B.C. LIEN SERVICE CAN REDUCE REPAIR DECLINES
Automotive repair shops and service departments in B.C. can now extend credit to customers safely, securely — and in under three minutes, according to Mat Boyer, Vice-President of Business Development with Integrated Recovery Solutions Corp (IRSC).
His company provides a full suite of asset recovery services, ranging from direct repossession, debt collection and asset location to online security agreements and national administration services.
EZliens.ca is one of the businesses under the IRSC umbrella, and it’s out to help clients get paid for repairing cars and trucks by providing a simple solution that replaces the traditional — and sometimes complicated — repairers lien.
According to Boyer, many service managers are unaware of how, when and why to use a lien, or how to collect on a lien that has been placed on a vehicle. EZliens.ca gives them a simple way to stop losing business from customers who can’t afford immediate vehicle repairs, he says.
“Sometimes it’s just life circumstances,” Boyer says, of the customer who brings a car in for a regular check up and learns that substantial — and costly — work is required. “People often are not budgeting for maintenance, even though their car is the second biggest cost outside of accommodation.”
By giving the customer some time to pay for the repair — with 60 to 90 days interest free — the service department provides a positive customer experience, and makes a sale it might otherwise have lost, he says.
“There’s also a safety factor,” says Boyer. He gives the example of a customer bringing a car in for an oil change and discovering from the mechanic that the brakes will be under the recommended percentage for safe driving soon.
“It’s not safe for someone to drive around with no brakes just because they can’t afford the repair,” says Boyer. “They might have kids in that car. If it’s not safe now, it won’t get better with more use.”
With EZliens.ca, the mechanic can do the repair work, give the customer a safe vehicle to drive and ensure that a payment will be made at a later date, one that works for both the customer and the repair shop, he says.
The easy-to-use lien form can be filled out by the service manager in less than three minutes, according to Boyer and the agreement can be valid for as long as needed. Liens are initially registered for one year, but can be extended instantly. A small fee to handle administration can be either absorbed by the repair shop or charged back to the customer.
The agreement allows recovery of costs associated with repossession, storage, towing and sale, if necessary. “From a dealership perspective, it’s not only a lien. It’s also a security agreement. It protects the shop,” says Boyer.
While EZliens is currently available in British Columbia only, the company is working towards launching the service in other provinces. For more details on EZliens, visit: www.ezliens.ca.
