Experian recently announced that it has made the IDC 2021 Fintech Rankings Top 100, highlighting the best global providers of financial technology. Experian is ranked number 11, rising 33 places from its 2020 ranking. IDC also refers to Experian as a ‘rising star.’ The robust data assets of Experian, combined with best-in-class modeling, decisioning and technology are powering new and innovative solutions. Experian has invested heavily in new technologies and infrastructures to deliver the freshest insights at the right time, to make the best decision. For example, Experian's Ascend Intelligence Services™ provides data, analytics, strategy, and performance monitoring, delivered on a modern-tech AI platform. With the investment in Ascend Intelligence Services, Experian has been able to streamline the delivery speed of analytical solutions to clients, improve decision automation rates and increase approval rates, in some cases by double digits. “Recognition in the top 20 of IDC FinTech Rankings demonstrates Experian’s commitment to the success of its financial clients,” said Marc DeCastro, research director at IDC Financial Insights. “We congratulate Experian for being ranked 11th in the 2021 IDC FinTech Rankings Top 100 list.” View the IDC Fintech Rankings list in its entirety here. Focus on Data, Advanced Analytics and Decisioning Creates Winning Strategy for Experian Experian’s focus on data, advanced analytics and decisioning has continued to gain recognition from various notable programs that acknowledge Fintech industry leaders and breakthrough technologies worldwide. Beyond the IDC Fintech Rankings Top 100, Experian won honors from the 2021 FinTech Breakthrough Awards, the 2021 CIO 100 Awards and was most recently shortlisted in the CeFPro Global Fintech Leaders List for 2022 in the categories of advanced analytics, anti-fraud, credit risk and core banking/back-end system technologies. “At Experian, we are committed to supporting the Fintech community. It’s great to see our continued efforts and investments driving positive impacts for our clients and their consumers. We will continue to invest and innovate to help our clients solve problems, create opportunities and support their customer-first missions,” said Jon Bailey, Vice President for Fintech at Experian. Learn more about how Experian can help advance your business goals with our Fintech Solutions and Ascend Intelligence Services. Explore fintech solutions Learn more about AIS

Financial inclusion is a challenge, that, while not new, has become ever more apparent over the last year. The inequities and inequalities in our society, exasperated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which disproportionately affected underserved populations, have amplified the challenge lenders and others in the financial services industry face in fostering financial inclusion. As a result, there is an increased focus and importance on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and having the ability to assess creditworthiness of overlooked and ‘invisible’ consumers. In a recent webinar, we sat down with Sarah Davies, Head of Data Analytics at Nova Credit, and a panel of Experian experts including Wil Lewis, Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer, Alpa Lally, Vice President of Product Management, and Greg Wright, Product Chief Officer, to explore the topic of DEI, what best practices exist to break down financial inclusion barriers and move financial access forward for all, and real-takeaway strategies and capabilities designed for fintechs and other financial institutions to leverage for lending deeper. Below are a few key perspectives from our speakers: What barriers to access are there for credit across different groups of people? [WL]: There are many barriers to financial inclusion, especially for underserved communities. The first of which is lack of awareness and lack of education about credit and how it impacts financial access – from obtaining loans, buying a first home, a new car and more. Not every American has someone in their life to teach and provide coaching on credit responsibility and how to be financially literate. [AL]: Historically, credit, wealth and health inequalities have all contributed to financial disparities, and as a result, have created an underrepresentation of marginalized communities in the current credit ecosystem. That’s compounded by today’s ecosystem where consumer underwriting favors those with established thick-file credit histories with minimal delinquencies, particularly in the last 24 months. So, all things being equal, additional points distributed to elevate scores are given to consumers that are maintaining low revolving debt. This poses credit barriers for those starting out new to credit, or even to immigrants coming into a new country who don’t have an established credit history.   What role could the credit industry play in healing the financial disparities created by the COVID-19 pandemic? [WL]: Our opportunity lies in meeting consumers where they are today. COVID-19 has spotlighted economic and social disparities in a way it hasn’t been done before. At the same time, it illustrated how the inability of some groups to access financial services requires meaningful solutions, quickly. Historically, organizations have been known to look at this in a traditional way: meaning “we are the organization, consumers come to us and we can tell you what you can and can’t do.” We need to shift our focus to how we can provide consumers with tools, technology and machine learning (ML) that are available to empower them. [SD]: One of the lessons we’ve learned from COVID, is that we need to be able to get to the marketplace fast in order to respond to the economic conditions. Fintechs have been very effective at this and it has shown through the approach they’ve taken towards immediacy in identifying, developing and distributing solutions. With consumers in a stressed position, it’s incumbent upon us, as the industry, to deliver consumer-centric options and opportunities in an efficient manner rather than having our consumers sit around waiting for them.   Are there solutions to help ensure we are lending deeper and serving thin-filed consumers? [AL]: At its core, data – not limited to only traditional credit data – that can be decisioned on, can help enrich financial inclusion. Alternative data, or expanded FCRA data, means that the data is displayable, disputable and correctable by the consumer. We recognize that traditional credit is still an effective way to assess a consumer’s credit worthiness. However, expanded FCRA data includes data points from rental, video streaming, all other industry sectors to help provide a 360 view of the consumer with additional insights - whether you are a thick-file consumer, thin-file consumer, or credit invisible. Through these different various data assets paired with advanced analytics and ML, we now have a mechanism to make sure consumers go from credit invisible to visible – and scorable. Leveraging Experian Boost and Experian Lift scores can do just that. [SD]: Expanded FCRA data is powerful and vital for helping the consumer. In addition, we are now in a place where the consumer can take on the responsibility and accountability for giving permission to include their data in the credit score. You’re putting the consumers in the driver seat, and with that, we are dissolving the psychological barriers that consumers may have had previously around their credit score being out of their control. As a player in the financial services space, we can put out as much data as we want, but it’s about engaging the consumer, sharing with them how it’s safe to share their data, and what the benefits of doing so are.   Are there tangible and intangible benefits of DEI that companies can realize when they have formal DEI programs in place? [WL]: Often times, when we think of lending, we talk about it from the standpoint of our business – ‘what are we doing for our customers, how are we helping consumers who are going to a institution for a loan.’ What we typically forget about is our own backyard. Every organization has employees who are at different points in their credit journey. How often do we talk directly to our employees and give them tools and details that may help them, their family member, or neighbor? As I think about DEI, it’s about involving folks inside your company to continue moving financial inclusion forward. As for an intangible benefit, when doing work in DEI and driving impact, you’re also reducing negative reputational risk. Reputable brands are invaluable, as you begin to make and show an impact, consumers begin to trust you. [AL]: Brand and reputation is huge in today’s world. We are starting to see a shift in consumers selecting certain institutions to work with, not just because of the services provided, but because it’s based on the brand and what they stand for. You as an institution are doing financial inclusion and you’re living up to it. You are truly embarking internally and externally on this initiative and it adds weights on the products and solutions that you sell. For consumers, that may be very important.   What does the future look like relative to financial inclusion? [WL]: It’s a world where all of us play a role in - no matter where you are in the organization. It’s all of our jobs and responsibility to talk about it to our fellow neighbor, consumer, and direct them to tools that will help them. [SD]: We no longer need to justify why financial inclusion is necessary. We’ve got all the data we need. Tools and mechanisms for organizations and consumers are almost universally available. The go-forward view requires all ‘players’ within the space to aggressively embrace these tools and data and start sharing and applying them across all markets and verticals. There’s no longer a reason not to be able to underwrite somebody with a thin file or marginal set of data. We have everything in place at this point. [AL]: It’s all our jobs. I think we have to put a lot of importance on our younger leaders and colleagues to carry our initiatives forward, so we are truly inclusive. We have just started taking the initial steps and we’ve made good progress, but we need to continue to make progress. In the future, I hope to see all that are younger take this forward and drive financial inclusion for all across the spectrum. Watch the full session to hear more of the engaging and timely discussion. Access the recording To learn more about how Experian is committed to advancing financial inclusion, please visit Experian’s Inclusion Forward resources page. For Fintechs looking to partner with Experian on marketplace lending solutions, explore our solutions here.

Artificial intelligence is here to stay, and businesses who are adopting the newest AI technology are ahead of the game. From targeting the right prospects to designing effective collections efforts, AI-driven strategies across the entire customer lifecycle are no longer a nice to have - they are a must.  Many organizations are late to the game of AI and/or are spending too much time and money designing and redesigning models and deploying them over weeks and months. By the time these models are deployed, markets may have already shifted again, forcing strategy teams to go back to the drawing board. And if these models and strategies are not being continuously monitored, they can become less effective over time and lead to missed opportunities and lost revenue. By implementing artificial intelligence in predictive modeling and strategy optimization, financial institutions and lenders can design and deploy their decisioning strategies faster than ever before and make incremental changes on the fly to adapt to evolving market trends.  While most organizations say they want to incorporate artificial intelligence and machine learning into their business strategy, many do not know where to start. Targeting, portfolio management, and collections are some of the top use cases for AI/ML strategy initiatives.  Targeting  One way businesses are using AI-driven modeling is for targeting the audiences that will most likely meet their credit criteria and respond to their offers. Financial institutions need to have the right data to inform a decisioning strategy that recognizes credit criteria, can respond immediately when prospects meet that criteria and can be adjusted quickly when those factors change. AI-driven response models and optimized decision strategies perform these functions seamlessly, giving businesses the advantage of targeting the right prospects at the right time.  Credit portfolio management  Risk models optimized with artificial intelligence and machine learning, built on comprehensive data sets, are being used by credit lenders to acquire new revenue and set appropriate balance limits. Strategies built around AI-driven risk models enable businesses to send new offers and cross-sell offers to current customers, while appropriately setting initial credit limits and managing limits over time for increased wallet share and reduced risk.   Collections  AI- and ML-driven analytics models are also optimizing collections strategies to improve recovery rates. Employing AI-powered balance and response models, credit lenders can make smarter collections decisions based on the most predictive and accurate information available.   For lending businesses who are already tight on resources, or those whose IT teams cannot meet the demand of quickly adapting to ever-changing market conditions and decisioning criteria, a managed service for AI-powered models and strategy design might be the best option. Managed service teams work closely with businesses to determine specific use cases, develop models to meet those use cases, deploy models quickly, and monitor models to ensure they keep producing and predicting optimally.  Experian offers Ascend Intelligence Services, the only managed service solution to provide data, analytics, strategy and performance monitoring. Experian’s data scientists provide expert guidance as they collaborate with businesses in developing and deploying models and strategies around targeting, acquisitions, limit-setting, and collections. Once those strategies are deployed, Experian continually monitors model health to ensure scores are still predictive and presents challenger models so credit lenders can always have the most accurate decisioning models for their business. Ascend Intelligence Services provides an online dashboard for easy visibility, documentation for regulatory compliance, and cloud capabilities to deliver scores and decisions in real-time.  Experian’s Ascend Intelligence Services makes getting into the AI game easy. Start realizing the power of data and AI-driven analytics models by using our ROI calculator below: initIframe('611ea3adb1ab9f5149cf694e'); For more information about Ascend Intelligence Services, visit our webpage or join our upcoming webinar on October 21, 2021.  Learn more Register for webinar

We’re excited to announce that the AutoCheck Member Website has received a facelift! AutoCheck has always been the industrial strength Vehicle History Report that automotive professionals trust to help manage risk and confidently buy and sell the right vehicles. We’ve made this great solution even greater by improving our Member Site user experience. Based on extensive research and user feedback, we’ve added many visual and workflow enhancements which make it easier for users to use the site. One noticeable change to the Member Website is the addition of Experian’s brand and color scheme. You’ll know right away that you’re accessing AutoCheck data backed by Experian, the industry experts for reliable data. The entire site is now mobile responsive—optimizing the experience for tablet and mobile users to provide even more shopping convenience. The new site will allow full functionality from a tablet or mobile device. As always, subscribers can continue to access AutoCheck reports via our mobile app or AutoCheck Fast Link℠ integration within their DMS, CRM, inventory management, online vehicle listings or many other integrated solutions. In addition, the AutoCheck Member Website is now WCAG 2.1 compliant. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) were developed to make web content more accessible to people with disabilities. This ‘web content’ usually refers to text, images and sounds on a webpage or web application. It also may include code that defines structure and presentation of the page of application. While a generated AutoCheck was already WCAG2.1 compliant, the entire member site now also meets the accessibility guidelines. AutoCheck Members can expect the same great functionality once they have signed into the site: Run single or multiple reports Print and email AutoCheck reports Print the Buyback Protection Certificate and the AutoCheck Score Sticker View the Track their 90-day usage Access AutoCheck brand materials including logos, videos and showroom materials Review Best Practices and Frequently Asked Questions Update account information …and much more! Below are a couple of examples which highlight the new user experience.   Already an AutoCheck Member? Contact us or call us at 1.888.409.2204 if you have any questions about navigating the redesigned website. Not an AutoCheck subscriber? Contact us to become an AutoCheck client and take advantage of all the benefits.

As today’s fastest-growing form of criminal activity, cybercrime is expected to cost organizations $6.1 trillion worldwide this year alone,1 with attacks on enterprises now occurring every 11 seconds2. But despite increasingly widespread growth in corporate IT security awareness, the importance of putting a sound data breach preparation plan in place for protecting your customers’ privacy and data can’t be underscored enough. Given the scale of IT security threats, it bears reminding: Network compromise is now largely a matter of when, not if for most businesses. As a result of this shift in security and operating environments, it’s important for enterprise leaders to note the six key reasons that most data breach responses fail: No Budget: Despite the seeming inevitability of a data breach, most companies’ average annual budget for a consumer response is exactly $0. Many companies and security teams believe they are fully prepared or won’t be targeted. But with losses due to ransomware attacks up 225% lately in the US alone3, it can be an expensive gamble to make. Never Tested: Even if a company does have a data breach response plan in place, it’s not usually been stressed-tested via live exercises and drills. Having a plan in place is a great first step, but unless you test it in a live breach simulation or exercise, you can’t be certain the plan will be successful. Unknown Impact: It can be hard to know how much of your customer population has been impacted by the breach. Your plan needs to be flexible enough to accommodate both small and massive breaches. No Estimate: Data breach responses also fail because there is no estimate for the scale of phone calls, emails, and complaints that may be received. To put things in perspective: A small data breach is MUCH different and easier to remedy than a one involving millions of records. Slow to Respond: By law, firms that suffer a data breach must now report the incident to government authorities within 72 hours. Failure to address increasing regulatory compliance and information sharing needs (which demand greater oversight and overhead from organizations), can come with hefty fines. No SLAs: Companies often don’t have the necessary agreements to guarantee the infrastructure and staff to assist consumers with resolving their cases. Having a dedicated, guaranteed number of call center agents ready to go when a company experiences a data breach is invaluable. To improve your odds of successfully defending against and responding to breaches, you’ll want to focus on strengthening four areas of operations: Guarantee Resources: Ensure that you have dedicated security resources and prepared to react to threats on the turn of a dime. Your SLAs should include well-trained, certified call center agents and the infrastructure ready to go. This should include scalable and high quality identity protection services to resolve harm to your customers. Readiness Testing: Failing to plan (i.e. not stress-testing your recovery plan prior to incidents occurring) is like planning to fail. By rehearsing your disaster response and recovery strategies, you’ll be able to identify any points of failure and shortcomings that you can improve upon before actual concerns arise. Regulatory Needs: Emphasize quick and accurate responses to regulator inquiries by understanding the specifics for your industry and business. Communications: Having a corporate communications plan ready to go in real-time is also key. Connect with your communications team to create a communications response plan prior to any incidents occurring so that all you largely need to tweak are specifics on the day of the event. According to studies by IBM, companies can save $1.2 million off the cost of data breaches by having an incident response plan in place and extensively testing it before cyber threats strike. Bearing this in mind, the best defense against digital dangers is a good offense. Experian’s Reserved Response™ was created to help organizations take a proactive approach to data breach response planning. Deploy it to put an end-to-end game plan in place and implement a step-by-step playbook that workers can follow in the event of  an incident. You’ll also guarantee that your organization gains the necessary manpower, infrastructure, and response readiness needed to ensure ongoing network resilience and a speedy recovery should disaster strike. 1 Cybersecurity Ventures, Annual Cybercrime Report 2020 2 Cybersecurity Ventures, Cybercrime to Cost the World $10.5 Trillion Annually by 2025 3 Cyberreason, Ransomware: The True Cost to Business Study 2021

Despite an unprecedented 18 months since the pandemic was in full force and many Americans were sent home, financial wellness continues to be on the up and up. Consumers continue to manage credit well and the average credit score climbed seven points since 2020 to 695, the highest point in more than 13 years. In Experian’s 12th annual State of Credit report, the headlines are hopeful regarding how Americans are managing personal finances in the face of the pandemic. The report provides a comprehensive look at the credit performance of consumers across America by highlighting consumer credit scores and borrowing behaviors. This year’s report features data from 2019 pre-pandemic, the 2020 pandemic year, and the start of 2021. “The findings from this year’s report show something I’ve always believed: Americans are resilient, for the most part they make smart decisions in the face of adversity and they are agile in adjusting their financial habits when the environment or circumstances change,” said Alex Lintner, President, Experian Consumer Information Services. Highlights of Experian’s State of Credit report: 2021 State of Credit Report 2019 2020 2021 Average VantageScore® credit score [1] 682 688 695 Median VantageScore® credit score 687 697 707 Average number of credit cards 3.0 3.0 3.0 Average credit card balance $6,494 $5,897 $5,525 Average revolving utilization rate 30% 26% 25% Average number of retail credit cards 2.50 2.42 2.33 Average retail credit card balance $1,930 $2,044 $1,887 Average nonmortgage debt $25,057 $25,483 $25,112 Average mortgage debt $210,263 $215,655 $229,242 Average auto loan or lease $19,034 $19,462 $20,505 Average 30–59 days past due delinquency rates 3.8% 2.4% 2.3% Average 60–89 days past due delinquency rates 1.9% 1.3% 1.0% Average 90–180 days past due delinquency rates 6.6% 3.8% 2.5% We asked Joseph Mayans, Principal Economist at Advantage Economics, LLC, for his reactions to the findings: “The State of Credit Report captures the three central themes of the pandemic. First, it shows the overwhelming success of the fiscal support packages. By far, the most striking example of this is the broad based and significant decline in delinquencies during a time when millions of people were out of work. Second, the report showcases the resiliency of American households. People used their stimulus dollars to stay on top of their bills and pay down debt, which boosted average credit scores across all generations. And third, it highlights the unique behavioral shifts brought on by the pandemic. We can see these changes in the rise of housing and auto debt as people bought larger homes and sought to drive rather than ride public transportation.” Generational Trends As indicated in the findings, consumers across all generations except Gen Z saw decreased utilization rates and decreased credit card balances year over year. Consumers are also missing fewer payments with notable improvements seen among the youngest consumers. Mortgage debt was up across every generation, which may correlate with the record low interest rates on mortgages, refinances and moves. According to the CBRE, “the pandemic accelerated several long-standing American migration patterns” as evidenced by more than 15.9 million people filing change-of-address requests with the United States Postal Service. Compared with 2019, 2020 change-of-address requests show a 4% increase in total movers, 2% increase in permanent movers and 27% increase in temporary movers, according to a study by MyMove. Mayans also made note of the mortgage trends. “It’s becoming clearer that millennials are stepping into the homebuying phase in a big way. Once thought to be the generation of apartments and urban revival, many older millennials are now buying homes and moving to the suburbs much like their parents before them,” Mayans said. “This will have significant implications for the post-pandemic world, especially as work from home becomes more prevalent.” State Trends The states with the highest and lowest average credit score remained unchanged from last year with the highest average score of 726 held by Minnesota and an average score of 666 held by Mississippi. New Jersey had the highest number of credit cards and retail cards at 3.37 and 2.54 respectively, and Alaska had the highest credit card debt at $7,089 (U.S. average is $5,525) and Texas had the highest retail debt at $2,248 (U.S. average is $1,888). What Lies Ahead Some have argued that the past year of the pandemic and quarantine forced a lot of time for reflection. The continued positive trends of consumer behavior seem to indicate some of that effort was put toward better financial health practices. That said, like any sourdough bread recipe or DIY home glow-up, there’s always more to learn and opportunities to seize when it comes to financial health. “We are committed to working with lenders and the industry to help consumers gain access to credit, driving broader financial inclusion, while also teaching consumers how to responsibly build and use credit responsibly,” Lintner said. In addition to the free weekly credit report at AnnualCreditReport.com, Experian also offers consumers free access to their credit report and ongoing credit monitoring at Experian.com. Additional credit education resources and tools Join Experian’s #creditchat hosted by @Experian on Twitter with financial experts every Wednesday at 3 p.m. Eastern time. Bilingual and Spanish speakers are also invited to join Experian’s monthly #ChatdeCredito hosted on Twitter at 3 p.m. Eastern time beginning September 16. Visit the Ask Experian blog for answers to common questions, advice and education about credit. Add positive telecom, utility and streaming service payments to your Experian credit report for an opportunity to improve your credit scores by visiting experian.com/boost[2] For additional resources, visit https://www.experian.com/consumereducation To see all the findings, download the 2021 State of Credit Report.   Download the full report [1] VantageScore® is a registered trademark of VantageScore Solutions, LLC. VantageScore® credit score range is 300 to 850. [2] Results may vary. See Experian.com for details

Your local auto market changes every day. Today’s challenge is securing the inventory needed to keep new and repeat customers coming in the door. Tomorrow it might be finding the right customers for the inventory you have secured. Either way, understanding the competitive activity in your market is key to developing ongoing strategies for success. Important competitive insights include the ability to: • Gauge your performance against the competition by identifying each unit registered in your market • Discover what vehicles are popular among your consumers by make and model • Identify the key characteristics of customers in your area. In yet another benefit, Experian provides our AutoCheck Elite dealer clients with complimentary access to in-depth market reporting, including these comprehensive reports: The AutoCount Market Ranking Report Learn whether you’re getting your share of vehicle sales in your local market’s top zip codes. This report: • Lists all sales activity within a 15-mile radius of your dealership • Provides unbiased monthly information from state DMVs on new and used vehicle sales • Includes access to our web-based portal to provide instant access to a variety of customizable reports • Identifies vehicle registration by ZIP code to pinpoint marketing opportunities The AutoCount Vehicle Model Ranking Report Stock the right inventory by learning what vehicles are popular among your consumers (see example below). This report: • Provides an expanded view of the dealership’s market, which leads to more informed decisions that maximize untapped profit potential • Track the top 25 new and used vehicles within a 15-mile radius of your dealership as well as the top gainers and losers in the market • Offers an easy-to-read graphical summary of critical market information, including lender ranking • Gives an unbiased scorecard of dealership performance in the local market to determine market share and competitive insight Having access to monthly DMV reports and analysis can help deliver a competitive edge to your dealership. To become an AutoCheck member today, contact us or call 1.888.409.2204.

The automotive finance market is beginning to level out to pre-pandemic trends in Q2 2021.

The collections landscape is changing as a result of new and upcoming legislation and increased expectations from consumers. Because of this, businesses are looking to create more effective, consumer-focused collections processes while remaining within regulatory guidelines. Our latest tip sheet has insights that can help businesses and agencies optimize their collections efforts and remain compliant, including:   Start with the best data Keep pace with changing regulations Focus on agility Pick the right partner Download the tip sheet to learn how to maximize your collections efforts while reducing costs, avoiding reputational damage and fines, and improving overall engagement. Download tip sheet

As last year’s high-volume mortgage environment wanes, lenders are shifting focus to address another set of challenges. Continued economic uncertainty lingers as consumers navigate towards recovery. As such, mortgage lenders have less clarity than normal to assess risk and measure performance in their servicing portfolios. On top of that, more lenders are struggling with customer retention than ever before, due to a historically low rate environment in 2020. These combined factors create a new set of challenges servicers will face in the coming months. We explore a few of these challenges below. An incomplete picture of risk The CARES Act accommodation reporting structure has made it challenging for servicing teams to fully understand the impact of forbearance in their portfolios. If looking only at a CARES Act accommodated borrower’s credit profile, there is no indication whether that consumer would otherwise be delinquent or headed towards default. In turn, lenders cannot model out risk based on this information alone. Borrowers’ financial situations can still change rapidly, and some are still struggling to regain their financial footing. Property data also plays a part in a holistic view of risk. Partly due to lack of housing inventory, home equity continues to rise in many areas of the country, yet there is still uncertainty around whether prices are overinflated, whether the market will correct itself and by how much, and the impact the foreclosure moratorium may have on one’s portfolio. And property dynamics continue to change due to consumer migration stemming from the onset of virtual or hybrid work environments, where homeowners are less bound geographically to a place of work. Being able to have insight into a holistic view of risk is critical to navigating the upcoming months in mortgage servicing. Low borrower retention 2020’s prevailing low-rate environment continues to persist well into 2021 creating a big challenge for mortgage servicers in terms of borrower retention. Borrowers continue to be incentivized to refinance, and in some instances multiple times, to capture the savings throughout the life of their mortgage. Every time a borrower refinances, the lender who’s servicing the loan risks losing the borrower to another lender. This portfolio runoff can create losses for the lender; high portfolio run off rates have shown to negatively impact portfolio performance and investor credibility while increasing marketing cost for new customer acquisition. In our Mortgage in 2021 webinar, we point to the sheer magnitude of this – at the end of 2020, a whopping 33% of first mortgages were less than a year old. Additionally, with the uptick in the number of fintech mortgage lenders and aggregation websites, it has become increasingly easy for consumers to shop for alternative options. Being able to predict the consumers likely to refinance can help servicers retain existing customers and reduce losses. Lack of operational efficiency Lenders and servicers had to increase the capacity of their systems, oftentimes at the turn of a dime, due to last year’s record-breaking origination volumes. This led to massive growing pains while simultaneously stress-testing a company’s systems and processes. As a result, the overall cost to produce a mortgage has risen. Borrower data hygiene poses a challenge for many servicers as well. There was a lot of movement in 2020 in terms of mergers and acquisitions which may also affect servicers’ operational efficiency. Marrying several disparate data points during such events can lead to borrower data inconsistencies and duplicates across loan origination systems. And as consumers come out of forbearance or deferral status, servicers are managing more calls to their inbound call centers, increasing the scope of the problem.  Having tools to ensure data accuracy and correct consumer contact information can help reduce operating cost. Conclusion There certainly is a lot of pressure on servicers to optimize and be in a position to efficiently help homeowners in need as forbearance and foreclosure moratoriums end. But with the right data, insights and partners, mortgage servicers can navigate these challenges all while managing risk and enabling the business to grow safely. In our next blog, we highlight what forward-thinking lenders and servicers are focusing on now to navigate the upcoming months in mortgage servicing. Learn more

The Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), which regulates telemarketing calls, autodialed calls, prerecorded calls, text messages and unsolicited faxes, was originally passed in 1991. Since that time, there have been many rulings and updates that impact businesses’ ability to maintain TCPA compliance.   Recent TCPA Changes   On December 30, 2020, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) updated a number of TCPA exemptions, adding call limits and opt-out requirements, and codifying exemptions for calls to residential lines.   These changes, along with other industry changes, have added additional layers of complication to keeping compliant while still optimizing operations and the consumer experience.   Maintaining TCPA Compliance   Businesses who do not maintain TCPA compliance could be subject to a lawsuit and paying out damages, and potential hits to their reputation.   With the right partner in place, businesses can maintain data hygiene and accuracy to increase right-party contact (and reduce wrong-party contact) to keep collections streamlined and improve the customer experience.   Using the right technology in place, it’s easier to:   Monitor and verify consumer contact information for a better customer experience while remaining compliant. Receive and monitor daily notifications about changes in phone ownership information. Maintain compliance with Regulation F by leveraging a complete and accurate database of consumer information.   When searching for a partner, be sure to look for one who offers data scrubbing, phone type indicators, phone number scoring, phone number identity verification, ownership change monitoring, and who has direct access to phone carriers.   To learn more about how the right technology can help your business maintain TCPA compliance, visit us or request a call. Learn more

I woke up early this morning to get my run in on the treadmill before starting my day. As I listened to music on my Pandora account, I saw an advertisement for my local Ford dealer. Later in the week, I was streaming my favorite show, and on came an advertisement suggesting I service my vehicle at the same local Ford dealer. When I checked my email on Tuesday, I remembered I wanted to schedule my service. Then came the letter with an option to check the appraisal for my vehicle. Now, I am fully shopping!!! Why you ask? Because the marketing message across so many channels set the stage for my interest. According to Google, multi-channel users will have a 30 percent higher lifetime value compared to single channel users. As contemporary society grows more attached to streaming services, social media and their cell phones, it is imperative to market to consumers where they spend time. Why then do so many automotive marketing companies only offer direct mail and email? Simple− those two forms of communication have been around for decades and can be the most cost effective to provide. While direct mail marketing is effective, utilizing the power of social media, streaming services and other digital platforms effectively puts your message in front of consumers. While I can toss the letter on my desk for later reading, the video commercial during my television streaming cannot be set aside. Multi-channel marketing combines various platforms to amplify your campaign’s frequency and reach, creating more effective messaging. One channel is often not enough for a robust marketing campaign since audiences tend to frequent many different channels. Experian’s Automotive Intelligence Engine with Marketing Creative & Fulfillment executes the strategic marketing plan created in AIE with true multi-channel messaging. This end-to-end solution utilizes Experian’s world-class data to create a powerful, brand-specific marketing strategy that resonates with your buyers by reaching their inbox, mailbox, screen and desktop −where they spend the most time.

Over the last year and a half, strong trends emerged in how businesses and consumers interact online - specifically when validating identities and preventing fraud. We initially explored these trends at a global level, and now we've explored U.S.-specific insights into online security, the customer experience, and digital activities and operations. Download the North America findings report to learn more about business and consumer fraud and identity trends impacting the way we live, work, and interact. Review your fraud strategy

Millions of consumers lack credit history and/or have difficulty obtaining credit from mainstream financial institutions. As a result, the use of expanded Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) – or alternative – data has continued to gain popularity among lenders and financial intuitions to enrich decisions across the entire lending lifecycle to meet the financial needs of their consumers. Experian presented in a recent webinar hosted by AFSA, where Alpa Lally, Vice President of Product Management, and David Elmore, Automotive Solutions Consultant, had a chance to speak about the benefits of FCRA data, and ways lenders can leverage this data to ease access to credit for “invisible” and below prime consumers. Watch the full webinar, “FCRA Data: The Key to Unlocking Credit Universe” and learn more about: How expanded FCRA data is being used throughout the lending lifecycle The benefits of leveraging FCRA data including providing a more holistic view of a consumer’s credit profile and behavior beyond financial services, leading to smarter, more informed lending decisions The lift FCRA data can offer when augmented with traditional credit data This webinar is a part of AFSA’s partner webinar series. To learn more about FCRA data and explore related content, please visit our FCRA Alternative Credit Data Resources Page. Learn More About FCRA-Alternative Credit Data

Have you ever wanted to ask a customer to sign an AutoCheck vehicle history report to indicate they have received and reviewed the report and they are aware of the status of the vehicle they are purchasing?