Spinozza, vice president of Credit and Portfolio Management at Snap-on Credit. “We wanted the system to have the ability to ‘auto decision,’ so we could provide the best in customer service by being able to get that decision back to the dealer as quickly as possible. We chose LoanCenter Consumer because it gave us the ability to interface our custom credit scoring models into the system and get decisions back out to the point of contact within minutes. LoanCenter also has important reporting characteristics that we have incorporated to ensure we are monitoring our performance on a daily basis.”
Since the implementation of LoanCenter Consumer, Snap-on Credit has experienced a significantly enhanced decisioning process. What was once a completely manual process was automated through the utilization of LoanCenter Consumer.
“APPRO has helped us greatly by streamlining our process,” continued Spinozza. “Dealers previously had to go through a slower decisioning process. Now, a dealer provides a completed credit application and receives a decision within minutes. Internally, we have the right tools to measure our effectiveness and monitor the underwriting process in a more prudent manner. LoanCenter has helped provide our dealers with the ability to have credit decisions quickly which in the end helps them sell more tools and meet the demands of the customer.“
LoanCenter Consumer has also helped Snap-on Credit meet demands during certain peak seasons and product launches. Spinozza explains, “With LoanCenter Consumer, we were able to handle an increase in application activity without any impact on our turnaround time. For example, we may be introducing an exciting new tool storage unit, which could substantially increase the number of credit applications. Because of our ability to automate a significant percentage of our decisions, we are able to process these applications without any impact on our staff.”
The implementation of APPRO’s technology has allowed Snap-on Credit’s personnel to be more efficient, improve internal processes and focus on additional responsibilities. Snap-on Credit’s vice president of Operations and Information Technology, John Watters was pleased with the timely implementation of the new system and the ability to quickly integrate their custom credit scorecards into LoanCenter Consumer and through its existing account servicing system.
“We had a fully functional system within six months of completing the decision process, developing the complex custom credit scorecards and integrating the scorecards into the system. It was very smooth and continues to be a very valuable benefit to our company,” said Watters.
Snap-on Credit LLC, located in Gurnee, Ill., was formed in 1999 as a joint venture between Snap-on Incorporated and CIT Group Inc. Working in collaboration with Snap-on Tools Company LLC and its affiliates with an unsurpassed dedication to world-class service, Snap-on Credit has established itself as a premier provider of financing solutions for Snap-on dealers and their customers. Snap-on Credit is dedicated to bringing new and cost-effective financing concepts to its customers, that are designed to meet customer needs in the ever-changing landscape of today’s global business.
Snap-on Tools Company LLC is a subsidiary of Snap-on Incorporated, headquartered in Kenosha, Wisc., a leading global innovator, manufacturer and marketer of tool, diagnostic and equipment solutions for professional tool users. Product lines include hand and power tools, diagnostics and shop equipment, tool storage, diagnostics software and other solutions for vehicle service, industrial, government and agricultural customers, and commercial applications, including construction and electrical. The company sells its products through its franchised dealer van, company-direct sales and distributor channels, as well as over the Internet. Founded in 1920, Snap-on is a worldwide, $2+ billion, S&P 500 Company employing approximately 12,200 people.
CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT), a leading commercial and consumer finance company, provides clients with financing and leasing products and advisory services. Founded in 1908, CIT has nearly $50 billion in assets under management and possesses the financial resources, industry expertise and product knowledge to serve the needs of clients across approximately 30 industries. CIT, a Fortune 500 company, holds leading positions in vendor financing, U.S. factoring, equipment and transportation financing, Small Business Administration loans, and asset-based and credit-secured lending. CIT, with its principal offices in Livingston, New Jersey and New York City, has approximately 6,000 employees in locations throughout North America, Europe, Latin and South America, and the Pacific Rim. For more information, visit www.cit.com.